Calming Anxiety | Guided Meditation, Sleep Hypnosis & Panic Attack Relief

Uncle Richard's New Year's Dinner by L.M. Montgomery — A Heartwarming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Curl up and drift off to sleep with Uncle Richard's New Year's Dinner by L.M. Montgomery, the beloved author of Anne of Green Gables, read aloud by Martin Hewlett on Books at Bedtime, the sleep story series from Calming Anxiety. It's New Year's morning in the little village of Quincy, and Prissy Baker is buying matches at the store when her Uncle Richard walks in. He doesn't look at her. For eight long years, since a quarrel over a piece of property, he hasn't spoken a word to Prissy or to her father, his only brother. Prissy overhears that Uncle Richard has to drive his pork to Navarre, and that with his housekeeper away he'll come home cold and hungry to an empty house and an uncooked New Year's dinner. So she sets aside her new book and her box of candy, slips into his kitchen through the woodshed door, and starts to cook. Roast pork, potatoes, cabbage, turnips and a raisin pudding.…

World Mental Health Day — A 10-Minute Guided Meditation for When You Just Need Ten Minutes to Yourself Today, 10 October, is World Mental Health Day. If you've spent the day holding yourself together, being fine, answering properly and getting on with it, this 10-minute guided meditation is the quiet ten minutes you've been needing. Nothing to prove, nothing to achieve. The time is yours. Martin guides you through simple, gentle breathing for anxiety and stress: no counting and no breath holding, just noticing the breath you're already taking and letting the out-breath soften. Then come five calming affirmations for your mental health, including "I do not have to be fine to deserve looking after." Anchored, Martin's free-to-download app, is on iPhone (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669) and Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored). Because your mental health deserves care every day, not just on World Mental Health Day. That includes the…

The Sums That Came Right by E. Nesbit — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with The Sums That Came Right by E. Nesbit, a gentle and funny Edwardian fairy tale read aloud by Martin Hewlett on Books at Bedtime, the sleep story series from Calming Anxiety. Edwin can't see the point of lessons. Seeds turn into flowers and dinner stops you being hungry, but sums never lead to anything. Then one afternoon, with his head inside his school desk, he finds the Arithmetic Fairy glowing at the back of it, in a dress woven of integral calculus and trimmed with logarithms. From that day on, every sum Edwin gets right comes true at home. A sum about white rabbits leaves 7,563 of them in the front garden. Apples fill the cellar, oranges climb the stairs, and elephants arrive. Then a sum about a leaking cistern turns the staircase into Niagara, and Edwin has to find a way to call the fairy back and ask her to undo her gift. What follows is a tender ending about growing up,…

Everyone Else Seems Further Ahead — Calm for Doomscrolling, Comparison & Social Media Anxiety | Vagus Nerve Breathing Your thumb knows the way, doesn't it — down and down and down again. Nothing has happened to you. Nobody has said an unkind word. And yet your chest is tight, your jaw is set, and there's a low hum that says you're behind. This 10 minute guided meditation is for comparison anxiety and doomscrolling — because you've been comparing your whole self, the mess and the doubt and the 3am worries, to someone else's edited highlights. That was never a fair fight. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett. Today's breathwork is vagus nerve breathing, done with one hand resting flat and warm on the centre of your chest — because touch is part of the technique. In through the nose for four and feel your hand rise, then out softly through parted lips for seven. The long out breath and the gentle pressure together speak directly to the vagus nerve, and the message it carries…

The Twopenny Spell by E. Nesbit — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is The Twopenny Spell by E. Nesbit, the much-loved author of The Railway Children. It's a funny, warm-hearted tale of a brother, a sister and one very poorly chosen magic spell. It was written in the early 1900s and is long in the public domain: Edith Nesbit (1858–1924) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this…

Anxious at Work and Telling Everyone You're Fine — Calm for Workplace Anxiety, Pressure & Deadlines | Physiological Sigh Anxious at work and telling everyone you're fine? This 10 minute guided meditation is for workplace anxiety — the particular kind of tired that has nothing to do with sleep. The tired of holding yourself together from the moment you reach for your phone to the moment you close the laptop and realise your shoulders have been up around your ears for nine hours, and nobody at work saw a thing. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett. Today's breathwork is the physiological sigh, chosen deliberately because of all the breathing techniques taught on this show, this is the one you can use at work without a single person noticing. No counting to sixteen. No sitting cross-legged on the floor beside the printer. Two breaths in through the nose, one long slow breath out through the mouth — and your heart rate settles. That is not your imagination, that's your vagus…

