| Length | 6:47 |
|---|---|
| Subject | Anxiety & Stress |
| Best time | While it is actually happening |
| Position | Anywhere you can sit, bus or car park included |
| Style | Guided, seven minutes, two questions asked of the anxiety. Music underneath |
You pressed play because it is already here. So we are not getting rid of it. We are answering the door.
About 7 minutes. Short enough for a bus or a car park.
You say hello to it, out loud or not. Then you ask why it came, the way you would ask a friend who turned up looking pale. It might answer in a sentence, a feeling, a memory, or not at all. You are not the anxiety. You are the one who opened the door.
The companion talk episode: "I'm Fine": When It's Armour, When It's Honest, and How to Tell
Treat me to a coffee, keep the podcast free, and get my Weekly Calm every Sunday. It is all on stevenwebb.uk
Thank you for sitting with me.
Steven
Who this is for
You did not put this on to prevent anything. It is already here. That is why you pressed play.
So we are not going to get rid of it, and I am not going to tell you it is not real. We are going to answer the door.
For the bus, the car park, the desk, the two minutes before you go in.
What happens in this meditation
You let something take your weight, drop the shoulders an inch, and notice the anxiety without doing anything about it.
Then you say hello to it. Out loud or not, whichever you can manage. And you notice what changes when you greet it instead of fighting it.
Then two questions, asked the way you would ask a friend who turned up at the door looking pale. Why are you here? And, what would you like from me right now?
How to get the most from it
Seven minutes, short enough to use in the moment rather than later on when it has passed.
You have permission to be distracted. Your mind will wander in the middle of this and that is not a problem, you just come back.
It is worth doing a few times when things are calm, so the hello is already familiar by the time you actually need it.
Questions people ask
What if it does not answer?
Very often it does not, and that is fine. Sometimes it comes as a sentence, sometimes a feeling, sometimes an old memory, sometimes it just sits down next to you.
Does saying hello not make it worse?
It tends to do the opposite. The fighting is what keeps it loud. Greeting it is you being the adult in the room rather than another frightened voice.
Can I do this with my eyes open?
Yes. Soften your gaze instead. If you are somewhere public or anywhere you need to stay aware, keep them open.
