I was thinking about my sister today. Growing up, she was the athletic one on every school sports team, naturally coordinated. She was really fierce, always in motion, and I was the bookworm, way more comfortable with ideas than physical challenges. You know, it seemed so clear-cut back then. One sister was sporty, and the other was academic. Fast forward to today, and those neat little categories, they were entirely wrong. My sister runs her own successful business, and it turns out she's brilliant with strategy and numbers. And me? I love being active. I play racquet sports, and I can't imagine life without the gym.Were we ever limited by those labels? Or did we just think we were? This got me thinking about how many of the stories we tell ourselves about our capabilities might be just as false. How often do we carry around beliefs about what we can't do, what we're not good at, or what we don't deserve? Beliefs that were formed years ago and never questioned. Tonight, we're going to explore some of those limiting beliefs, and while helping you drift into peaceful sleep, we know hypnotherapy can be remarkably effective for building confidence and self-esteem, partly because the relaxed day makes your mind more open to new ways of thinking about yourself.As we guide you into deep relaxation, you'll discover that you have more power than you think to choose which beliefs about yourself to accept and which ones to release. But first, let's begin by making sure you're somewhere safe and comfortable for sleep. Please only listen from a place where it's safe to drift off entirely. And if you're finding these episodes helpful, please consider following the podcast. This is just a small independent show. I'm not part of a larger network or a media company. I create these episodes one at a time with a lot of care and attention, and every single follow helps us be seen and grow. So thank you to everyone who has already followed. Now, let's prepare your body and mind for deep relaxation.Take a moment to get comfortable. Adjust your pillows, pull your blankets to just the right position, and allow your body to settle into your bed. Begin with your breathing.Take a slow, deep breath in through your nose, letting your belly rise first, and then your chest. And as you exhale through your mouth, make this out-breath longer than your in-breath. Let it flow out slowly and steadily.This longer exhale is one of the fastest ways to signal to your nervous system that it's time to relax. It tells your heart rate to slow, and your muscles to release their tension. Let's do this a few more times.Breathe in slowly and deeply, and now exhale even more slowly. With each longer exhale, you're giving your body permission to let go of the day's stress and settle into peace. Now, allow your body to relax systematically, starting with your face.Let the muscles around your eyes soften. Release any tension in your jaw. Let your arms rest limply at your sides.Feel your hips settle, your legs growing heavy and still. Even your feet can relax now. Nothing for them to do. But rest. In a moment, I'm going to guide you into an even deeper state of relaxation. Simply focus on the sound of my voice, and let your imagination follow along.It's natural for your mind to wander once in a while. If you notice your attention drifting to other thoughts, just gently bring your focus back to my words. There's no need to force anything, or try too hard.This deeper state of relaxation is sometimes called hypnosis, but really it's just a natural state of focused calm, something we all experience. It's like when you're so absorbed in a good book that you lose track of time, or when you're driving a familiar route and you arrive without remembering the journey. So just listen, breathe, and let yourself drift deeper.With each word I speak, imagine yourself approaching a small welcoming cottage on a great autumn evening. Outside the wind is gusting, sending wet leaves swirling through the air in chaotic spirals. A light drizzle has started, the kind that finds its way down your collar and makes everything feel damp and uncomfortable.You hurry up the path, eager to escape the unpleasant weather. As you reach for the door, it opens easily, welcoming you into warmth and sanctuary. You step inside and close the door firmly, shutting out the wind and the chill and the gray dampness of the evening.Inside a fire crackles cheerfully in a fireplace, sending dancing shadows across the walls and filling the room with the sweet scent of burning wood. The flames are bright and warm, casting everything in a peaceful glow. You shake out your umbrella and lean it against the wall by the door.Your damp coat slides easily from your shoulders. You hang it out where it can dry. Already you feel lighter, warmer, more at ease. In front of the fireplace sits the most inviting chair you've ever seen. It's large and plush, the kind of chair made for curling up in, for settling in deeply and staying a while. Beside it, a lamp provides just enough light to read by, its warm glow adding to the cozy atmosphere.You settle in the chair and immediately understand why it looks so inviting. It cradles your body perfectly. The warmth from the fire reaches you here, chasing away any lingering chill from outside. On the arm of the chair, you notice a beautiful blanket folded and waiting. You lift it and pull it across your lap. And as you do, it catches your attention.This isn't an ordinary blanket. Looking closer, you can see how intricate it is. Woven from hundreds of different strands of yarn in various colors, textures, and weights.The patterns are complex, telling stories as they wind through the weave. You realize what this blanket represents. This is the tapestry of your beliefs about yourself.Woven from every experience, every memory, every story you've ever been told or told yourself about who you are. Everyone has one of these blankets. Something created over a lifetime from all the ways we've come to understand ourselves.As you examine it more closely, you see so much beauty in the weaving. Threads that represent your kindness, your resilience, your unique talents. Sections that tell the story of every challenge you've overcome. Love you've given and received. But as you look more carefully, you can't help but notice a few threads that seem out of place. They don't match the overall pattern.They feel different in your fingers, rougher, or in colors that clash with the surrounding weave. You gently tug at one particular strand. It's a color that stands out against the softer tones around it.As you pull, you remember exactly where this thread may have come from. It could have been woven when you were still in grade school. When someone you know made an offhand comment about you.Or maybe it came from that careless remark a relative made about you. Or that moment when someone dismissed your dreams as stupid and unrealistic. That thread comes easily loose as if it was never properly attached in the first place.You hold it up to the firelight and see it for what it really is. Just someone else's words, spoken carelessly, probably forgotten by them immediately. But somehow, claiming permanent residence in your blanket, you toss this thread into the fire.It catches immediately, curling and blackening before disappearing into ash and smoke. Gone as if it never existed. Watching it burn, you reflect on how strange it is that we allow random comments from others to become permanent parts of how we see ourselves.Words spoken in frustration or jealousy or someone else's bad day somehow lodge themselves into our self-concept and stay there for years. We never question them. We never ask for their credentials or demand proof.We just accept them as truth, even when they're utterly wrong, but no longer. You have the ability to challenge these careless, thoughtless, hurtful words and see them for what they really are. Untrue.They don't deserve space in your beautiful blanket. Your fingers find another thread that doesn't belong. This one feels different, outdated somehow. You tug gently and it pulls loose easily, as if it's been waiting to be removed. This thread represents something that might have been true once, but isn't anymore. Maybe it's the belief that you're bad at some particular thing or not good enough in some way, but that's no longer accurate now.You've grown since then. You've changed, yet somehow these outdated beliefs remain woven into your self-concept, limiting you based on who you used to be rather than who you are now. This thread too goes in the fire and there's a third thread that catches your attention.This one feels the heaviest, the most entangled. As you work it loose, you recognize it as one of those stories you've told yourself, not something imposed from outside. But a limitation you've somehow decided is true about yourself.I don't deserve good things. I'm not as capable as other people. I should keep my expectations low.Why do we do this to ourselves? Why do we weave these self-defeating stories into our very identity? Maybe it feels safer to expect less, to stay small, to avoid disappointment. These threads don't belong in your blanket either. They're fiction disguised as protection. This thread is more reluctant to come loose. But with gentle persistence, it finally pulls free into the fire it goes, burning away along with all the unnecessary limits you've placed on yourself. You settle back into your chair and look at your blanket now.With those few threads removed, the overall pattern is more beautiful than ever. You pull the blanket higher, wrapping yourself in this representation of your truest self. It's warm and soft and beautifully made.And you realize this blanket isn't finished. It's still being woven. There are still years ahead of you.More experiences to add. More beautiful threads to weave into this ever-expanding tapestry of who you are. And now you know to be more selective about what gets woven in.You'll challenge every negative comment before it can become a permanent thread. You'll remember that you're always growing, always changing, always capable of becoming more than you ever were. This knowledge fills you with a growing sense of confidence.You have the power to shape your own self-concept. You don't have to accept every critical voice or limiting belief. You can question, challenge, and discard anything that doesn't serve you.Your self-esteem will grow as you surround yourself only with thoughts and beliefs that honor who you truly are. You'll speak to yourself with kindness, treat yourself with respect, and expect good things. Because you'll finally understand that you deserve them.The storm outside seems to have settled into a gentle rain. And even that feels cozy from your safe spot by the fire. Your eyelids are growing heavy now. Your body completely relaxed in this perfect chair. The blanket feels wonderfully warm against your skin. And as you drift towards sleep, you can almost feel yourself back in your own bed, surrounded by the same sense of comfort and safety.Your real blankets feel just as warm just as protective. Your pillow cradles your head, and your mattress supports your completely relaxed body. As sleep approaches, you feel genuinely optimistic about tomorrow.You're the same person you were when you woke up this morning, but somehow lighter, freer, more aware of your own power to shape how you see yourself. You drift deeper into relaxation now. You're breathing slow and natural.Your mind quiet and content. Feel yourself sinking deeper into the perfect comfort of your bed now. The temperature is perfect, the weight of your blankets just right. Appreciate this safe space where you can simply be yourself, where no one asks anything of you, where you can finally set down all the responsibilities. 

