Addressing Negative Thoughts | Guided Sleep Hypnosis for Stress
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Hi, I'm Jessica Porter, and welcome back to Sleep Magic, a podcast where I help you find the magic of your own mind, helping you to sleep better and live better. Thank you, everybody, for being here. I have a rather long intro tonight, so I'm just going to get straight to it. Our topic, addressing negative thoughts. Before we get started, let's hear a quick word from our sponsors who make this free content possible.

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This offer ends August 19th. I'll see you over there at Sleep Magic Premium. I was out with a friend recently who has a daughter in her late teens. And my friend was telling me that her daughter believes that any negative thoughts she has are inherently bad. Like, that she shouldn't have negative thoughts at all. And this belief that negative thoughts are problematic causes her daughter to try to repress them.

while at the same time judging herself, negatively, I'm sure, for having them. Which I can only imagine leads to a highly repressed, shame-based layer cake of negativity and anxiety. And I felt really bad for this kid. By the way, if you haven't already, you can close your eyes now, because I have more to say.

And I can't help but think that a person this age is getting this idea from a mix of social media, peer pressure to be perfect, and a sort of black and white thinking that the internet and its algorithms serve up. It makes sense that you might come away with negative thoughts are bad, judgments are bad, or worse, a sign of mental issues. So sometimes it's nice to be on the older side of things with some experience so I can say...

For anyone who needs to hear it, negative thoughts are normal. And I don't mean if you're unlucky enough to be burdened with negative thoughts, that falls within the range of normal. No, I mean in no uncertain terms, if you have a brain, you have negative thoughts. If you have a heart, you have negative feelings. If you have a soul, you have existential angst and pain.

They come with a territory of being a natural organism in the natural world, period. And if you deny that or repress them or judge them, you're just setting yourself up for more trouble. Doesn't that feel good? And there are some reasons for this. First, in hypnosis, we talk about something called the critical faculty. Now, this is a defense mechanism of the mind, constantly vetting new information, protecting you from thoughts and ideas that might seem threatening.

So anything that's new or doesn't align with your current belief systems or tastes, you will judge, criticize, and reject, at least initially, and that's okay. That's just your stone age brain protecting you. And hypnosis is actually all about getting past the critical faculty, reaching a part of your mind that's more receptive. But you don't always need hypnosis. All you need to do is sit through that rejecting thought, take a deep breath,

and just open to the new idea. Make some space for something new, and you learn. However, you may also let that new thought past your critical faculty and test it from a deeper place inside of you, and decide still that it does not align with your belief systems or values. And that's okay too. We are all allowed to be discerning,

to have considered thoughts and opinions that differ from those of others, all the while understanding why someone else might think differently than you do. That's what being an individual is. Relaxation helps to soften the critical faculty, but some things make this defense mechanism stronger. So when you're in situations that are stressful or pressurized, or you've had too much caffeine or other stimulants, or rather, when you're coming down from them,

you may find your thinking more defensive and negative. So just be aware of that and give yourself a break. Second, we have what Carl Jung called the shadow, unconscious material deep in our psyche that we repress because it will cause us pain or shame or guilt or some other negative feeling. Everyone has a shadow. We couldn't function without repressing some of our more painful thoughts and feelings.

We also wrestle with inappropriate urges, taboos, and fantasies that aren't safe to share with everyone. Even just the fact that this ride we call life will end at some point is something we tend to avoid thinking about. So it ends up in that unconscious pile we call the shadow. And that's all par for the course. We are human. We are not brands or content to be served up to the digital maelstrom.

We are not our follower counts. We are human beings, complex, messy, and often contradictory. I'm hauling my shadow around right now, and you have yours, and the most enlightened spiritual master still has theirs. No one is exempt. So can we forgive ourselves a little? Here are a few ways of handling this natural negativity. The first is to be still.

maybe in meditation, and allow those darker thoughts, feelings, and impulses to come up to the surface, to be processed and released. This brings the shadow into the light. You can also write this stuff down. Write down your resentments and fears. Unload them. This can help you get past that initial defensiveness of your own mind.

And as you plumb your resentments and fears, it may show you some of the darker, deeper veins of energy within you. Take a look. See what you're carrying around. Get some perspective on it. Notice when it repeats and what carries a lot of energy. As you get more and more comfortable with your own negative baggage, it tends to loosen its grip and make room for more positive thoughts and feelings.

You can listen to this and other recordings like it to help you make friends with the negative energy. That's simply a part of life. You can even watch some comedy. It's a great way to diffuse negativity. Jokes often probe at the shadow, bringing up some of that inner darkness, releasing the pressure on it, and letting us laugh at ourselves. And after all that negative stuff is expressed, focus on the positive.

