A gastrointestinal examination can be frightening to patients. Abnormally elevated blood pressure and pulse caused by anxiety often are present on admission to the hospital. These elevated vital signs are then used as the baseline vital signs for the patient's hospital stay. The first purpose of this study was to determine whether vital signs are elevated because of anxiety on admission to the hospital and how much they decrease after sedation. The second purpose of this study was to explore the effect of instruction about relaxation and the use of music relaxation audio tapes in decreasing patient anxiety. Patients undergoing endoscopic examinations for the first time were randomly assigned into two groups. Patients in the treatment group were given brief instructions in relaxation and provided with an audio tape player and relaxation music. Statistical analysis using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) comparing differences between control and treatment groups over time showed that there was a significant main effect for diastolic blood pressure. Subjects in the treatment group had significantly lower blood pressures throughout the entire GI procedure. There was no significant difference between groups regarding the amount of medication used. Music combined with relaxation is an inexpensive nursing intervention for patients in relaxing during a GI examination.