The Magician's Heart by E. Nesbit — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is The Magician's Heart by E. Nesbit, the much-loved author of The Railway Children. It's a witty, warm-hearted fairy tale of christening curses, a magic kiss saved for twenty years, and a wicked magician who was once the dearest little boy in a plaid frock. It's the final story in her 1912 collection The Magic World and is long in the public domain: Edith Nesbit (1858–1924) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669…

What If Thoughts Won't Stop — Calm for Waiting, Uncertainty & Anticipatory Anxiety | Humming Bee Breath What if thoughts won't stop when you are waiting on news, waiting on a decision, waiting on a door you cannot see behind. This 10 minute guided meditation is for anticipatory anxiety — the exhausting habit of rehearsing a problem that has not happened yet. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett. Today's breathwork is the Humming Bee Breath, known in yoga as Bhramari. Humming does two things at once: it makes your out breath long and even without you counting anything, and the vibration travels up through the soft palate, throat and the bones of the skull, along the path of the vagus nerve. It is a signal your nervous system finds very difficult to argue with — because you cannot hum and brace at the same time. In through the nose for four, then a low soft hum all the way out for eight. You do not need to see the whole road. On a long drive at night your headlights show you…

Justnowland by E. Nesbit — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is Justnowland by E. Nesbit, the much-loved author of The Railway Children. It's a tender fairy tale about a lonely little girl, an enchanted kingdom of crows, and a dragon who has never once been treated kindly. It was first published in her 1912 collection The Magic World and is long in the public domain: Edith Nesbit (1858–1924) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at…

Racing Thoughts at Night — How to Quiet an Overthinking Mind | Alternate Nostril Breathing Racing thoughts at night are exhausting. There's a room in your mind and the light is still on — somebody in there is still talking, turning the same thought over and over, looking for a door in a wall that hasn't got one. Nobody chooses a racing mind. It isn't your fault. It's a nervous system asked to stay alert for too long that has forgotten how to stand down. In this 10-minute guided meditation we don't argue with the thoughts and we don't try to win — we slow the traffic down until the noise becomes distant. Today's technique is alternate nostril breathing, Nadi Shodhana, which works so well for an overthinking mind because it gives that mind a small job to hold: which hand, which finger, which side, which count. An overthinking mind doesn't stop because you ask it to. It stops when you give it something simple to hold. Two full rounds, with the exhale always longer than the inhale — the long exhale is the brake…

The Aunt and Amabel by E. Nesbit — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is The Aunt and Amabel by E. Nesbit, the much-loved author of The Railway Children. It's a magical tale of a little girl, a wardrobe in the best bedroom, and a secret railway to a beautiful city, and it's often cited as one of the inspirations for C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It was first published in 1908 and collected in The Magic World (1912), and is long in the public domain: Edith Nesbit (1858–1924) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at…

Tight Chest Anxiety — Why You Can't Take a Full Breath | Coherence Breathing for Anxiety Relief Tight chest anxiety is one of the most frightening symptoms there is — that band across the ribs, the shallow breathing, the feeling that no matter how hard you try you can't quite get a full breath in. Today's guided meditation is here to loosen it, gently, without forcing anything. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this 10-minute session uses coherence breathing — also known as resonance breathing or HRV breathing — a slow five-in, five-out rhythm that lands you at six breaths a minute. That's the resonant frequency of the human cardiovascular system: heart rate, breathing and blood pressure reflexes fall into step, heart rate variability rises, vagal tone improves, and the body finally reads the situation as safety. No holding. No straining for a big breath. Just steady, even breathing, a set of gentle affirmations for an anxious chest, and three practical caring tips you…

The Related Muff by E. Nesbit — A Calming Christmas Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is The Related Muff by E. Nesbit, the much-loved author of The Railway Children and The Story of the Treasure Seekers. It's a warm, funny Christmas tale about first impressions, quiet courage and a cousin nobody wanted. It was first published in her 1905 collection Oswald Bastable and Others and is long in the public domain: Edith Nesbit (1858–1924) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at…

Why Do I Feel Anxious When It Gets Dark Early? — A 10-Minute Guided Meditation for Dark Evenings & Winter Anxiety | 4-2-6 Breathing Why do I feel anxious when it gets dark so early? You come out of the door in the afternoon and the light is already going, and something in you drops. It's not dramatic, just a small, quiet sinking under the ribs. Nothing has happened. It's the same evening, the same jobs, the same house. And yet it feels like the day is over and you haven't done enough with it. As the clocks go back and the nights draw in, this guided meditation is for that winter-evening anxiety. If anxiety or panic sometimes catches you when you least expect it, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app, now while you're feeling okay. The big blue Instant Calm button is completely free, works offline and needs no signing up. Search "Anchored: Panic & Anxiety", or get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at…

