Welcome to 30 days to a quieter mind when you can't switch off.
You can close your eyes,
Keep them open.
Change your position or stop at any time.
There is nothing you need to force.
Find a comfortable position and allow yourself to settle.
Let your hands rest and just allow yourself to breathe normally.
Take a slow,
Comfortable breath in.
And gently let it go.
Again,
Breathe in.
And slowly breathe out.
Sometimes at the end of the day.
Your mind doesn't want to shut off.
Your body may be tired,
But your thoughts keep moving.
The things you want to try to remember.
Things you need to get done.
Playing conversations from earlier.
Plans for tomorrow.
Problems you haven't been able to resolve.
Your mind keeps thinking.
Don't forget about that.
What do I have to do tomorrow?
What if something doesn't go the way I want it to?
For these next few moments,
You don't need to make your mind completely quiet.
In fact,
You don't need to switch it off at all.
Instead,
We're going to practice turning the volume down.
Imagine there is a dial in front of you.
And this dial controls the volume of all those thoughts.
Right now it might feel like it's turned up really loud.
Imagine placing your hand on that dial.
And lowering the volume.
Not shutting it off.
Just making it a little quieter.
Take your breath in.
And as you breathe out.
Turn the dial down a little bit more.
The thoughts may still show up,
And that's okay.
You don't have to make them go away.
Just let the thoughts become background noise.
Now imagine everything from today sitting in front of you.
The responsibilities,
The tasks you didn't complete,
The conversations,
The choices that haven't been made yet,
And the things you wish you'd done or said differently.
If there is something you really need to do.
Or need to remember for tomorrow.
You can write it down.
Once it's written down,
You don't have to keep reminding yourself of it.
Now imagine gathering up the rest and placing it inside a box.
You're not throwing anything away.
You're not forgetting it.
You're simply telling yourself,
Not right now.
Not right now doesn't mean it isn't important.
It just means you don't have to deal with it at this moment.
Close the lid.
You can open the box again if you need to.
But tonight,
It can stay closed.
Take another gentle breath in.
And slowly breathe out.
Notice your shoulders.
And allow them to drop just a little.
Let your jaw loosen Allow your hands to become still.
Notice the surface supporting your body.
You don't have to prepare for tomorrow in this moment.
You don't need to solve something simply because your mind is thinking about it.
A thought can be just a thought.
Imagine another thought appearing.
And instead of grabbing onto it.
Just watch it.
And tell yourself,
Not right now.
Another thought appears and you tell yourself,
Not right now.
Something you forgot earlier,
Not right now.
Something about tomorrow.
Not right now.
You can come back to these things when you actually need to deal with them.
Right now,
Nothing needs your attention except this moment.
Breathe in.
And breathe out.
Imagine that dial again.
And turn it down a little bit more.
Quieter.
Slower softer.
You don't have to reach complete silence.
You're just giving your mind a break from having to think about everything.
Tell yourself,
I've done enough for today.
What needs my attention tomorrow and have my attention tomorrow.
Right now,
I can let my mind slow down.
Before we finish,
I invite you to return to this meditation once a day for the next 30 days.
And let these few minutes become your signal that it's okay to stop,
To put the day down and allow your mind to become quieter.
You don't have to do it perfectly.
Some days your mind may settle down more easily.
Other days,
It may stay busy.
Come back tomorrow.
Turn down the dial.
Close the box.
And give yourself permission to stop for a while.
And if your mind starts up again later tonight.
That's okay.
You don't have to start all over.
Just notice what's happening and tell yourself,
Not right now.
One breath,
One evening,
One day at a time.
Take one final comfortable breath in.
And slowly breathe out.
The day can be finished now.
Tomorrow can wait.
You don't have to think about anything else right now Just be here,
Just breathe,
And let the rest wait until tomorrow.
