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Just make yourself comfortable and close your eyes now. Just separate your hands and let them lie loosely in your lap or by your sides if that's more comfortable. It's better if your legs are uncrossed, but it doesn't matter if you feel the need to move slightly now and again. You don't have to be absolutely still, just be comfortable and relax the whole body as much as you can. Now I want you to take a deep breath and hold it for a moment before breathing out slowly--just allowing your whole body to relax as you do so--and I want you to keep your eyes closed now, and just keep listening quietly to the sound of my voice. You'll be aware of other sounds, too: sounds inside the building, sounds from outside, maybe passing traffic? But these won't disturb you. In fact, they'll help to relax you, because just for now the world outside is absolutely unimportant to you.
The only sound you're interested in is the sound of my voice, and while you're listening to the sound of my voice, I want you to concentrate for a moment on your breathing. Breathing slowly. And steadily. And evenly. Just as if you were trying to convince somebody that you were absolutely sound asleep. And as you breathe out each time, just allowing your whole body to relax more and more so that you gradually find yourself feeling as if your whole body were sinking further, and further, with each breath you breathe. And while you're listening to the sound of my voice, you can just simply allow yourself to be as lazy as you would ever want to be.
Just allow yourself to be as lazy as you could ever want to be.
Good.
Now, while you're relaxing there, you can just be aware of your body, aware of your hands where they rest. Perhaps noticing the angle of your elbows, and maybe sensing the weight of your head--and, you know, that weight might seem to just gently increase as you allow yourself to relax more and more. Just being aware of your ankles and feet now, and wondering if maybe they will start to feel heavy, too, as you relax.
Thinking about your breathing for a few moments, noticing that your breathing is becoming slower and steadier as you relax more and more. Slower, and steadier. Breathing so steadily and evenly just as if though you were pretending to be sound asleep. Breathing so evenly, so steadily, you almost wouldn't disturb a feather placed immediately in front you.
Breathing so slowly, and evenly--so gently, that you almost wouldn't disturb even a single strand of a feather placed right in front of you.
And as you allow yourself to relax even more now, I wonder if perhaps you can sense the beating of your own heart. Sensing the beat of your own heart and just seeing whether you can use the power of your mind to slow that heartbeat down just a touch. Just seeing whether you can use the power of your mind to slow that heartbeat down just a little so that you can feel your whole body slowing down, becoming lazier and lazier, because you've got absolutely nothing whatsoever to do except to relax now.
Nobody wanting anything. Nobody expecting anything, so you can allow your whole body to continue to relax and become steadier and easier, until it's just ticking over, like a well-maintained machine of some sort or another. Just ticking over. Smoothly. Easily. Quietly. Comfortably. So that you can become gradually more aware of your whole self, aware of your hands and arms. Just sensing how they are now. Aware of your legs and feet. Again, just sensing how relaxed they might be and wondering if it's possible to relax them even more, to be so in touch with yourself that you can actually get your whole body, perhaps, to relax even more, yet remaining totally alert, and noticing how now even your face muscles can begin to really relax. Relaxing and letting go of the tensions that were there, almost-but-not-quite-completely unnoticed.
Just being vaguely aware of the skin and the muscles of your face settling, smoothing out: a good feeling. Wondering just how long all that tension had been there, where it all came from in the first place, and then realizing that you simply couldn't care less because you can feel it draining away from you now, and that feels good.
And as you continue to sense the beating of your heart and the absolute steadiness of your body's rhythm, you wonder at the fact that you are so completely relaxed and comfortable that you simply can't be bothered to even try to move even one single muscle, even though you know you easily could...if you wanted to. But you simply can't be bothered to even try, allowing yourself to just be. Relaxed.
And relaxing even more now, as lazy and relaxed as anyone could ever wish to be, and I wonder if you can now manage to relax even more, even though you are already as relaxed as it is possible for most people to ever be. Just finding the last tiny traces of tensions in your body. And simply letting them go with each easy, gentle, breath you breathe. Allowing every muscle, every fiber, every cell of your entire body to be as beautifully relaxed as anyone could ever wish to be.
In a moment I am going to relax you more completely. In a moment I am going to begin counting backwards from 10 to 1. The moment I say the number 10, you will allow your eyelids to remain closed. The moment I say the number 10, you will, in your mind's eye, see yourself at the top of a small set of stairs.
The moment I say the number 9, and each additional number, you will simply move down the stairs relaxing more completely. At the base of the stairs is a large feather bed, with a comfortable feather pillow. The moment I say the number one, you will simply sink into that bed, resting your head on that feather pillow.
Number 10, eyes closed, at the top of the stairs.
10.
9. Relaxing and letting go.
8. Sinking into a more comfortable, calm, peaceful position.
7.
6. Going way down.
5. Moving down those stairs, relaxing more completely.
4.
3. Breathing deeply.
2. On the next number, number 1, simply sinking into that bed, becoming more calm, more peaceful, more relaxed.
1. Sinking into that feather bed, let every muscle go limp and useless as you sink into a more calm, peaceful state of relaxation. Totally focused on my words, just nice and neat and obedient and relaxed. Just listen and relax.
Now it is time for a change.
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