Monday Morning Dread — Vagus Nerve Breathing - Guided Meditation

Monday Morning Anxiety — Calm the Dread of the Week Ahead | Vagus Nerve Breathing Meditation

Monday morning anxiety has a weight all of its own — that heavy, anticipatory dread that arrives before your feet have even touched the floor. In this 10-minute guided meditation, Calming Anxiety host Martin helps you put the whole week down and meet Monday with a nervous system that is working with you, not against you.

Today's practice uses vagus nerve breathing — a slow nasal inhale, a gentle hold, and a long, soft exhale — to press the brake pedal on your stress response. Three guided rounds, followed by a warm golden-light body scan and a set of gentle affirmations for anxiety relief, work anxiety and the Sunday scaries that spill into Monday. It closes with three practical daily caring tips you can carry into the day.

Whether you're listening in bed, on the train, in the car park, or in the ten quiet minutes before you walk in through those doors — this is deep relaxation and breathwork you can use anywhere. Hosted by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett.

⏱️ Time Chapters

* 00:00 – Cold open: the weight of a Monday morning

* 01:06 – Welcome to Calming Anxiety with Martin

* 01:23 – Anchored: over 3,000 searchable sessions

* 02:00 – Finding your quiet place and settling

* 02:47 – Vagus nerve breathing: three guided rounds

* 05:01 – Warm golden light body scan

* 06:10 – Today's gentle affirmations

* 08:30 – Your three daily caring tips

* 09:17 – Coming gently back into the room

* 09:38 – Closing thoughts and sign-off

🌿 Today's Gentle Affirmations

Say these quietly in your own mind, or out loud if you're somewhere you can:

• I am safe. I am here. There is nothing to fear right now.

• I meet this week one hour at a time.

• I am not the clouds. I am the sky. Thoughts about Monday will pass across me, and I will still be here.

• My calm does not depend on my calendar.

• I release the weight I've been carrying since yesterday evening.

• My nervous system knows how to settle, and I am helping it settle right now.

• I am allowed to begin this week gently.

💡 3 Daily Caring Tips

1. One Thing First — Before you look at your phone this morning, write down the single most important thing you need to do today, and let everything else be optional.

2. Breathe In The Doorway — Take one slow vagus nerve breath, four in and six out, in the doorway before you walk into any room that makes you tense.

3. Protect Ten Minutes — Take a 10 minute gap in your diary this afternoon and label it "nothing", then protect it as fiercely as you would a meeting.

📱 Take Calming Anxiety With You Anywhere

If today helped, download Anchored on iOS. Access over 3,000 searchable, offline-ready audio sessions, sleep stories with Books at Bedtime, and built-in nightlight features for the small hours.

👉 Download Anchored on the App Store Today: https://apps.apple.com

And if you'd do one more thing for me — share this episode with someone you know who finds Mondays heavy, and leave a 30-second rating and review on Apple Podcasts. It takes moments, and it might be the reason their week goes differently.

Until tomorrow — go gently, take care my friend, and to yourself and everyone else, be kind.

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Music: All music by Chris Collins

Ready for More Calm?Thank you for listening to the Calming Anxiety Podcast, featuring guided meditation, mindfulness, and sleep hypnosis sessions with Martin Hewlett. Our mission is to provide you with proven tools for anxiety relief, stress reduction, and a path toward deep relaxation. Use this episode anytime you need to calm your mind and feel more at ease.