Unwind Your Mind - A Guided Sleep Meditation For Anxiety

Grounded in the 3 Principles, this meditation gently guides you beneath the noise of the mind and back to the natural peace that is always present. Let yourself reconnect with your breath, settle into your body, and remember that well-being lives within you, even when thoughts are busy.

Transcript

Welcome.

As we gently and intentionally prepare to transition from the activity and stimulation of our day into the stillness and restoration of sleep,

Let this be a compassionate and supportive invitation to consciously slow down the pace of our minds and bodies,

To soften the often sharp edges of our experience and to allow the sometimes overactive mind to unwind naturally,

Without force,

Coercion or judgment.

There's absolutely no need to strive for a specific outcome,

To achieve a particular or idealized state of mind or to try to create a perfect or manufactured sense of calmness or tranquility.

Instead you are warmly and wholeheartedly invited to simply allow yourself to be present with whatever arises in your awareness,

Meeting your experience with gentle acceptance,

Open curiosity and a willingness to feel whatever is truly there.

No resistance,

No avoidance.

Begin by bringing your full and undivided attention to your breath,

That constant and unwavering companion that sustains your life force throughout your waking hours and continues to rhythmically support your being,

Even as you rest and dream.

Feel the gentle and rhythmic rise and fall of your chest or abdomen as you inhale and exhale,

The subtle and continuous expansion and contraction of your torso with each breath.

Notice the delicate flow of air as it enters and leaves your nostrils,

The quiet rhythm of your breathing,

The subtle yet profound sensations that accompany each inhale and exhale.

You don't have to change your breath in any way.

There's no need to deepen it artificially,

Slow it down deliberately or consciously control its pace,

Depth or duration.

Simply observe its natural and effortless flow,

Allowing it to be exactly as it is in this moment,

Without any interference,

Manipulation or judgment.

Let your breath become your anchor,

Your point of focus in the present moment,

A way to ground yourself in the reality of your being and a gentle yet powerful reminder that you are alive,

Safe and supported in this very moment.

Now gently and compassionately bring your attention to your physical body,

The incredible and resilient vessel that carries you through your daily activities,

Supports your every movement and sustains your life force and which now lovingly supports you in this precious and restorative moment of breath.

Feel the points of contact between your body and the surface beneath you,

Whether it's the familiar embrace of your bed,

The comforting support of your couch or the grounding presence of the floor.

Notice the weight of your limbs resting,

The gentle pressure of the covers against your skin and the overall sensation of being held,

Supported and embraced by the surface beneath you.

Allow your body to settle more deeply,

To relax its muscles and to release any unnecessary tension it might be holding onto,

Whether consciously or unconsciously.

Let go of the day's posture,

The habitual holding pattern,

The unconscious bracing against stress and the residual tightness from physical or emotional exertion.

Allow your body to fully surrender to the pull of gravity and the embrace of rest.

There's nowhere else to be,

Nothing else to do and no one else to be except exactly who you are in this moment,

In this space and in this body.

You can release any striving,

Any efforting,

Any need to perform,

Achieve or please others and simply allow yourself to be present in the quiet and gentle reality of your physical form.

It's incredibly common and entirely understandable for anxiety to surface as we prepare to transition from the activity and stimulation of your day into the stillness and vulnerability of sleep.

The quiet and stillness of the night,

While often restorative,

Can sometimes amplify the worries,

Concerns and unresolved thoughts that may have been pushed aside,

Suppressed or ignored during the busyness and distractions of our waking hours.

If your mind is currently active and restless with anxious thoughts,

Please know with absolute certainty and self-compassion that you are not alone in this experience.

Feeling this way is a deeply human phenomenon,

A natural and often unavoidable consequence of being human.

How we tune into awareness of potential threats,

Our innate capacity for anticipation,

Rumination and imaginative projection.

Thoughts which tend to arise in the darkness and quiet of the night are fueled by the mind's inherent tendency to anticipate potential dangers,

To problem-solve future scenarios and to ruminate on past events,

Seeking patterns,

Explanations and a sense of control over the unpredictable nature of life.

However,

It's so important to remember that these thoughts,

Especially those that arise as you're trying to fall asleep,

Are composed of thought energy.

Mental constructs,

Not accurate or objective reflections of reality and certainly not reliable or infallible predictions of the future.

