All day,
You've been the one holding everything together.
Holding it all.
So quietly that no one even noticed the effort.
And maybe.
.
.
No one has held you in a long time.
Satonite.
You don't have to be the one doing the holding.
Tonight.
You can be held.
Before we begin.
Please make sure you're somewhere safe where you can fully relax.
Not driving.
Not operating machinery,
Just free to let your whole system rest.
I'm Chibs O'Karakei,
And welcome to this deep sleep meditation.
Over the next little while will allow the day to loosen its grip on you.
The breathing will slow.
All on its own.
And the part of you that's been keeping watch.
Will be allowed to rest too.
There's nothing here you need to do well.
Nothing to fix.
Nothing to get right.
Just a slow settling into warmth into safety,
Into being held.
By the end of this meditation.
If you haven't already drifted off,
You'll be more than ready to fall into a deep sleep.
Restorative sleep.
You don't have to follow every word.
There's no need to stay awake to do this properly.
So if you drift off before I've finished.
.
.
That's the whole idea.
Something is holding you now.
So you're free to let go.
And slip under.
Whenever you're ready.
So take a moment now.
Allowing the pillow to take the full weight of your head.
Drawing the blankets up so they rest over you,
Soft and warm and even.
And knowing your alarm is set,
Your phone can be set aside and everything that needed doing today is done for now.
There's nothing left to manage tonight.
You're safe here.
And if right now,
You're not somewhere safe.
.
.
Or if the word safe doesn't feel true tonight,
You can let this be something quieter instead.
You're allowed to rest,
Just for now,
Just for these few hours.
Nothing more is being asked of you.
And as you settle,
You might begin to notice all the places the bed is holding you.
The back of the legs.
The hips.
The whole length of the spine.
Resting into the mattress.
The shoulders.
Growing heavy.
The head.
Fully supported.
Nothing for the neck to hold up.
You don't have to keep yourself in any position.
The bed has you.
On every side.
And that gentle weight of the blankets resting over you.
At soft,
Even pressure.
All the way down the body.
Can be like a steady hand.
Holding you in place.
You can allow that weight to be reassuring.
Settling you a little more deeply with every breath.
And you may notice the body is already breathing You don't have to do anything with that.
Just noticing the air arriving.
And noticing the air leaving.
And perhaps noticing,
As you pay attention,
The breath begins to slow down.
All by itself.
Each exhale softening you.
A little further into the warmth.
You might begin to notice a soft warmth settling around you.
Over the shoulders first.
Like something gentle being drawn up and over you.
Along the arms.
Across the chest.
Down over the hips and the legs.
Not pressing.
Just resting there.
Grrr.
And steady.
Held on every side.
As if the whole bed has folded itself softly around you.
Wrapped.
One.
And held.
And as that warmth wraps around you.
The body grows heavier.
Not an uncomfortable heaviness.
The good kind.
The kind that comes just before sleep.
The kind that whispers.
You can stop now.
Every muscle.
Growing softer.
And warmer.
Sinking just a little further into the bed.
And now.
A slow wave of warmth begins to move through you.
Starting at the top of the head.
And moving downward.
At its own pace.
You don't have to track it.
Just allowing it to pass through.
Softening everything it touches.
On its way down.
Warming the face.
And the throat.
And the chest as it goes.
Spreading out through the arms.
And into the hands.
Moving down through the belly.
The hips.
The legs.
All the way to the feet leaving every part of you warmer.
Softer.
And more deeply at rest than before.
And he.
In this warmth.
There's something you can set down.
For so long.
You've been the one keeping yourself safe.
To one watching the doors.
Holding it together.
Making sure everyone else was alright.
Always a little bit on guard.
Even in your sleep.
But tonight.
You don't have to keep watch.
Tonight.
Something else is holding the night for you.
The warmth around you is holding you the bed beneath you.
Is holding you.
And for these few hours.
You can allow that part of you that never quite switches off.
To finally rest.
You're safe.
And you're warm.
And your health.
There's nothing here you need to protect against.
Nothing to brace for.
Just rest.
Warmth.
And being held.
Wrapped.
Warm.
And hell.
And with each breath now.
Another soft layer settles around you.
The first.
A deep warmth.
Over the whole body.
The next.
A quiet stillness.
Settling in closer.
The next.
The sounds of the room.
Growing further away.
And the next.
The day itself.
Drifting out of reach.
Layer over layer.
Each one heavier.
And warmer.
Than the last.
Until you're wrapped completely.
Cocooned in warmth and quiet.
And there's nothing left to do but rest.
Warm.
And hell.
And now.
As you rest here.
Wrapped and warm.
The body can begin its quiet work.
This is the part of the night the body has been waiting for.
When nothing is being asked of it.
It can finally tend to itself.
Slowing the heart.
