Go Back To Sleep

This is a guided talk-down meditation for those times you wake up late at night and struggle to get back off to sleep. This track is a gentle relaxation for body and mind including a relaxed and informal body-scan, with continual prompts that there is no need to engage with the mind at all, instead simply staying 'in the body' with your relaxed awareness. This track has a background ambient deep hum that I find incredibly effective at drowning out background noise and bringing the mind to serenity and peace.

This track is inspired by Mindfulness, Presence and also simple relaxation techniques that have stood the test of time. Go back to sleep, all is well.

Transcript

Laying in bed with your eyes closed is just as restful and restorative as sleep. So don't panic that you've woken up this night. You're not missing out on any rest. In fact, You have a profound opportunity. To find deep peace in this stillness. So relax the body as much as you can. Just let go of any tension or tightness. And the mind will be beginning to engage all of its usual chatter. Trying to bring up all the usual narratives. Just don't engage with the mind. It's not necessary at this time. Instead, Stay in the body. Truly feel your bodily sensations. And breathing deeply. Just introduce this very gentle relaxation. To any tense, Tight or agitated areas in the field of sensation that is the body. And there is no need to force any relaxation. Do not even try to get back to sleep. Falling asleep again is something that will happen naturally as the body and mind relaxes. But it truly doesn't matter one way or another. This time is just as restful, Just as peaceful as sleep. So just enjoy this serenity. Notice the present moment. In this present moment, There is no day ahead. There is no tomorrow. There is only now. Simply appreciate the calm. Stillness in the now. What is the temperature in the room? What are the quality of the sounds or absence of sound in the room? How is the feel of the fabric on your skin? Can you feel the weight of your body against the bed? Be empty and free of all things. There is nothing to be done in this moment. Use this time. To truly relax the body. Starting with the head. Unclench your jaw. Release the muscles of the skull. Let go of the tension around the eyes and ears. Relax your neck and throat. Release your shoulders. From their tense, Tight brace. And let them fall down to the side. Let your arms melt. Relax the chair. Allow the ribs to expand as you breathe. Notice the belly. Is their tension. Blockage in the gut. Just release, Relax. Let everything hang loose. Are you holding your hips tightly? This is a beautiful time to release the tension from your hips. Breathing deep. And letting all tension go. Now going to the base of the spine. See if you can release the tension from the base of the spine, Like unscrewing a tight screw. Just let it relax, All the way. And unscrew each vertebra. All the way up the spine. To the mid back. The upper back. All the way to the base of the skull. Unscrew. Untightened. Melting any tension now that's held in the legs. Like butter melting down through your thighs. Around the hamstrings and knees. All tension, Dripping. Down. Into the ankles. And this flowing, Melting relaxation now falls out through your toes. Simply enjoy this pleasant rest. This is a lovely time to enjoy a bit of peace, A bit of quiet. Nobody around to bother you. Just stillness and relaxation. All is well. And because this is such an enjoyable time to rest and relax. In the serenity of the night. We know that waking up. Is nothing to be frustrated by. It's an opportunity. For serene presence. Breathe slowly and deeply. All the way in. And all the way out. Do not engage with the mind at all. Instead, Simply breathe. If you feel sleep beginning to overtake. This is good. Let it happen. Hand, Your body and mind back over to sleep. And rest deeply. Until morning.

Reviews

Thank you for this helpful contribution! I especially like how the calming and unhurried guidance starts by taking the pressure off "having to" fall asleep, and then invites us to physically and mentally relax into an appreciation of the peace of the present moment instead. I also value the absence of music, which tends to distract me, and found the deep ambient hum in the background very helpful. I nodded off somewhere in the middle during the night and, when listening again in the early morning, enjoyed some more rest and relaxation. This time, I made it to the end of the recording, which I have bookmarked to return to as needed.