17.1 Special Episode: "Easing Pain & Inviting Joy"

In this special Big Belly Breathing episode recorded for Mindful Magazine, Vanessa guides you through a gentle meditation designed to help release physical and emotional pain while making space for joy to return. Whether you’re recovering from an injury, moving through grief, or simply feeling worn down, this practice offers a compassionate pause—a chance to breathe deeply, reconnect with your body, and remember that healing and happiness can coexist.

Through soothing imagery, mindful breathing, and moments of reflection, you’ll learn to ease tension and invite small, steady bursts of joy back into your daily life.

Take a seat, find your breath, and let this meditation be your reminder: even in the hardest moments, light still lives within you.

Click here to read the accompanying article on Mindful "What Unexpected Chronic Back Pain Taught Me: 4 Takeaways That Matter".

Intro/Outro music by Jef Shadoan

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:03

Welcome to this guided meditation called Easing Pain and Inviting Joy. I'm Vanessa Hutchinson-Zegli with Big Belly Breathing, and I'm here to guide you on a journey. Take a moment to settle in wherever you are. You might be lying down, sitting comfortably, or even supported by pillows or blankets. Allow your body to find stillness. Allow your mind to arrive. Take a deep breath in through your nose. And a long exhale through your mouth. Again, inhale slowly, feeling your body expand. Exhale, letting go of anything you've been holding on to today. This is your time, a space to soften, to breathe, to be with yourself in kindness. Continue at your own pace to take a couple more deep breaths in through your nose, and then to exhale slowly through your mouth. Notice how your body feels right now. Without judgment, without needing to fix anything. Maybe there's a place that feels tight, inflamed, or achy. Maybe you feel tired or heavy. Whatever it is, let it be here. We're not fighting the pain. We're meeting it with awareness. Now, with each inhale, imagine you're breathing in a soft golden light. And with each exhale, you're releasing tension like a mist gently leaving your body. Continue to breathe, picturing that golden light coming in and washing all over you. And with each breath out, more and more tension is released. Now feel that golden light travel through your body from the top of your head across your face, softening your eyes, your jaw, your neck. Let your shoulders drop away from your ears. Unclench the muscles across your back. Now let the light move down your arms through your elbows, wrists, hands, and fingertips. Breathe into your chest. Feel your ribs expand, your heart open. Let your belly rise and fall gently. Your breath like waves at the shore. Breathing, releasing, softening. Now bring your attention to the area that's been calling for care, where the pain lives most strongly. Breathe gently into that space. Imagine the air reaching every cell that needs relief. Visualize a soft light, perhaps golden, perhaps warm rose or calming blue, cradling that part of your body. You might even whisper quietly to yourself, I'm here with you. You are safe. You are healing. Think of something that makes your heart feel light. Maybe it's a favorite place the ocean, a mountain trail, a cafe, your cozy bed. Maybe it's a sound, laughter, birds, a song that always lifts you up. Or perhaps it's a taste. Warm bread, ripe berries, tea with honey. Let one joyful image take center stage. See it clearly, feel it in your body, notice any warmth in your chest, a softening in your shoulders, a hint of a smile forming. That is joy. That's your body remembering wellness. Now send that joy throughout your body to the places that feel good and the places that need healing. Let joy move through you like sunlight melting through ice. Repeat softly in your mind, I send love and light throughout my body. I am more than my pain. I am whole. Take a deep breath in and exhale fully. Now bring to mind one thing you feel grateful for today, big or small. Maybe your breath, maybe a friend, maybe the courage to press play on this meditation. As you breathe, let that gratitude expand, filling your body from the inside out. Feel that gratitude travel beyond your body, radiating out like ripples in a pond, to your loved ones, your community, the world. And quietly repeat, May I be well. May others who are suffering find ease. May peace grow in me. Now imagine your whole body surrounded by shimmering light, a cocoon of healing energy that holds you in safety. This light is gentle yet powerful. It's recalibrating every part of you mind, body, and heart. You are safe. You are loved. You are whole. Let your body soften into this knowing. Let yourself rest here for a few breaths. Take one final deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth. Inhale love. Exhale gratitude. Inhale peace. Exhale tension. Inhale light. Exhale, release. As you slowly bring your awareness back to the room, remember you are not your pain. You are the light that shines beneath it, and that light is always there, ready to guide you back to joy. Thank you for showing up for yourself today. May your body rest, may your heart be light, and may you walk forward in peace.