The White Cat by E. Nesbit — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is The White Cat by E. Nesbit, the much-loved author of The Railway Children and Five Children and It. It's a warm, magical fairy tale about a little boy, a chipped china cat and a family secret hidden for 150 years. It was first published in her 1912 collection The Magic World and is long in the public domain: Edith Nesbit (1858–1924) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at…

Panic Attack Relief — Ride the Wave Until It Passes | Box Breathing Guided Meditation If your heart is hammering, your hands are tingling and some frightened part of you is certain something terrible is about to happen — start here. This is Panic Attack Relief: a 10-minute guided meditation to help you float through a panic attack instead of fighting it. You are not dying, you are not going mad, you are not losing control. A panic attack is a wave — it rises, it peaks, and every single time, it falls. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this session uses box breathing (also called square breathing or tactical breathing) — the breath taught to soldiers, divers and emergency responders to keep a clear head while the body is screaming to run. We start with gentle counts of three, ease into fours, then settle into warm golden-light affirmations to remind your nervous system that the adrenaline is already finishing its journey and cannot stay. Whether you're on the bathroom…

Silence — A Fable by Edgar Allan Poe — A Classic Gothic Bedtime Story, Narrated Audiobook | Books at Bedtime A classic audiobook narrated aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's bedtime story is Silence — A Fable by Edgar Allan Poe, a strange, dreamlike prose poem and one of his least known and most hypnotic works, perfect for the long October nights leading up to Halloween. It was first published in 1838 under the title "Siope — A Fable" and is long in the public domain: Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849) died more than 175 years ago. For more calming audiobooks and gentler sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. "Listen to me," said the Demon, as he…

I Can Change — New Month New Way of Thinking (Physiological Sigh) A new month can feel like something between a fresh page and a quiet accusation. Part of you is already looking back — at what you meant to do, at what you promised yourself and didn't quite manage. This 10-minute guided meditation offers something kinder: a month is not a report card, and you don't need the first of September to begin again. Martin guides you through setting down the heavy backpack of everything unfinished from last month, then into the physiological sigh — two breaths in through the nose, one long breath out through the mouth. It's the fastest reset your nervous system has, and it makes the point of the whole episode better than any words can: you were already different ninety seconds later. Four guided rounds, followed by a warm golden-light body scan and affirmations for self-compassion, fresh starts and letting go. This is anxiety relief for anyone who feels behind, who is being hard on themselves about how the year is…

The Oval Portrait by Edgar Allan Poe — A Classic Gothic Bedtime Story, Narrated Audiobook | Books at Bedtime A classic audiobook narrated aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's bedtime story is The Oval Portrait by Edgar Allan Poe, one of his shortest and most haunting tales, and a beautifully atmospheric read-aloud as the nights draw in towards Halloween. It was first published in 1842 under the title "Life in Death" and is long in the public domain: Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849) died more than 175 years ago. For more calming audiobooks and gentler sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this narrated short story, a wounded traveller shelters for…

Anxiety Relief in 10 Minutes — Turn Your Anxiety Down, Not Off | Guided Meditation With 4-2-6 Breathing Anxiety relief in ten minutes, with nothing to achieve. If you're listening right in the middle of anxiety, stay here. You don't have to switch anxiety off. You can simply learn to turn it down a little, one breath at a time. This gentle guided meditation for anxiety is for any moment you need to unclench your jaw, drop your shoulders and let your nervous system settle, whether you're heading back into your day or getting ready for sleep. For a quiet place to return to whenever anxiety catches you out, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's free companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode uses 4-2-6 breathing: in through the nose for four, a gentle pause for two, and…

The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe — A Classic Gothic Bedtime Story, Narrated Audiobook | Books at Bedtime A classic audiobook narrated aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's bedtime story is The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe, the most famous short story ever written by the master of gothic fiction, and a perfect read-aloud as the nights draw in towards Halloween. It was first published in 1843 and is long in the public domain: Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849) died more than 175 years ago. For more calming audiobooks and gentler sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. "True! Nervous, very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will…