Softening the breath.
Releasing the small tensions you've carried all day without noticing.
Settling your nervous system into rest.
And into repair.
And because you feel safe.
Because you feel held.
The body believes it.
The body settles.
All the way down.
And in that deep safety.
It restores you.
Gently.
All through the night.
Wrapped.
One.
And hell.
And from here.
If you ever need to wake up for any reason at all.
You will.
Easily.
Naturally.
Just as you always do.
But if there's nothing that needs you.
No reason to wait.
You can allow yourself to sink even more fully into this deep sleep.
Restorative sleep.
And from here.
You don't need to listen anymore.
My voice.
Can begin to soften now.
Becoming just another part of the warmth around you.
There's no need to make sense of the words.
Allowing the words to blur.
And warm.
And fade.
Until they're no different from the quiet.
And the quiet.
Is holding you too.
So allowing yourself to drift now.
All the way down.
Into warmth.
And safe.
And hell.
And now.
These simple phrases can drift softly in the background.
You don't have to repeat them.
You don't have to remember them.
They can simply be there.
Quietly.
Steadily.
While you sleep.
I am safe,
I am warm,
I am held.
It's safe to rest now.
I don't have to keep watch tonight.
I don't have to hold everything together.
Something else is holding me now.
My body is warm and heavy and at ease.
I am wrapped in warmth all night long.
Sleep is taking care of me.
I'm allowed to rest.
Nothing is being asked of me here.
I am safe.
And I can let go.
My body knows how to rest.
I'll wake gently when it's time.
I'll awake warm and rested and whole.
I am safe.
I am warm.
I am held.
It's safe to rest now.
I don't have to keep watch tonight.
I don't have to hold everything together.
Something else is holding me now.
My body is warm and heavy and at ease.
I am wrapped in warmth all night long.
Sleep is taking care of me.
I'm allowed to rest.
Nothing is being asked of me here.
I am safe and I can let go.
My body knows how to rest.
I'll wake gently when it's time.
I'll awake warm and rested and whole.
I am safe.
I am warm.
I am hell.
It's safe to rest now.
I don't have to keep watch tonight.
I don't have to hold everything together.
Something else is holding me now.
My body is warm and heavy and at ease.
I am wrapped in warmth all night long.
Sleep is taking care of me.
I'm allowed to rest.
Nothing is being asked of me here.
I am safe and I can let go.
My body knows how to rest.
I'll wake gently when it's time.
I'll awake warm and rested and whole.
I am safe.
I am warm.
I am hell.
It's safe to rest now.
I don't have to keep watch tonight.
I don't have to hold everything together.
Something else is holding me now.
My body is warm and heavy and at ease.
I am wrapped in warmth all night long.
Sleep is taking care of me.
I'm allowed to rest.
Nothing is being asked of me here.
I am safe.
And I can let go.
My body knows how to rest.
I'll wake gently when it's time.
I'll awake warm.
And rested and whole.
I am safe.
I am warm.
I am hell.
It's safe to rest now.
I don't have to keep watch tonight.
I don't have to hold everything together.
Something else is holding me now.
My body is warm and heavy and at ease.
I am wrapped in warmth all night long.
Sleep is taking care of me.
I'm allowed to rest.
Nothing is being asked of me here.
I am safe.
And I can let go.
My body knows how to rest.
I'll wake gently when it's time.
I'll awake warm.
Unrested and whole.
I am safe.
I am warm.
I am hell.
It's safe to rest now.
I don't have to keep watch tonight.
I don't have to hold everything together.
Something else is holding me now.
My body is warm and heavy.
And at ease.
I am wrapped in warmth all night long.
Sleep is taking care of me.
I'm allowed to rest.
Nothing is being asked of me here.
I am safe.
And I can let go.
My body knows how to rest.
I'll wake gently when it's time.
I'll awake warm.
And rested and whole.
I am safe.
I am warm.
I am hell.
It's safe to rest now.
I don't have to keep watch tonight.
I don't have to hold everything together.
Something else is holding me now.
My body is warm.
And heavy.
And at ease.
I am wrapped in warmth all night long.
Sleep is taking care of me.
I'm allowed to rest.
Nothing is being asked of me here.
I am safe.
And I can let go.
My body knows how to rest.
I'll wake gently when it's time.
I'll awake warm.
And rested.
And whole.
I am safe.
I am warm.
I am hell.
It's safe to rest now.
I don't have to keep watch tonight.
I don't have to hold everything together.
Something else is holding me now.
My body is warm and heavy and at ease.
I am wrapped in warmth all night long.
Sleep is taking care of me.
I'm allowed to rest.
Nothing is being asked of me here.
I am safe.
And I can let go.
My body knows how to rest.
I'll wake gently when it's time.
I'll awake warm and rested and whole.
