Welcome to Breathing Into Sleep,
My name is Bethany and I'm so glad you're here.
We begin with some gentle breathing visualizations to help release any stress or tension,
And then the music will continue cradling you as you drift into deep and restful sleep.
So let's begin by finding a comfortable position.
You might find it helpful to quickly tense all your muscles and hold that tension just for a few breaths and then release.
It's a signal to your body that it's time to relax.
Just like getting into bed each evening is a signal to the mind and the body that it is time to sleep.
Begin to notice your breathing,
And if it feels good,
Take a nice deep breath all the way into your belly.
Really expand that belly,
Pulling that breath deep,
Deep,
And deeper still.
And as you do,
Let it out on a sigh.
And maybe do that one more time,
And allow yourself to really make some noise on that exhale,
Releasing all that old,
Stale air.
And now,
Just relax.
Breathing naturally.
And as you breathe,
Allow a sense of soothing to radiate all around your eyes.
See if you can actually feel your eyelids relax.
Feel how incredible it is that with just a little bit of mindfulness,
You can feel your body relax.
And now imagine those gentle sensations of letting go move across your forehead and your scalp.
Feel the back of your head relax,
Your cheeks and nose,
Your mouth and chin,
And all around your jaw,
Those muscles just let go.
You can feel all the tension simply flowing out of your face.
And as you take your next breath,
Imagine that breath traveling to the back of your neck and gently relaxing the muscles there.
All that soothing breath flowing down your neck and across your shoulders.
Let this feeling of relaxation radiate deep into your shoulders.
Feel your shoulders drop,
Feeling heavy,
And allow them to sink into the support beneath you.
And imagine that any tension you have held in your shoulders simply flows out of your shoulders and into the earth beneath you.
You are relaxed and at peace.
And with your next breath,
Imagine that this breath carries that feeling of relaxation across your shoulders and down your chest.
It flows down your arms,
Through your elbows and forearms,
Soothing and easing as that sense of relaxation and breath move through your wrists and your hands and out the tips of your fingers.
With every breath,
You feel your muscles relaxing and letting go.
Tension flowing out of you and into the earth.
And with your next breath,
Feel that relaxation travel across your belly and around your sides and ribs to your back as you relax even more deeply.
Allow this deep relaxation to flow down into your hips and your glutes and thighs,
Feeling those powerful muscles open and let go.
And see if you can feel that relaxation as a melting sensation spreading down your knees and calves,
Ankles and feet.
Imagine your toes completely relaxed,
Breathing slowly and deeply.
You are safe and at peace.
Now taking a nice deep breath,
Send that breath throughout your entire body,
From your head to your toes,
Soothing and relaxing.
That breath,
That fresh oxygen healing every cell in your body.
Your body knows that you cannot force it to relax.
You can only allow it to relax.
Trust your body completely.
It knows that all it takes for this incredible sense of well-being in any given moment is soft,
Intentional breathing.
Savor how good it feels to just breathe.
And with one last breath,
Allow all thoughts and feelings and sensations to move through your awareness as easily as that breath that you exhale.
Your body is heavy.
Your mind is still.
And you are incredibly relaxed.