Why Do I Feel Anxious When Nothing Is Wrong? — A 10-Minute Guided Meditation for Anxiety for No Reason | Grounding & Letting Go Why do I feel anxious when nothing is wrong? Everything is fine. Nobody has called with bad news, the house is quiet, and yet there it is: that little knot inside saying something isn't right. This guided meditation is for anxiety for no reason, the frustrating kind where there's nothing you can point to, so your mind goes searching for something to worry about and fills a perfectly ordinary quiet moment with it. For a quiet place to return to whenever this feeling catches you out, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's free companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode doesn't try to find what's wrong. Instead you'll practise what it feels like to…

An Unfinished Story by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is An Unfinished Story by O. Henry, one of his most loved and most quietly moving tales, about a young New York shopgirl living on six dollars a week. It was first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million and is long in the public domain: William Sydney Porter (1862–1910) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In…

Why Does My Voice Shake When I'm Anxious? — A 10-Minute Guided Meditation for a Shaky Voice & Anxiety Relief | 6-3-9 Breathing Why does my voice shake when I'm anxious? If your voice trembles or wobbles when you talk, whether in a meeting, on the phone or just saying something that matters, this guided meditation is for that kind of anxiety other people can actually hear. Most of us assume the problem is the throat. But anxiety affects the whole system you speak with: your breathing, the muscle tension around your jaw and shoulders, and the way you control your voice. For a quiet place to return to whenever this feeling catches you out, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's free companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode explains why anxious breathing turns short and…

Between Rounds by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is Between Rounds by O. Henry, a warm, funny tale of one May evening at a New York boarding house. It was first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million and is long in the public domain: William Sydney Porter (1862–1910) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing narrated short story, the May moon shines on…

Why Am I So Frightened of Needing People? — A 10-Minute Guided Meditation for Fear of Relying on Others & Anxiety Relief | 4-6 Breathing Why am I so frightened of needing people? Someone did something kind for you recently, and for about half a second it was lovely. Then something underneath went cold: "What would I do if they weren't here?" Ever since, you've been quietly trying to need them a little less. This guided meditation is for that fear of relying on others, of being a burden and of losing the people who are still right here. For a quiet place to return to whenever this feeling catches you out, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's free companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode uses gentle 4-6 breathing with a small, soft pause after the out-breath, a chance…

Springtime à la Carte by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off to sleep with this gentle bedtime story, a classic audiobook narrated aloud for insomnia relief and deep relaxation as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime series. Tonight's sleep story is Springtime à la Carte by O. Henry, a tender, witty tale of love, longing and one very important restaurant menu. It was first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million and is long in the public domain: William Sydney Porter (1862–1910) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing narrated short…

Why Can't I Answer When Someone Asks How I Am? — A 10-Minute Meditation for When the Words Won't Come Somebody asked you properly today. They stopped, looked at you, and said, "How are you doing?" — and then they actually waited. There was a half a second in there where you had the chance to tell them. But what came out was, "Yeah, good, you." And you've been carrying that little moment around ever since, because it felt like a lie. It wasn't. This is for anyone who freezes when someone asks how they're doing, who can't find the words to answer honestly, and who's been quietly wondering why such a small question lands so hard. For a place to return to rather than another place to explain yourself, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app, on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Inside it there's a daily check-in that never asks a follow-up question — no one on…

Sisters of the Golden Circle by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is Sisters of the Golden Circle, O. Henry's warm, witty New York story about two newlywed brides who understand each other completely in a single glance. It was first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million and is long in the public domain: William Sydney Porter (1862–1910) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, James…

Why Do I Feel Guilty After Cancelling Plans? — A 10-Minute Meditation for Relief, Guilt and Needing Rest You sent the message — so sorry, won't be able to make it — and for about four seconds you felt wonderful. Genuine relief. Shoulders coming down, the whole evening handed back to you. And then it turned. Now you're here, phone face down on the cushion, feeling like a terrible friend. If cancelling plans leaves you with that exact one-two of relief and guilt, this guided meditation is for the ten minutes after you press send. For a place to return to whenever this happens, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist Martin Hewlett, this episode uses nadi shodhana, alternate nostril breathing, to hold two feelings side by side without either one winning, then moves into affirmation…

From the Cabby's Seat by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is From the Cabby's Seat, O. Henry's warm, funny New York story about a hansom-cab driver and one very unusual fare. It was first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million and is long in the public domain: William Sydney Porter (1862–1910) died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, a wedding party spills out onto a New York…

