Hello and welcome to this gentle breath awareness for sleep practice.
We're going to allow ourselves to relax and let go as we prepare for sleep.
So take a moment to get yourself comfortable.
Maybe getting yourself into bed,
Settling your head on the pillow,
Drawing the cover over you,
Turning off the light and allowing your eyes to gently drift closed,
Noticing any tension,
Tightness,
Discomfort in the body,
Starting to bring a little relaxation,
A little softness,
Giving ourselves time as we soften and relax.
There's no rush,
There's no pressure,
There's no expectations,
Just taking the time that you need,
Making any final adjustments and knowing that you can change your position if you need to,
Starting to gently scan the body,
Starting to become aware of our breath,
Sensations in our body,
Thoughts in our mind,
Emotions that are showing up and being aware of these things,
Letting our attention come to them and noticing,
And then letting go,
Letting the thought float away,
Let the expectations or worries go,
Allow the tension and the tightness to soften and relax.
As we sink into our surface,
Allowing ourselves to let go of everything from our day,
We're going to observe our breath,
Watching as the breath comes into the body and as the breath leaves the body,
Focusing to start with on our nostrils,
Feeling the breath come in and then out through our nose,
Noticing sensations,
Temperature,
Anything else that you notice as the breath comes into the body and out of the body,
We're not trying to change anything or fix it,
We are allowing ourselves to be exactly as we are.
Being aware of that breath,
In and then out through your nostrils,
Noticing any changes,
Any sensations that show up,
Noticing if our mind wanders and gently drawing it back to the breath,
Grounding yourself with your breath,
With the feeling of your body as it lies and sinks into your surface,
Or by holding on to anything that helps you.
Let's bring our awareness next a little lower,
Paying attention to any sensations that we notice in our upper chest,
Maybe tightness or tension that you might feel here,
And allowing things to loosen,
To soften,
Relax a little if you can.
Remember,
We're not trying to fix anything here,
We're just allowing ourselves to be,
And then let's bring our attention a little lower still,
Now down to our belly,
Our lower ribs,
Placing your hand onto your belly if that's comfortable,
And being aware of our breath,
In our belly,
Being aware of any movement,
Noticing how that feels,
Noticing any change as you bring your awareness there,
And allowing the breath to be,
Drawing the attention back if it wanders,
Gently,
Calmly,
With no judgement,
And as we give ourselves this space,
Allowing the body to soften,
Allowing the body exactly what it needs,
Allowing ourselves this space just to be,
Noticing as other parts of the body soften,
Maybe things start to soften and slow,
Maybe you start to feel sleepy,
And if you don't that's ok,
Let's come back to our breath,
As we feel our breath move in and out of our body,
And if you have a visualisation that you like,
Whether it's gentle waves,
Whether it's branches moving in the breeze,
Or anything else that feels right to you,
This gentle,
Rhythmic movement,
As we breathe,
The waves,
Or the trees,
Or the grass,
Gently move with our breath,
Taking our time here,
Remember there's no rush,
There's no pressure,
Letting go of things if they come into your mind,
Gently coming back to the breath,
That rhythmic,
Gentle breath,
Allowing ourselves into a little bit more relaxation,
A little bit more softness,
A little bit more calm,
With each breath,
Letting go,
A little bit more,
Releasing,
Relaxing,
And as we breathe,
Softly,
Gently,
Knowing that we're safe,
And supported,
And held,
By our breath,
This breath that grounds you,
This breath that feeds you,
This breath that relaxes you,
This breath that's with you at every moment,
It's safe to let go,
It's safe to allow ourselves this moment,
It's safe to drift,
As we start to fall into sleep,
Starting to rest,
Being here with your breath,
With your visualisation,
With the support beneath your body,
Grounding you,
Your breath grounding you,
Feeling relaxed,
And safe,
Goodnight,
Sweet dreams.