Your positive thoughts, attitudes, and actions are the most powerful and creative gifts you bring to yourself and to the world. Until the negative thoughts come back. And they will. And then you just handle them again. And while you're at it, we all need support. It's very healing to connect with others who understand that they too are human. They have flaws and vulnerabilities and contradictions and real depths.

By sharing the shadow, it tends to dissipate. One final thing. If you struggle with thoughts that scare you or are persistent, it's best to speak to a qualified professional so you can get support working through them. And even if you don't, you might want to work with a professional just to make your life better. So thank you for indulging me. I just really wanted to address that because I felt for this kid. So get yourself into a safe and comfortable position and let's begin.

Allow your eyes to close easily and gently. Here we are again. As you bring your awareness to your breathing, I feel so nice to allow your awareness to just simply hang out on the breath, even for just a few seconds. It's slowing down, coming back home, coming back to your body. Now I'd like you to bring your awareness up into your eyelids and imagine that your eyelids are feeling heavy, sleepy, comfortable.

Now I'd like you to accept the suggestion that your eyelids are so relaxed and sleepy that they simply will not open. Of course, this is just a weird imaginary concept that they won't open. You could open them if you wanted to, but we're going to pretend that they won't open. And now I'd like you to wiggle your eyebrows to sort of prove to yourself that your eyes will not open. Wiggle them while your eyes remain shut.

Good. Pretending it won't open. Perfect. You can stop wiggling now. Now this wonderful heaviness in your eyes, in your eyelids, this heaviness is soon going to be throughout your entire body. In fact, as I say that, let's imagine that heaviness moving up from your eyelids to the top of your head. And now as you take a nice deep breath,

And exhale, imagine the heaviness moving all the way down through your body, all the way down deep into your feet. Just spread that heaviness with your imagination. And now as you take another deep breath, now imagine the heaviness moving all the way from the top of your head down deep into your belly, down your legs, into your feet. And one more time as you take another deep breath.

Oh, imagine the heaviness moving all the way down through your neck and your chest and your belly down your legs into your beautiful. As your whole body is feeling heavy. Because if you've been listening to sleep magic for a while, just the sound of my voice is taking you deeper. And you have trained yourself to allow this relaxation to pour through you. A cascade of relaxation.

As your muscles soften and your brain secretes these relaxing chemicals into your bloodstream, and you feel good and safe and at peace. As your face relaxes and your head feels heavy, your arms feel heavy, and your pelvis and your legs sink deeper and deeper into the mattress. Good.

And as your body is relaxing, is relaxing. And as your mind is relaxing, your body is relaxing. And as your body is relaxing, your mind is relaxing. And all the sounds going on around you are taking you deeper and deeper into hypnosis. So bring your awareness to those sounds and let them take you deeper. Good.

And the only sound you're paying any attention to is the sound of my voice. And as always, the sound of my voice is taking you deeper and deeper. Imagine you're standing at the edge of a garden. This is a beautiful plot of land where the soil is dark and fertile and full of life. You've passed through this garden before because this garden is you.

The soil represents your deepest self. Fertile. Powerful. Full of life. Like soil, you grow things in your life. You create things. You create your relationships, your work, and your sense of self. And you grow these things with your thoughts and feelings and imagination. Some of these things come from very, very deep,

within the earth and you may have never noticed that you were creating them. And that's okay. Today you're planting some new flowers. There are three spots ready for planting. The soil has been tilled and fertilized and is ready to grow something. Next to the soil is a compost heap, a pile of dead plants that are decaying and transforming. The alchemy of nature

is turning them into more rich, fertile soil. You reach into your pocket and take out three packets of seeds. These are the seeds that you'll be planting tonight. You open the first packet and a seed rolls into the palm of your hand. This is the seed of self. Notice what it looks like. And now you press the seed into the ground and cover it up.

You reach for the watering can next to you and give the seed a little sprinkle of water. And now you relax, going deeper and deeper, letting go. And you watch as the seed sprouts and grows and evolves. This is your relationship with yourself. Notice how it's developing, its size, color, strength.

and even blossoms. What does this plant look like? What does it feel like? This is the energy you put into your own being and the beauty that it creates. This plant represents how you treat yourself, how you eat, how you live your feelings about yourself, your dignity and self-respect. As you take care of this plant, give it love,

and attention. Watch it grow. You notice that there's a weed growing right next to this plant. That's okay. Every garden has weeds. This weed represents a negative thought you have about yourself. Everyone has negative thoughts. Look at the weed carefully. Is it a weed of doubt? Fear? Anger? Sadness? Take a good look at it. Relax.

as you allow this weed to come into your consciousness. Is there anything you need to learn from this weed? Is it useful to you? Allow yourself to experience this negative thought and any feelings that come with it. And you also realize that if you feed this weed with more attention, it will get bigger and bigger and could take over your self-plant. So you say...

