Sleep In Restful Presence

Find the present moment before you fall to sleep to offer yourself the best opportunity of quality sleep. By providing yourself with this time before bed time then you are allowing your mind to decompress and naturally slow down.

Transcript

I want to begin this meditation by reminding you that you're safe and that you're at home in your body, And you're a part of the earth and all that is around you, And you can give yourself permission to let go in this moment and allow yourself to fall into blissful rest. This is your time, You've given yourself this time, So give yourself permission in this time to let go. I'd like you to gently close your eyes and just allow your attention to drift inward. Imagine that you are lying in a peaceful grove, Cradled by the ground beneath you. As you breathe in, The air is soft, The earth is warm beneath you, And tonight is welcoming you back to this present moment. You may have drifted slightly throughout the day away from presence, And that's okay, There's no need to overthink that, It's just a natural consequence of a busy day, But now's your time to reconnect part by part to the landscape within you. I'd like you to begin by bringing your attention to your feet, And just feel them as they're softly touching the surface beneath you, Just notice that feeling. They hold no tension and no urgency, Just relaxation from your toes to your ankles. Let go of any pressure in that area and just give your feet permission to relax. You can even say it if you want, I give myself permission to relax in this moment. And as you say this, I'd like you to envision roots beginning to grow from your feet into the earth beneath you, Growing deeper and deeper, And eventually wrapping themselves around some solid rocks embedded beneath the earth. And as you create this connection, You feel a wave of relaxation just come over you as you connect to the earth, Begin to feel the energy revitalizing your entire body, Growing up into your legs, To your thighs and just all around your hip area, There's nothing sharp or tense happening here, It's just simply slow energy, Just a healing energy, No agenda other than to just be there, To support you, To help you, And as you think of this energy as being a helpful energy, You begin to imagine a shallow glowing ember at your core, This isn't like a fire, It's more like a warmth, Like the sun resting behind a mountain, Or the warmth of the sun on your skin as you're laying on the beach, It's just slowly radiating and grounding you in this moment, And as you feel it just healing you from the inside, I'd like you to take a deep breath in through your nose, And as you release your breath just feel a wave of relaxation coming over you, You're supported and held in this moment with nothing to do other than to feel your body becoming loose and just fresh and whole, Just continue keeping your awareness on your breath for a moment as you feel the energy up into your chest, Feel your belly rise and fall, Almost like an ocean tide, Slow and rhythmic, Your breath washing in and as you exhale, It flows out, It's like a tide of calm, Like waves of relaxation, You feel light, Buoyant and unburdened in this moment, And as you feel unburdened you bring your awareness to your hands and you notice that they feel light, Like something you were holding has now been released and that weight is gone, You just feel that weightlessness throughout your arms and into your shoulders, You can move your arms and shoulders if you want to in this moment, You're no longer reaching or grasping for anything, You're just being, And you let a sensation of warmth begin in your palms, Almost like the last light of the day, Just glowing there, And that warmth travels up to your elbows and your shoulders and gently dissolves, And as it dissolves just take a moment to be grateful for this relaxing feeling that you're experiencing, How lucky are you to have this time to unwind and release, Be grateful for yourself for giving yourself this time, Be grateful for the world for giving you the opportunity to relax in this moment, Finally bring your attention to your neck and your jaw and your face and your head, And any tension that you may be holding there, Just release it, Almost like you see a star being released into the night sky, A shooting star as it shoots across, And the beauty of that star is like the beauty you're feeling in this moment, The beauty of soft, Calm serenity, There's no need to release this star or to wish it back, Simply just appreciate everything moment by moment, In that recognition you realize that your forehead is smooth and your jaw is soft, And that your tongue is resting gently in your mouth, And your only task is to return to restful sleep tonight, And as we come to an end, Remember that you are the earth and the earth is you, And there's nowhere else to be in this moment, Just let the night carry you and let sleep take root, Let the ocean waves of relaxation just come over you, Because you're safe and you're whole in this moment, Sleep well.