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Title: Permission to Rest — with meditation teacher Steven Webb

Description: A guided meditation for when you're running on empty and stopping feels like giving up. Meditation teacher Steven Webb leads you through a gentle body scan and a peaceful forest visualisation to help you truly rest without guilt.

Who this meditation is for:

• You're exhausted but it's not about sleep
• You've been pushing through for too long and can't switch off
• You feel guilty about stopping or taking time for yourself
• You're overwhelmed and your mind won't stop making lists
• You need permission to just do nothing for a while

What you'll experience:

• A gentle body scan to release tension you didn't know you were holding
• A calming forest visualisation where nothing is needed from you
• Permission to stop without guilt or judgement
• A loving kindness moment with hand on heart
• A soft return that leaves you feeling lighter and kinder to yourself

Companion episode: Stillness in the Storms EP163 — The Dignity of Being Tired

If you'd like to contact Steven or support his work, go to https://stevenwebb.uk

Hello, I'm Stephen Web, and welcome to this meditation.

This one is for you if you're tired.

I'm not talking about sleepy, but the kind of tired where you feel like you've been running on empty for far too long.

And if that's you right now, you're in the right place.

So find somewhere comfortable.

You don't need to be sat up straight, although sometimes that does help.

You don't need to be in a special position.

If you want to lie down, lie down.

But the idea is to stay awake during this meditation.

Then when you are, just let your eyes close or soften your gaze.

Whatever feels comfortable to you, And just feel the weight of your body.

Feel whatever is holding you up right now, whether it's the chair, the bed or the floor.

Then it all take your weight.

You don't have to hold yourself up right now and notice your breath.

You don't need to change it.

Don't try and breathe in deeply or slowly.

Your body knows how to breathe.

It's been doing it a long time without you getting involved.

Just notice it in and out, that's all.

And now let's just soften a few things.

Starting with your face, your forehead, your eyes.

Let them become heavy behind your eyelids.

Your jaw, let it drop slightly.

You might notice your clenching somewhere.

Just allow it to soften.

Your shoulders.

They've been carrying a lot, maybe more than you realize.

Allow them to drop and soften in this moment and just let them fall.

They don't need to be up around your ears.

And your hands, wherever they are, let them be soft, open, and nothing to grip, nothing to hold on to.

Breathing in, calm, breathing out.

Relax.

You have permission to be here.

You have permission to do nothing.

You have permission to be tired.

That's not a weakness.

That's just honesty.

Now, I want you to imagine something with me.

If you can't see it, just feel it in your body.

Imagine you're in a forest.

Not a dark forest, a gentle one, with little bits of light coming through the canopy.

A soft ground beneath you.

It has moss and leaves everywhere.

And in this forest, there's a clearing.

A small, quiet space where the light is warm and the ground is soft.

And you find yourself lying down there on the earth, safe and held.

There's no one looking for you here.

No one needs anything from you.

There are no messages, no tasks, no lists.

Just the sound of the trees, maybe a bird somewhere, the warmth of the light on your skin.

And you realize something.

The animals in this forest, when they are tired, they rest.

They don't feel guilty about it.

They don't lie there making lists of everything they should be doing.

They just rest completely and they heal.

You can do that too, right here.

You are allowed to just rest.

Breathing in calm, breathing out.

Rest.

Breathing in calm, Breathing out Rest.

Notice how your body feels when you give it permission to stop.

Really stop.

Maybe there's a heaviness, maybe there's a softness, maybe there's relief, like putting down something you've been carrying for a long time.

You don't have to do anything with this.

Just notice it.

And in this clearing, in this forest, there is nothing to fix, nothing to achieve, nothing to get right.

This moment already has everything it needs, and so do you.

Let yourself be held by the ground.

Let yourself be warmed by the light.

Let your breath do what it does.

Let your thoughts come and go, similar to birds and the animals and the clouds.

You don't have to follow them.

Breathing in calm, breathing out.

Rest.

You might notice thoughts coming in, things you need to do, People.

You need to reply to the familiar pull of what says you should be doing something now.

And when that happens, just say to yourself quietly, not right now.

Not right now.

You'll get to those things in good time, but not right now.

Right now you're resting.

And that is enough.

There is a dignity in being tired.

There is a courage in omitting it.

And there is wisdom in stopping before you have nothing left.

Like the old adage says, you can't pour from an empty cup.

But more than that, you deserve to rest.

Not because it makes you feel productive, but because you are human being.

And human beings, just like animals, need to rest.

So let's stay a little longer in this quiet place.

Breathing, being, resting.

Nothing more.

So just before we return, it'd be nice to do a little loving kindness.

So if you choose to, just place your hand on your heart and just feel the warmth of that area and just say internally to yourself, may I be well, May I be rested, May I be kind to myself.

May I be well, may I be rested and may I be kind to myself?

And really feel what that's like.

Having the permission to take the time out when you want, and whatever that looks like for you when you need it.

When you're ready, we'll begin to come back.

And just bring your awareness to your body.

5.

Feel your body again.

The weight of it, the warmth, the breath moving in and out.

4.

Notice the space around you, the sounds in the room, the air on your skin.

3.

Gently wiggle your fingers and toes just a little, bringing some energy back.

Two, take a slightly deeper breath, fill your lungs and just let it go.

And one, when you're ready, just gently open your eyes.

Welcome back.

I hope you just feel a little lighter.

And remember, you have permission to stop whenever you need to.

It's not laziness, it's kindness.

It's what animals do and they don't feel guilty.

Sometimes we need to do that.

I'm Stephen Webb, and I hope this meditation helped you to be a little kinder to yourself.

And all these meditations are brought to you without adverts because a few people donate and treat me to a coffee.

Thank you.

Really appreciate you just taking some time out with me today.

There's a link in the show notes.

Be kind to yourself.

You've earned it.