The good news is you don't have to believe everything your mind tells you,

Especially in the quiet hours of the night,

When its pronouncements can sometimes seem particularly convincing or alarming.

There's more good news.

You don't have to engage with any worry,

Analysis,

Fear or try to find an immediate and definite solution to every problem your mind presents.

Instead,

Here's an experiment.

Can you allow these thoughts to flow by,

Like clouds gently passing in the vast and expansive canvas of the night sky?

Observe them without judgment,

Without resistance and without the need to analyze,

Control,

Suppress or change them in any way.

Let them come and let them go,

In their own time,

At their own pace,

Without any interference or effort from you.

You do not have to forcefully silence the mind.

You do not have to create a vacuum of thoughtlessness.

You do not have to engage in a mental battle with your anxieties.

You don't have to vanquish them with willpower or reason.

Instead,

Your gentle and compassionate invitation is to change your relationship with the often busy activity of your mind,

To cultivate a sense of detachment,

Spaciousness and acceptance around your thoughts and feelings,

Recognizing their transient nature.

Gently and repeatedly bringing your awareness back to the tangible and grounding sensations in your physical body,

The anchor of your being in this present moment,

The safe haven you can always return to for comfort and reassurance.

Feel the gentle and rhythmic rise and fall of your chest or abdomen as you breathe,

The subtle expansion and contraction of your torso with each inhale and exhale.

Notice the weight of your body resting,

Supported by the surface beneath you,

The comforting pressure of the covers against your skin,

And the soothing temperature of the air around you.

Use these immediate and undeniable physical sensations as a grounding force,

A way to return to the reality of the here and now,

Away from the pull of anxious thinking,

Away from the projections and fears of the future,

And away from the ruminations and regrets of the past.

Let your body be your sanctuary of peace,

Your unwavering point of return whenever your mind becomes caught up in worry,

Fear,

Or the relentless pursuit of answers and certainty.

As you continue to breathe,

Imagine that your breath is like a gentle and soothing wave,

Washing away any tension,

Tightness,

Unease,

Or holding that may be present in your body.

With each inhale,

Invite a sense of calm,

Ease,

Spaciousness,

And tranquility into your being,

Drawing in peace,

Safety,

And a feeling of groundedness with every breath.

With each exhale,

Release any gripping,

Bracing,

Clenching,

Or unnecessary effort you might be doing,

Allowing your body to soften,

Surrender,

And let go of its need for control and protection.

Allow your body to relax more deeply with every breath,

To release its hold on the days events,

And to trust in its inherent capacity to rest,

Restore,

And rejuvenate itself.

There's no need to grip or brace yourself against the thoughts or feelings that might arise in your awareness.

No need to fight them,

Suppress them,

Or try to change them.

Instead,

You can allow them to be present without resistance,

Without judgment,

And without the need to analyze,

Understand,

Or fix them,

Trusting that they will eventually pass,

Like all things do,

Carried away by the ever-flowing river of your consciousness.

You are not your thought.

You are not your anxiety.

You are not your worries,

Your fears,

Your mental projections,

Or the stories your mind creates.

You are the vast and spacious awareness that holds them,

The quiet and peaceful observer of their ebb and flow,

The unwavering presence that underlies their transient and impermanent nature.

And beneath the often turbulent surface of the mind's activity,

There is a natural and inherent peace,

A quiet stillness,

A deep sense of well-being,

And an unshakable truth that is always present within you,

Waiting to be rediscovered and embraced.

You don't have to actively create this peace,

Strive to achieve it through effort or willpower,

Or earn the right to experience it.

You simply have to remember its existence,

Allow yourself to return to its nurturing embrace,

And trust in its unwavering presence.

Let go of any efforting and striving.

Let go of any need to control your thoughts,

Your feelings,

Your body,

Or your experience in any way.

Allow yourself to drift into a state of surrender,

To soften into the present moment,

And to trust in the natural unfolding of your being,

Guided by the wisdom of your body,

The rhythm of your breath,

And the gentle pull of sleep.

You are safe.

You are held.

You are enough exactly as you are in this moment,

With all your imperfections,

Uncertainties,

And vulnerabilities.

In this moment,

You are perfectly poised to rest,

To rejuvenate,

And to allow the gentle and restorative embrace of sleep to carry you into the depths of peace,

Renewal,

And profound well-being.