Am I Too Much? — A 10-Minute Meditation for Feeling Like a Burden and the Fear of Being Too Much It arrives quietly, usually afterwards, usually once you've been talking for a while. They were kind. They were still listening. And somewhere underneath it, you'd already started apologising in your head for taking up the evening. If you've ever wondered am I too much, or felt afraid of being a burden to the people who love you, this guided meditation sits with exactly that feeling, and gently questions the running total anxiety keeps on your behalf. For more of this kind of support whenever you need it, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app — there's a whole section inside called Confidence and Self-Worth you can return to as often as you like. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist Martin Hewlett, this episode uses a…

An Adjustment of Nature by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is An Adjustment of Nature, O. Henry's affectionate story of three broke young artists, a cheap New York eatery, and the magnificent waitress they consider entirely too perfect to leave — first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million, long in the public domain, with Porter (1862–1910) having died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime…

Why Am I Scared to Get My Hopes Up? — A 10-Minute Meditation for Fear of Disappointment and Bracing for Bad News Something good is coming. It's booked, it's in the diary, somebody's said yes — and yet when anyone asks, you hear yourself say, "if it happens, we'll see. I'm not getting excited yet." You haven't told many people, just in case you have to un-tell them. If you've ever felt scared to get your hopes up, this guided meditation is for that particular kind of bracing, and what it might feel like to let yourself hope anyway. For a place to return to whenever this feeling shows up, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app — no targets, no streaks, nothing to live up to, just there when you need it. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode uses 4-7-8 breathing (in for…

The Coming-Out of Maggie by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is The Coming-Out of Maggie, O. Henry's warm story of a shy paper-box factory girl who finally gets a fellow of her own — first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million, long in the public domain, with Porter (1862–1910) having died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, plain, overlooked Maggie has always been the one left…

nttobreathe shownotes · TXT I Just Need a Moment to Breathe — A 10-Minute Meditation to Let Go, Relax and Find Your Calm No theme today. Nothing to fix, nothing to overcome, nothing to figure out before you're allowed to feel better. Just ten minutes to sit, breathe, and reconnect with all that you are. If you've been carrying a lot and simply need a moment to breathe, let go and relax, this guided meditation is exactly that — a quiet reset, with nowhere you need to get to. For a place to return to whenever you need this same kind of calm, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode uses gentle breath awareness and a warm, spreading light visualisation to settle the body, before moving into affirmations of worth, forgiveness and…

Memoirs of a Yellow Dog by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is Memoirs of a Yellow Dog, O. Henry's funny, warm-hearted story narrated entirely by a put-upon little dog stuck in a fussy New York flat — first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million, long in the public domain, with Porter (1862–1910) having died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, our unnamed narrator — a scruffy,…

Why Can't I Accept a Compliment? — A 10-Minute Meditation for Deflecting Praise and Receiving Kindness Somebody said something lovely to you recently, and you did that thing — the little wave of the hand, "oh, stop it," or you fired one straight back at them, quick as anything, so the spotlight had somewhere else to go. Afterwards, maybe an hour later, maybe in the car, there was that little thought: why did I do that again? You can hand out compliments all day long, but you can't take one yourself. This guided meditation doesn't try to fix that in ten minutes — it just asks you to notice what happens when something good is offered to you. For a quiet place to return to, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode uses a gentle form…

Man About Town by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is Man About Town, O. Henry's wry, wandering search through turn-of-the-century New York for one elusive social type — first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million, long in the public domain, with Porter (1862–1910) having died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, our curious narrator sets out to finally pin down exactly what a "man…

Pins and Needles Anxiety — A 10-Minute Meditation for Tingling Hands and Panic You're sitting perfectly still and your hand doesn't feel like your own hand. That prickling in your fingers, a strange half-numb feeling in the palm — so you test it, open and close your fingers, hold your hand up and look at it, and the more you look, the stranger it feels. If you've been searching for pins and needles anxiety, or wondering about tingling hands anxiety, this guided meditation is for that exact moment. For a place to return to when the sensation comes back, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's free companion app — there's no symptom list inside, nothing to look up, just a voice for ten minutes and somewhere quiet to put yourself. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode uses "walking…

The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is The Gift of the Magi, O. Henry's much-loved Christmas classic about a young couple with almost nothing to spend and everything to give, first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million — long in the public domain, with Porter (1862–1910) having died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, Della has just one dollar and eighty-seven…