   Notice how your nervous system has responded to this permission to finally relax. Your heart rate has slowed, beating steadily and calmly. Your breathing has deepened and softened, each exhale releasing you further from the day's tensions. Every cell in your body receives the message: it's safe now, it's time to rest, it's time to restore.

There's no pressure to fall asleep quickly, no need to force anything at all. Sleep will come in its own time, as naturally as night follows day. For now, simply rest in this lovely space between waking and sleeping, where your thoughts become softer around the edges, less defined, more blurred.

Any worries that try to visit your mind can simply float by like clouds across a star filled night sky. You don't need to engage with them or solve them or even acknowledge them. They're just passing thoughts, and thoughts pass. 

There's nothing you need to think about right now, nothing you need to plan or solve or figure out. Sleep is approaching naturally, inevitably. You don't need to chase it or force it or worry about it. This is one of your body's most ancient wisdoms, older than thought, deeper than worry.

There's something so beautiful about this surrender to sleep - this gentle release from the day's concerns, this sweet letting go into dreams. Your body grows heavier with each breath, sinking deeper into comfort, melting into the most perfect relaxation.

Let yourself drift now, floating on the softest current of peace. There's nowhere else you need to be, nothing else you need to do. Just this gentle descent into dreams. Sleep deeply now, knowing you are safe, you are loved, and you are exactly where you belong.

I’m Suzanne. And this is your ticket to snoozeville. Sleep now. Sleep deeply. Sleep well.