Welcome to this Racing Mind to Resting Mind meditation.
Make yourself as comfortable as you can.
And let your body know you're done for today.
If you're in bed,
Let the blankets feel like a soft,
Safe weight.
If you're seated,
Let your spine be supported.
And allow your shoulders to drop.
Close your eyes and take a slow breath in through the nose.
And a long breath out.
If your mind is busy,
That's not a problem.
We're not trying to force silence,
We're simply guiding your attention into rest.
And letting your body do what it already knows how to do.
Let's begin with a breath.
Breathe in for a count of four.
To.
3,
4,
And out for a count of 6.
1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
And again,
Just like that,
Letting the exhale be your anchor.
Knowing that every longer out-breath is a small message to your nervous system.
That it's time to soften.
Now bring your awareness to the points of contact.
Notice your head on the pillow.
Your shoulders sinking down.
Your back supported.
Your hips heavy.
Your legs resting.
Your feet letting go.
You don't need to hold yourself up anymore.
Your bed where the chair is doing all the work.
And now we'll do a gentle body scan.
As a way to guide your attention away from the noise of the mind and back into the quiet intelligence of the body.
Start at the crown of your head and imagine a warm calming wave moving slowly down.
Let your forehead soften the muscles around your eyes relax.
Let your cheeks soften.
Your jaw and clench as if it's melting.
Let your tongue rest.
And your throat softened.
If you feel any tightness in the throat,
Don't fight it,
Just breathe around it.
Like you're making space for it to loosen in its own time.
Let your shoulders drop.
Feel your arms becoming heavier.
Your elbows loose.
Your hands open.
Let your chest soften.
Feel the breath moving in and out.
That your belly softened too.
Allowing it to rise and fall without effort.
Now allow your lower back to release.
Your hips heavy.
Your thighs softening.
Knees loosening.
Calm softening.
Ankles releasing.
And let your feet relax right down into the toes.
Now gently come back to the breath again.
If thoughts arrive,
Treat them like passing clouds,
Noticing them and then letting them drift on.
And each time you notice you've been pulled into a thought,
You can simply return to the breath as many times as you need to.
Without any judgement.
Now imagine you're standing at the edge of a quiet lake at night.
The water is still and the air is calm.
With each exhale,
It's as if your thoughts are gently placed onto the surface of the lake.
And they float away.
Not because you're forcing them,
But because you're no longer holding them.
If it helps,
You can give your mind a simple phrase to rest on.
On the inhale,
Silently say,
Soft.
On the exhale,
Silently say,
Slow.
Solve.
Swell.
If you prefer you can simply listen to the music beneath my voice and let that carry you.
Now feel how your body has become even heavier.
Bed or the chairs receiving you.
You're sinking deep.
Deep into comfort.
When sleep comes,
Let it in.
If it doesn't,
Know that you're still resting.
And that's enough.
Slow breath in a long quiet breath out.
Sinking.
Softening.
And now.
You can drift.
