Welcome to this guided meditation to help you wind down and get some sleep,
Especially if you've had a stressful day or there's a lot on your mind.
You've already begun the winding down process.
You've made the choice to practice this meditation with me right now,
And that is a signal to your body that it's time to slow down and turn inwards.
At the same time,
Of course,
Your body and your mind may have other ideas.
If it's been a stressful day,
I invite you to affirm that.
It's been a stressful day.
It has.
There's been a lot going on.
You've been feeling worried or fearful or exhausted or angry or overworked.
Perhaps you're going through some change or transition in your life and you're processing a lot right now.
That's all normal.
It's all okay.
Let's take a moment to consider whether or not there's something you need to do immediately.
Is there something that you've forgotten today?
Is there some last thing you need to do before you can let the day go?
Would it be okay to leave whatever it is until tomorrow?
If there is something you need to do,
Like need to do,
You can pause this recording and go do it.
If it can wait until tomorrow,
Let's take a moment to let that decision settle.
I am letting these things go until tomorrow.
I am letting everything go until tomorrow.
I am making the choice now to shift into sleep for the night.
You've already begun the practice of settling simply by listening to my voice.
If you haven't already,
Settle your body,
Fidget and shift until you are as comfortable as you can be today.
Notice if there is some leftover energy in your body.
This might look like an urge to move or shift or simply having some difficulty settling into a comfortable shape.
Notice if there is some movement you need in your body right now.
Squeeze or shift or stretch or fidget.
Sometimes even clenching and then relaxing the hands a few times can help.
Let your body work out anything it needs to work out physically.
Let your body move through any shapes it needs before you can rest and settle.
Sleep can sometimes be a challenge,
But often when the mind is busy there is this feeling that it's not okay to go to sleep,
Not okay to go unconscious,
That we need to stay awake to worry or plan or think or analyze our way through whatever it is we're going through.
So let's take a moment to acknowledge and remember that sleep is a tool in managing almost everything in our lives.
In sleep,
Our brains continue to think and process.
In dreams,
Our minds are sorting through the information from the day and figuring out where to put it.
Our dreams can also contain and express our emotions.
In deep unconsciousness,
We gently delete the information we don't need so that we can focus better on what's important to us.
Sleep will help us think.
Sleep will help us face the challenges we're facing in our lives right now.
There's nothing more you can do today.
It's time to rest.
Time to switch out of the thinking mind and into the resting,
Dreaming mind.
It is okay to rest.
It will help to rest.
It is also okay to discover you cannot sleep.
You are already resting.
Lying down in the dark is most of what we need from sleep.
If you notice that you do not drift off during this meditation or have a hard time staying asleep tonight,
That's okay.
There's no need to get frustrated.
Focus on your breath and relax your body as much as you can.
It's almost as good as sleep.
Let's take a deep inhale and a deep exhale.
Inhale again,
And as you exhale,
Think about simply releasing tension in your body.
Inhale all the way in,
And the exhale is just a release of effort.
This could be as big or as small of a breath as you like.
Inhale completely,
And then releasing tension to exhale.
Do that a few times,
As many times as you like.
Now pause and notice how you feel.
Your spool is unwinding just a little bit,
And you're beginning to loosen in the tight places and soften towards sleep.
Now notice the earth beneath your body.
Notice how you are held by the ground,
This ancient earth that has seen so much.
This ground which witnesses your experiences and holds you in them no matter where you go.
This earth which is capable of holding some of the weight you might like to let go of.
With your next exhale,
Notice if there is something you could let go of.
Some way that you could soften a little bit into the earth to allow yourself to nestle a little deeper into the shape you've chosen.
I'm going to offer a part of the body for you to relax.
I'm going to encourage you to inhale,
And as you exhale,
Use that exhale to relax specifically that part of the body.
Go at your own pace,
There's no rush.
Feel free to take a couple of extra breaths for any parts of the body that need it.
Just inhaling naturally,
And just using your exhale as a release of effort,
Focusing on the part of the body that I'm suggesting.
So as you're ready,
Inhale,
And as you exhale,
Relax your shoulders.
Your jaw.
The space around your eyes.
Your belly.
The heaviness and softness of your legs.
Your forehead.
The space between your eyebrows.
Your eyelids.
Your cheeks.
Feel your ears relaxing.
Your tongue in your mouth.
The tiny muscles around your neck and throat softening and letting go.
The larger muscles between your ears and the top of your shoulders softening,
Lengthening,
As if your shoulders could simply drift away.
The space between your shoulder blades widening,
Softening.
Your right arm heavy and soft.
Each of the fingers of your right hand,
Your hand resting,
Sleeping,
Trusting in the safety of this moment.
Your left arm soft and relaxed,
Easeful.
Your left hand,
Each of the fingers softly curling into a natural position of rest and sleep.
Your heart nestled in your chest,
Tender and soft,
Protected,
Safe.
Its rhythm softening and slowing down.
Notice if you can feel the beat of your heart,
The gentle tempo that reverberates throughout your body.
Your stomach settling,
Your stomach slowing down,
Resting.
Your organs softening as your belly relaxes,
Giving them room to do whatever it is they need to do at night.
Trusting that your body knows what to do in your rest and sleep.
That your body is busy repairing,
Filtering,
Digesting.
There's so much beauty and wisdom in the body at rest,
And all you need to do is allow.
Feel your lower back softening,
Your breath soft and gentle in your lower back,
Your low belly and pelvis,
Open,
Soft,
Flexible.
Everything can move with your breath,
Even if it's very subtle,
Very soft and sweet.
You do not need to hold on to any tension here in your belly.
You are safe.
It is okay to relax and let go here.
Notice your pelvic floor,
The net of muscles around your genitals.
Soften this area if you can.
Breathe down low into the bottom of your pelvis.
Allow the area to open and move gently with your breath.
You are safe.
It is okay to relax right here.
You are safe enough to rest.
You are safe enough to sleep.
Your right thigh,
Heavy and soft.
Your left thigh,
Heavy and soft.
Your right lower leg,
Your left lower leg,
Both legs relaxed and easeful.
Your feet soft,
Each little toe fanning open with the tenderness and softness of a child sleeping deeply.
Your entire body is heavy and soft,
Tender,
Flexible,
Movable.
Your breath is natural and sweet.
There is nothing you need to do here.
You are safe enough to let go of control.
Allow your body to do what it needs to do.
You are safe enough to sleep.
Let your mind rest on your breath,
Then allow it to float gently like a cloud in a wide blue sky.
Nothing but space,
Nothing but time.
You are safe enough to sleep.
Rest well.
