Find a comfortable position.
You can be laying down already or getting settled now.
Take your time.
There's nothing you need to do perfectly here.
You don't need to make your mind quiet and you don't need to fall asleep at any particular point.
For now,
You can simply let yourself be here.
Take a slow breath in.
And let it go.
Another easy breath in.
And slowly out.
You don't have to make the breath deep.
Just let it be natural.
Your body already knows how to breathe.
You can let it take care of that for you.
And if thoughts are already coming up.
That's completely okay.
Maybe you're thinking about tomorrow.
Maybe you are replaying something that happened today.
Maybe there's a conversation you wish had gone differently.
Maybe you're thinking about work.
Or money or something you need to remember.
Or something you haven't figured out yet.
You don't have to deal with any of it right now.
That might sound obvious,
But sometimes the mind keeps bringing things up because it believes they need your attention immediately.
So tonight you're going to give your mind a different message.
Not now.
Tomorrow.
Whatever needs your attention can wait until then.
You don't have to solve tomorrow tonight.
Just notice that.
For the next little while,
There is nowhere you need to go.
Nothing you need to accomplish.
Nothing you need to figure out.
Let the bed support your body.
Feel the weight of your head.
Your shoulders You're back.
Your legs.
Your feet.
You don't need to hold yourself up.
The bed is already doing that.
And maybe you can let your shoulders drop a little not by forcing them down Just stop holding them up.
Let your jaw soften.
Let the muscles around your eyes relax.
Let your forehead become a little smoother You don't need to make yourself relax.
Just give your body permission to stop working so hard.
And now,
If thoughts appear,
Let them.
You don't need to push them away.
You don't need to follow them either.
Imagine that a thought can simply arrive and then pass.
You might notice a thought about tomorrow.
You might notice another thought about something from the past.
You might suddenly remember something completely unrelated.
And that's fine.
You can notice there's a thought.
And then come back to the feeling of lying here.
You don't have to finish the thought.
This is important.
You are not trying to have no thoughts.
You are simply practicing not following every thought.
A thought can be there.
Without becoming a conversation.
A worry can be there.
Without becoming a problem-solving session.
A memory can be there.
Without needing to be examined.
You can let your mind do whatever minds do.
While you rest.
If your mind says,
But what about tomorrow?
You can answer gently.
I will handle this tomorrow.
If it says I need to figure this out.
You can say,
Not tonight.
If it says,
I can't forget this.
You can say,
I'll remember it tomorrow.
You don't need to keep repeating it in your head tonight.
For now,
Your only job is to rest.
And even that isn't really a job.
You don't have to try to sleep.
You can simply lie here.
Sleep doesn't need to be forced.
In fact,
The harder you try to sleep,
The more awake you can sometimes feel.
So let's take sleep off the list.
You don't need to make it happen.
You can just rest.
If sleep comes,
Let it come.
If it doesn't come yet,
That's okay too.
You are still resting.
Let yourself become a little less interested in what time it is.
You don't need to check.
You don't need to calculate how many hours are left.
You don't need to think about when you have to wake up.
Whatever time it is.
This moment is already here.
And right now,
You are lying down.
Breathing.
Resting.
Support it.
And now bring your attention gently to your breathing again.
Don't change it.
Just notice it.
The breath comes in.
And the breath goes out.
In.
And out.
You don't need to count.
You don't need to control it.
Just notice.
And if your attention wanders.
That's okay.
It probably will.
You may forget everything I've said for a while.
That's okay.
You may start thinking about something else.
That's okay.
You may even drift in and out of awareness.
That's OK.
There is nothing to get right.
Imagine that your thoughts are like notifications on a phone.
A notification appears.
You see it.
But you don't have to open it.
Another one appears.
You don't have to open that one either.
You can leave them there.
They can wait.
You don't need to respond to every notification your mind sends you.
And maybe there are some thoughts that feel important.
That's okay.
You can still leave them for tomorrow.
Because night time is usually not the best time to solve your life.
Things can look bigger when you are tired.
Problems can feel more urgent.
Decisions can feel more complicated.
So tonight,
You're not making big decisions.
You're not reviewing your life.
You're not figuring out the future.
Tonight is just for resting.
And tomorrow when you're awake.
You can think again.
You can plan.
You can decide.
You can deal with whatever needs dealing with.
But right now.
You can put all that down.
Just for tonight.
Notice the feeling of the mattress underneath you.
Maybe you can feel where your body meets the bed.
Your head against the pillow.
Your arms resting.
Your legs becoming heavier.
There is nothing you need to hold.
Let the mattress take your weight.
Let your body become heavy.
And if you notice tension somewhere you don't have to fix it.
Just notice it.
Maybe there's a tension in your shoulders.
Let them be tense if they need to be.
Maybe your stomach is tight.
You don't need to force it to relax.
Just allow it to be as it is.
Maybe your face is still holding some tension.
Let your face be solid.
You don't have to relax every part of yourself.
Even a little bit of letting go is enough.
Now,
Very gently.
Bring to mind the idea.
I can live this until tomorrow.
I can live this until tomorrow.
I don't have to solve it tonight.
I don't have to think about it right now.
I can come back to it when I'm rested.
And perhaps you can notice how different that feels from trying to force the thoughts away.
You are not fighting the mind.
You are just putting things down.
One thought at a time.
One worry at a time.
One unfinished thing at the time.
You can put them all down.
There may be something you are worried you will forget.
Tell yourself.
I'll deal with that tomorrow.
There may be something you wish you had done differently today.
Tell yourself.
Today is finished.
There may be something you are worried about in the future.
Tell yourself.
I don't have to leave tomorrow tonight.
Just tonight.
Just this moment.
And now you can let the words become less important.
You don't need to listen closely anymore.
You don't need to remember what I'm saying.
You can let the sound of my voice become something in the background.
Like a quiet conversation happening somewhere nearby.
You can listen.
Or not listen.
You can follow the words or lose them.
If you lose track of what I'm saying That's a good thing.
You can simply drift.
Breathing naturally.
Resting.
Nothing to solve.
Nothing to prove.
Nothing you need to accomplish.
And if a thought comes.
Let it come.
If it stays for a while,
Let it stay.
If it goes,
Let it go.
You don't have to manage your thoughts.
Let them come and go while your body rests here.
Your body is here.
And for now,
That's enough.
If your mind becomes busy again,
That's okay.
You can gently come back to the pillow.
The bird.
And your breathing.
The day is done.
You don't need to do anything else with it tonight.
Whatever is unfinished can wait until tomorrow.
You don't need to solve anything now.
You can simply rest.
And if you're still awake,
That's okay.
You are still resting.
If you're beginning to drift,
You don't need to come back.
You can let my voice fade into the background.
Nothing else is required of you.
You can rest.
You can let go.
Good night.
