I Can Change — New Month New Way of Thinking (Physiological Sigh)

A new month begins today, and I know what a new month can feel like, somewhere between a fresh page and a quiet accusation. Because part of you is already looking back at August at what you meant to do, at what you promised yourself in the summer and you didn't quite manage. But I want to offer you something different this morning, my friend. A month is not a report card.

When you do not need the first of September to begin again, because the truth is much kinder than that. Every single day, it's a brand new reset, every hour, every breath. Today just happens to be a good day to notice it. So this is about a new month and a new way of thinking.

It's an example of who you were last month and giving yourself permission to start clean. Not once a year, not once a month, but as many times as you need. Hi, this is Calming Anxiety. I'm Martin, former paramedic, now clinical hypnotherapist, and for ten quite minutes each day, wherever you are in the world, we sit down together.

So find your quiet place now, somewhere company. You can sit all I down, whatever you prefer, wherever is exactly right for you. And if it's safe to do so, let your eyes close. If not, just soften your gaze.

Now let your shoulders drop away from your ears. Unclench your jaw. And I'd like you to picture something with me. Imagine you've been walking with a heavy backpack.

And within that pack, you've been carrying every unfinished thing from the last month. Every I should have, every list you didn't get to the bottom of. You've carried it a long way. And of course you're tired.

And now, for just ten minutes, let the strap slide down off your shoulders. Let it land softly on the floor beside you. You are not abandoning it, you're just setting it down. That's the difference, and your body knows it.

You are safe. You are here. There is nothing to fear right now. Today we'll use the physiological sigh again.

There's no better breath for a reset. So you'll breathe in, and just at the very top, you take an extra sip of air to fully inflate the lungs. We then hold, and then mindfully out through the mouth, you exhale. Knowing that sensation of release and relaxation.

So ready? Two breaths in through the nose, one long out breath, nothing to force, just follow my voice. So breathe in, two, three, sip, and now at the top, hold, and relax. Exhale, four, five.

Six, perfect. Let's do that again. Ready? Breathe in, two, three.

Short sip, hold, and now, two, three, four, five, six.

Breathe in through the nose, two, three. Just a sip, hold, two, release, two, three, four, five, six.

Do you notice that small drop, like that lift settling onto a floor? Let's do it one more time. Ready? Breathe in, two, three, extra sip, hold, release, two, three, four, five, six.

Now let your breath find its own rhythm again. You do not need to manage it. And maybe notice that you're already different than then you were 90 seconds ago. That's the whole point, my friend.

The reset was never far away. It was always about two breaths in and one long breath out. Now imagine that beautiful, early autumn sun through a window at warm, golden light, gathering just above your head with every out breath. Let it pour down, flowing slowly through you, across your forehead, softening the space between your eye, over your chest, warming that tight band across your ribs through your stomach, down your arms, your hands, your fingertips, down through the legs, and out through the soles of your feet.

And then quietly, in your own mind, in your imagination, imagine these words and repeat them softly in your thoughts. I am safe. I am here. There is nothing to fear right now.

This is a new month and I am allowed a new way of thinking.

I do not carry last month into this one.

August passed across me. September will pass across me and I will still be here. Every day is a brand new reset and I am allowed to begin again as often as I need.

I have not fallen behind. There is no schedule I am failing. I am not starting over. I am starting from experience.

I am calm. I am capable. I am enough that this month.

Now that golden light now to settle, warm and quiet into the very centre of your chest.

It will come with you in September, into every day. Now relax and unwind. And take with you today's three daily caring tips. One, write down one single thing you would like more of this month.

Not a resolution, not a target, just one word and put it somewhere you will see it each morning. Two, when you catch yourself saying I have already ruined it today, take one physiological side and carry on anyway because the day is not scored. And three, choose one small thing you did well within August and say it out loud to yourself because you will list your failures without any prompting at all. Now gently let's come back.

Roll your fingers and toes. Roll your shoulders once, slowly. Feel the chair or bed or the floor beneath you, solid, holding you. Take one easy breath in through the nose and then as you let it go through the mouth, stretch out through your arms and legs.

And when you are ready, let your eyes open and let them room come back. Welcome back my friend. Welcome to September. That's our ten minutes and that September begun gently which is the only way to begin anything.

Remember you don't need the first of the month. Tomorrow morning is a reset, tonight is a reset. The next breath is a reset. First of day helps, please take calming anxiety with you and download my app, Ankit.

There are over 3000 searchable offline ready sessions, sleep stories with books at bedtime and a night light for the small hours. No streaks, no guilt, just somewhere to come back to. And if you would like to do one thing just for me this month, please share this episode with someone who is being hard on themselves about how their year is going. It takes just 10 seconds and it might change how they start their September.

Go gently, be kind to yourself and be kind to other people.