Balloon Breathing Meditation

The following balloon breathing meditation was written for kids to teach belly breathing and guided imagery.

I hope your little ones enjoy and find a little place of peace 🙂

“Today, we’re going to practice our balloon breathing. Have you ever blown up a balloon before? Well, we’re going to pretend to blow up our bellies like we’re blowing up a balloon! We’re also going to let our balloons take us to a very special place.

Let’s begin by finding a comfy position. Lay down on your back and face the ceiling so your belly can have enough room to open up like a balloon.

Now, take a nice breath in through your nose… feel the air coming into your belly and blowing it up like a balloon. Let your belly expand fully and feel it get bigger and bigger as you fill it with air…. Hold your breath for just a moment, like you’re holding a big, round balloon.

Now, slowly breathe out through your mouth, and imagine the air slowly leaving the balloon, getting smaller and smaller as you blow out. Continue to blow out until all the air has left your balloon.

Great, great job!

Now let’s do that again. Breathe in through your nose, filling up your balloon belly, making it nice and big and round… holding it for just a moment… and then slowly breathe out through your mouth… letting your balloon get smaller and smaller as the air comes out through your mouth until all the air is out of your belly balloon.

Again, really nice job. Let’s blow up our bellies one more time. Big breath in, filling up your balloon…hold… and then blow out gently through your mouth…

Now, as you blow all the air out of your mouth, this time imagine you are a balloon being carried up into the wind… you rise above the place you’re resting on and over all the houses and trees around you. You float away with the wind and into the white fluffy clouds…

pause

Now imagine the wind taking you to your favorite place of all time. This could be a real place, or a special place in a game or movie or book…

You are surrounded by all of your favorite things… your favorite people, your favorite toys, and your favorite things to eat.

You feel so happy and at peace here.

What do you see… hear…taste…touch? Take some time to enjoy everything here…

pause

Now, imagine being the balloon again and letting it gently lead you to the place you’re resting in…

Let’s take a moment to check in with our bodies. How do you feel right now? Do you feel quiet, calm, relaxed? Pay attention to how your body feels for just a moment more…

pause

Now wiggle your hands and toes and open your eyes. Really nice job!”

Whenever you feel scared, nervous, or just need to take some time to calm down, you can use your balloon breathing to calm your body and take you to your favorite place.”