Waking in the night can feel frustrating,
And yet your body still knows how to rest.
This is a moment of waking,
And from here you can gently return to rest.
Making yourself as comfortable as you can now,
Adjusting any cushions.
There's nothing you need to force,
Nothing you need to have figured out.
And even if the mind feels busy right now,
Even if thoughts are moving quickly,
No,
That's okay.
In this moment we are inviting the body to rest,
And perhaps the mind will follow.
Bring your awareness to the feeling of your body resting upon the surface beneath you.
Feeling the support holding you,
And allow yourself to soften just a little bit more.
Notice the breath just as it is,
Flowing in and flowing out.
Watching the inhale and the exhale,
And you might notice a gentle pause at the top of the inhale.
And at the end of the exhale,
Allow thoughts to be,
Like music,
Playing in another room.
They are still there,
But your focus is on my words,
And they can continue in the background as the body rests.
And I invite you now to breathe deeply with me.
We'll be breathing in for the cane to fall,
Holding for five,
And out for six.
If you have any issues with your heart,
Instead breathe deeply in and out without holding.
Let's breathe together.
Four,
Five,
Six.
In,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Five,
And out,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Five,
Six.
And now becoming aware of the top of the head.
Noticing any sensations there,
The feeling of your hair or the air,
Or nothing at all.
And slowly drifting day to the forehead and the eyes,
Day to the temples,
The cheeks,
And the jaw.
Releasing any holding in the jaw,
Take a deep breath in and breathing out,
Coming down the neck to the shoulders.
Allowing the shoulders to soften down,
Away from the ears to the right upper arm,
Elbow,
Lower arm.
Wrist,
Hand,
And fingers,
To the left fingers,
Hand,
Wrist,
Forearm,
Elbow.
Upper arm,
And left shoulder.
Awareness to the chest,
Rising and falling.
To the back,
Which is supported,
And to the belly,
Rising and falling at its own pace.
Awareness down the left leg,
To the knee,
Ankle,
Foot,
And to the right leg.
Upper leg,
Knee,
Ankle,
Foot.
Feeling grateful to your legs.
Thank you,
Legs,
For taking me so many places over the years.
And now imagine,
Or simply sense,
A warm light traveling up through the body.
You can imagine this like warm sunlight,
Or like stepping into a warm bath.
Allow this color to move softly through the body,
Starting at the feet,
And traveling up to the hips.
Soothing and restoring.
Traveling up the spine,
And the torso.
Take a gentle breath in,
And as you breathe out,
Feeling grateful for your lungs,
For working tirelessly for you.
Feeling grateful for your heartbeat.
Steady and constant support.
Beating for you daily.
And feeling that warmth now,
Like sunlight from a summer day,
Spreading up to the shoulders,
The neck,
And all the way up to the top of the head.
Feeling safe in this moment.
And right now,
You are giving your body space to pause.
Resting.
Each word.
Each sound.
Relaxes you even more than before.
Every exhale is a surrender,
A letting go of what you no longer need.
Deeper and deeper into rest.
Each breath making you more comfortable and more relaxed.
Becoming heavier and heavier.
Almost like you are sinking down.
Sinking down into sheer comfort.
As each breath relaxes you more and more.
Feeling tired now.
Drifting deeper and deeper.
Heavy.
And if sleep comes,
You can drift with it.
And if it takes time,
Because rest is already happening.
And the body knows the way.
