Therapy for Your Nervous System: Guided Meditation for Anxiety in Uncertain Times
By Raquel Perez, LPC – Intima Couples and Sex Therapy PLLC
When the world feels overwhelming—loud, chaotic, or like it’s burning—it’s easy to lose your sense of safety and grounding.
Anxiety in uncertain times isn’t just about racing thoughts or tension in the body; it’s about feeling untethered, as if you don’t have a place to rest.
As a licensed therapist, I’ve seen how essential it is to give your nervous system permission to pause, breathe, and soften. This guided meditation for anxiety is designed to be that safe place for you—a moment to slow down, release what’s not yours to carry, and reconnect with your inner steadiness.
Whether you’re feeling the weight of the world, navigating personal challenges, or simply need a break from the noise, this practice will help you regulate your nervous system and invite insight without pressure.
🌿 Settling the Body: The First Step in Nervous System Regulation
When anxiety is high, the body often holds tension in the shoulders, jaw, or belly. That tension signals to the brain that we’re not safe, which can keep us in a cycle of stress.
The first step in this meditation is settling the body through breath and gentle awareness:
Take a deep breath in through the nose.
Slowly exhale through the mouth, letting your shoulders drop.
Release the tension in your jaw.
Let your belly soften.
There’s no “perfect” way to sit, stand, or lie down here. The key is to find your way—to meet your body where it is and allow your breath to guide you into stillness.
With each inhale and exhale, the nervous system begins to shift from survival mode into a state where healing is possible.
🔥 When the World Feels Like It’s on Fire
In times of uncertainty, we often feel pressure to fix, solve, or carry everything. But the truth is—you don’t have to figure it all out right now.
This part of the meditation is about permission:
Permission to not fix everything.
Permission to not have all the answers.
Permission to rest, even when the world feels urgent.
When we stop trying to control everything, the body finds room to breathe. The inner flame of anxiety begins to quiet, and space opens for clarity and peace.
🌲 Presence, Boundaries, and Slowness
Your nervous system thrives when you honor three essential practices:
1. Presence
Coming home to the body, the breath, and this moment. Not yesterday. Not tomorrow. Just now.
2. Boundaries
Recognizing what is not yours to carry and allowing the outside world to stay outside, even if only for a few minutes.
3. Slowness
Resisting the urge to rush. Slowness is not laziness—it’s a medicine for the mind and body. Many of the deepest insights only emerge when we create space for them to arrive.
These practices work together to create a safe environment for your nervous system, allowing you to feel grounded and connected.
✨ A Soft Landing for Insight
One of the most powerful parts of this meditation is visualizing your safe place—a space that feels deeply nourishing to your mind and body.
This space might be:
A quiet forest path with sunlight filtering through the trees
A warm room with blankets and candlelight
A peaceful beach at dusk with waves lapping against the shore
Notice the details: the colors, textures, temperature, sounds. Let your body feel the support beneath you. Allow yourself to be fully held in this sanctuary.
From here, we gently invite curiosity:
What is my body holding right now?
What part of me is asking to be seen?
What would it feel like to rest deeply—just for today?
Is there a truth I’ve been carrying that’s ready to be spoken?
There’s no need to answer right away. Insight often arrives softly, like a whisper. This space is for listening, not forcing.
🌙 Carrying the Safety With You
As the meditation closes, we remember that safety is not limited to this moment—it lives within you.
You can carry this inner sanctuary into your daily life:
By returning to your breath when you feel overwhelmed
By visualizing your safe place before a difficult conversation
By setting boundaries around your energy and time
Even in the middle of chaos, you can hold a soft ember of peace within you. It’s the part of you that knows—you are enough, you are allowed to rest, and you have the right to feel safe in your own body.
💛 Why This Meditation Works
This therapy-informed meditation for anxiety blends somatic therapy, nervous system regulation, and mindfulness to help you reconnect with safety and presence. By engaging the breath, releasing physical tension, and practicing visualization, you activate your body’s parasympathetic nervous system—the “rest and restore” mode that allows for healing.
You don’t need perfect focus to benefit from this practice. Simply showing up for yourself is the first and most important step.
🌟 Continue Your Healing Journey
If this meditation resonated with you, I invite you to explore more therapy resources that create safety for insight—the space where real transformation begins.
📘 Free Resource: Download my booklet Sacred Spaces: Creating Safety for Emotional Insight
📺 More Meditations & Therapy Insights: Visit my YouTube channel Everyday Therapy for weekly practices on emotional healing, relationships, and self-discovery.
💬 Therapy Services in Colorado:
I offer individual therapy, couples therapy, sex therapy, and ketamine-assisted therapy in-person in Lakewood, CO, and virtually across Colorado.
Final Thought
Your nervous system is always listening. When you offer it gentleness, presence, and permission to rest, it remembers how to feel safe.
You can return to this meditation anytime you need—a moment of peace in uncertain times.