I accept you, weed, but I'm letting you go. You pluck it out by its roots and toss it into the compost heap. Notice as it dries and shrivels and transforms into fertile soil. Well done. Your self-plant is here for the rest of your life and it feels so good to water it and fertilize it and watch it grow. Now you move to the second spot for planting.

You open your second packet of seeds and one of them rolls into your hand. This is a seed of relationship. What does it look like? Now press the seed into the ground and cover it up. You pick up the watering can again and give the seed a sprinkle. Now you relax, going deeper and deeper. And you let go. And you watch as the seed sprouts again.

and grows and evolves. This plant represents your relationships with your family and friends and romantic partners. This plant represents how you feel about people, how you connect with other human beings. Notice how it develops. Notice its size, its strength, its dimensions, its blossoms. This is the energy you put into your relationships.

and the beauty it creates. As you take care of this plant, giving it your attention and love, it will grow and develop and change. As you go deeper and deeper, it feels nice to enjoy your relationship with the plant. And now you notice there's a weed growing right next to it. It just popped up. Look at the weed carefully. Relax as you allow the weed to enter.

your consciousness? Is it a weed of doubt or fear, anger or sadness? Take a good look at it. Let yourself experience the negative feelings that come with this thought. Is there anything you can learn from this weed? Is it useful to you in some way? Is it protecting you? If you feed this weed for too long, it could take over your relationship plan.

So you say, I accept you, weed, but I'm letting you go. Now you pluck it out by the roots and toss it into the compost heap where it shrivels and dries and transforms as you turn your attention now back to your relationship plan. As you watch it expand and bloom, it's here for the rest of your life and you will water it with your positive thoughts.

and fertilize it with your love and attention and watch it grow. Now you move down to the third spot ready for planting. You open your third packet of seeds and one of them rolls into the palm of your hand. This is the seed of work. This seed represents the work you do in your life in any capacity. All the energy you put out into the world. What does this seed

Press the seed into the ground and cover it up as you give it a sprinkle of water with the watering can. And you relax, going deeper and deeper and let go. And you notice the seed is sprouting and growing and evolving. This is your creative and professional energy. The energy you give to the world. Notice how it develops.

Notice its size, the shapes of its leaves, its color, and now its blossoms. What does this plant look like? What does it feel like? This is the energy you put into your work and creative pursuits into the world. And as you take care of this plant, giving it your attention and love, it continues to grow.

As you go deeper and deeper, it's nice to simply witness this plant. And now you notice there's a weed growing right next to it. It simply popped up out of nowhere. You look at the weed and relax and really allow it to enter your consciousness. What kind of weed is this? Doubt? Fear? Resentment? Grief?

Let yourself experience any negative feelings that are coming with this weed. Is there anything you can learn from this weed? Anything you need to know? It's good to learn from the weeds, but if you let them grow, they can take over the garden. So you say, "I accept you, weed, and I'm letting you go." You pull this weed out by its roots.

even if it requires some strength, and toss it into the compost heap where it shrivels and dries and dies and transforms into something positive. As you turn your attention back to your work plant, watching it expand and bloom, it's here for the rest of your life, and your positive thought and attention, water it and fertilize it

and make it grow. You come to your garden on a regular basis and tend to your plants. You visit your self plant and watch it evolve and it feels so good. Your relationship plant may split into individual relationships and you can tend to them in unique and special ways because every relationship is different. As you continue to create things in the world,

You may want to plant separate projects or goals and watch them grow as you fertilize them. Your attention to each plant is powerful as it shows you how you create and build your life. And sometimes there will be weeds and you will notice them and allow them and pull them out and let them shrivel on the compost heap where they transform. The sun has gone down

and the crickets are chirping. The air is cool, and it's time to rest. You look one more time at the garden, at yourself, plant. It looks so beautiful in the moonlight, your relationship, plant, growing nicely. And as you look at your work, plant, you feel pride and excitement about the future. As you step away from the garden for now and find yourself back in your bed,

Going deeper and deeper. Looking forward to your next visit to your inner garden as you drift and float and dream.