Why Does September Feel So Heavy? — A 10-Minute Meditation for End-of-Summer Sadness and Seasonal Low Mood You're standing in the kitchen and it's already getting dark. A few weeks ago there was still plenty of light at this time. The summer's gone, the children are back at school, the diary's filling up again — and somehow you're feeling worse, not devastated, not falling apart, just flat. That can be the frightening part, because nothing bad has actually happened. If you've been wondering about September sadness, or asking yourself why do I feel sad when summer ends, this guided meditation is for the next ten minutes of your day. For company on the darker evenings ahead, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app, with Books at Bedtime sessions to fall asleep to and a timer that switches off on its own. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by…

After Twenty Years by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is After Twenty Years, O. Henry's quietly moving story of an old promise kept between two childhood friends, first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million — long in the public domain, with Porter (1862–1910) having died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, Bob waits alone in a darkened New York doorway for the friend he agreed to…

I Think I've Lost a Friend, and I Don't Know Why — A 10-Minute Meditation for Friendship Loss and Ambiguous Grief There's a particular kind of loss that doesn't come with a day attached. No one moved away, there was no row, nothing you could point to and say "that's where it happened." It just went quiet — a little less often, then a lot less often — until one evening you realised you couldn't remember the last proper conversation, and underneath it all, the question you've been embarrassed to say out loud: what did I do? If a friendship has faded without explanation, this guided meditation sits with that ambiguous loss and the grief that comes with it. For a place to return to whenever this feeling resurfaces, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin…

The Cop and the Anthem by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is The Cop and the Anthem, O. Henry's wry, warm-hearted story of a homeless New Yorker's winter scheme, first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million — long in the public domain, with Porter (1862–1910) having died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, Soapy tries every trick he knows to get himself arrested and land a warm…

When Was the Last Time You Felt Happy? — A 10-Minute Meditation for Feeling Flat, Numb or Emotionally Stuck Somebody asked how you were, and you said fine, and you meant it — nothing is wrong. But later, standing at the sink, a harder question arrives on its own: when was the last time you felt properly happy? Not fine, not coping, not relieved something was over. Really happy. If you went looking for the answer and couldn't find it, this guided meditation is for that feeling of being flat, numb or quietly stuck, even when nothing in your life seems to justify it. For a place to return to, including a simple daily check-in, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode uses the physiological sigh (a double inhale followed by one long…

A Service of Love by O. Henry — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is A Service of Love, O. Henry's warm, witty short story about two young newlywed artists in New York who each secretly give up their art to support the other — first published in his 1906 collection The Four Million, long in the public domain, with Porter (1862–1910) having died more than a century ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, painter Joe and pianist…

Why Does My Mouth Go Dry Before I Have to Speak? — A 10-Minute Meditation for Speech Anxiety and Anticipatory Nerves It happens about 30 seconds before you have to speak. There's nothing there. You try to swallow and the swallow doesn't work either — and now you're not thinking about what you're going to say, you're thinking about whether the first word will come out as a word at all. If your mouth goes dry every time you're nervous, right at the moment you need it most, this guided meditation is your ten minutes. For a place to return to at the moment you actually need it — the ninety seconds before you walk in, not the night before — download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett, this episode uses a slow diaphragmatic (belly) breath — in through…

The Tale of Two Bad Mice by Beatrix Potter — A Calming Bedtime Story for Sleep & Insomnia | Books at Bedtime Drift off with this gentle bedtime story for sleep and insomnia relief, read aloud as part of Calming Anxiety's Books at Bedtime strand. Tonight's tale is The Tale of Two Bad Mice, Beatrix Potter's mischievous story of a doll's house raided by two curious mice, first published by Frederick Warne & Co. in 1904 — long in the public domain, with Potter (1866–1943) having died more than seventy years ago. For more calming audiobooks and sleep stories whenever you need them, download Anchored, the free companion app to Calming Anxiety, with offline-ready relaxation and Books at Bedtime sessions for any hour of the night. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. In this soothing bedtime audiobook, mice Tom Thumb and Hunca Munca sneak into a beautiful doll's house…

Why Can't I Stop Preparing for Tomorrow? — A 10-Minute Meditation for Anticipatory Anxiety and Overthinking the Future Nothing has happened yet. Not the phone call, not the appointment, not the conversation next week — and somehow your mind has already been there, imagining what might go wrong, trying to solve a problem that doesn't even exist. This guided meditation is for that constant sense that you need to prepare for whatever might happen, before it's even arrived. For the next ten minutes, you don't have to live tomorrow today — you can simply be here. For a place to return to whenever tomorrow starts crowding into today, download Anchored, Calming Anxiety's companion app. Get it on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669 or on Google Play at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.martinhewlett.anchored. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist Martin Hewlett, this episode uses a gentle four-in, two-hold, six-out breath to settle the body, then works…