Good evening.
It's late into the night,
And here you are awake.
Maybe you've been sitting with some spinning thoughts.
Maybe you're worried about something and it's keeping you awake.
Maybe you're just awake.
Maybe this is a time of night that you know well,
Your own personal witching hour.
It's okay that you're having some trouble sleeping tonight.
You can create the conditions for sleep,
But you can't control whether or not you actually drift to that place of quiet restfulness.
Not to worry,
Rest is almost as good as sleep,
And we can do that together.
Perhaps we can even invite the night magic of sleep to join us again here.
Let's start by getting as comfortable as you can.
Go ahead and fidget if that helps.
Adjust your body as you need to.
If you're laying on your back,
Perhaps you could place a pillow underneath your knees.
If you're laying on your side,
A pillow between the knees can be just the thing.
Adjust until you are as comfortable as you can be.
Then,
We will begin to surrender into stillness.
Let's take a moment to pay attention to your breath.
If you'd like,
You could take a few big sighs,
Letting go of your frustration,
Of your middle of the night thoughts,
Of any tension in your body.
It's also fine to simply allow your body to breathe as it likes,
Just noticing your inhales and your exhales.
How long are your inhales?
How long are your exhales?
Without needing to change anything about your breath,
How many counts is your inhale?
What about your exhale?
Think of a count as a heartbeat.
So you can feel your own heartbeat right now.
That gentle,
Constant rhythm,
Sometimes a bit faster,
Sometimes a bit slower.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Imagine your heartbeat counting for you.
How many counts is your inhale?
What about your exhale?
There's no right or wrong amount.
Simply notice.
Now,
I'd like for you to give a little bit of extra attention to your exhale.
Imagine your exhale slowing down a little.
Perhaps it could lengthen slightly,
Gently,
Naturally.
Perhaps there is a slight natural pause at the bottom of your exhale.
No need to hold your breath.
You're simply noticing that you could wait just to beat a millisecond,
A heartbeat,
Before inhaling,
Simply allowing that exhale to rest a moment before the inhale begins.
Notice,
If you're rushing into your inhales,
You're simply alive.
Simply allowing the exhales to be as long as they would like to be,
To wait for them to complete themselves on their own.
There is no right or wrong amount.
Simply allow your exhales to take up as much space and time as they would like.
Now,
Imagine that there is a sensation,
A soft,
Gentle,
Relaxing feeling that is lightly cascading over your body.
It begins at the top of your head,
Softening your forehead,
Your eyebrows,
The space around your eyes,
Your mouth,
Your jaw.
Feeling in your body softening under the spell of this gentle sensation.
Allow this relaxing sensation to move down your body along your neck and shoulders.
Feel your chest softening,
Your belly,
Your lower back.
Feel your entire hip and pelvic region relaxing with this gentle cascading feeling.
Feel it softening down your legs and all the way into your feet.
Allow your body to rest right here.
There's nothing you need to do.
Nowhere you need to go.
Your body wants to rest.
There's so much benefit in rest,
In simply not receiving any new information,
Not doing anything in particular.
Allow yourself to rest here.
Your awareness can soften into the rhythm of your breath,
That gentle rise and fall.
Perhaps you could return to that breath practice of watching your inhales and exhales,
Counting the heartbeats,
Allowing your exhales to take up as much space as they would like.
And then we will return to the silence.
If you are still awake,
You should know that you spent this time offering your body rest and relaxation and all the many benefits that come with that.
If you are comfortable,
You may like to simply rest here with your breath.
Continue to enjoy the relaxing sensation as long as it is enjoyable or until you drift off again.
Thank you for listening and enjoy your rest.
