Please come to a very comfortable position,
Somewhere you feel safe and supported,
And that you won't be disturbed.
This meditation can be listened to when you are ready to float into a long restorative night's sleep,
Or during the day,
Whenever you need a break and some deep rest.
Take a deep,
Slow breath in,
Filling your lungs completely,
And gently exhale.
Just let it go.
Again,
A full,
Expansive breath in,
And release it easily,
Maybe with a sigh.
And one more breath,
Your own pace,
Your own rhythm.
Hold it for a soft moment,
And let it melt out of you.
Good.
Just taking a few full,
Easy breaths begins to send a message to your nervous system.
It's okay to rest now.
And before we drift deeper into the body,
Let's pause and tune in to a feeling of gratitude,
This quiet power that gently opens the heart and brings us into the present moment.
Right here,
Softly bring your awareness to something from your day,
Something or someone you feel thankful for.
It could be a person you connected with,
A kind word,
A sweet animal,
The way the meal,
Something you accomplished,
Or simply making it through today.
Let yourself feel into the goodness of that moment.
Notice what it brings up in your body,
A warmth,
A smile,
Maybe a softening.
Gratitude invites us into trust.
It reminds us that there is beauty,
Even in small things,
And that you're held in more ways than you realize.
Breathe into this feeling.
Let it fill you up gently,
And let it stay with you as we move into a progressive muscle relaxation technique before our full body relaxation.
Let's begin in the lower body,
Bringing your awareness to both feet and all 10 toes.
Begin to curl your toes and feel tension building in the feet.
Tense up your calf muscles all the way up your upper legs,
Hips,
And glutes,
Squeezing everything in with intentional tightness.
Breathe in a little more air.
Then as you exhale through the mouth,
Relax your legs and feet completely.
Full relaxation,
Informing the body and the brain that we can move from tightness and tension into softness and relaxation.
Now,
Bringing awareness into your hands as you slowly make fists with both hands,
Curling the fingers in,
Creating tension with awareness.
Now allow that tension to travel up through the arms,
Squeezing the arms in and the shoulders up.
Keep squeezing with intention.
Take another sip of air in,
Then let it out of the mouth.
Release all of the air and soften your entire body.
Feel the relaxation travel through your arms,
Reminding the body we can move from tension into relaxation.
Now,
One final time,
Your whole body now.
Begin to activate every muscle from the feet up through the legs,
From the hands to the shoulders,
The belly to the upper back,
Even into your face,
Scrunching up,
Creating maximum tension for a few more seconds.
Keep squeezing.
Notice the tension you are intentionally creating with full awareness.
One more little inhale.
Now release the breath as you relax your whole body,
Your whole body softening,
Your whole body melting,
Training the mind and the body that we can move flexibly from tension to ease within our body and our minds.
Now feel your whole body resting on the surface you are lying on,
Your whole body at ease,
Your whole body at rest.
Now we will begin to move our awareness gradually throughout the body.
Simply listen to my voice and guide your attention to the areas that I name off.
Bring your focus now into your right hand.
Allow your whole right hand to relax,
Your palms softening,
And each finger relaxing one by one by one.
Relax through your right wrist,
Your forearm,
Your elbow,
Upper arm,
And your right shoulder.
Let a feeling of softness now travel down your right side body,
Into your right side waist,
All the way into your right hip,
Down through your right thigh,
Your knee,
Your ankle,
And all the way into your foot.
Each toe softens completely,
Your entire right side,
Shoulder to foot,
Melts into stillness.
So very heavy,
So very calm.
Becoming more and more relaxed with each breath.
Now bring your focus into your left palm.
Let your left hand unwind,
Each finger softening one by one.
Your wrist releasing.
Awareness into your left forearm,
Elbow,
And upper arm.
Awareness into your left shoulder,
And allow a feeling of softness to travel down your left side body,
Into your left side waist,
Your left hip,
Down through your thigh,
Your knee,
All the way into your foot.
Each toe gently lets go,
Your entire left side,
Shoulder to foot,
Melts into stillness.
So very heavy,
So very calm.
Becoming more and more relaxed with each breath.
Now shift your awareness to the back of your body.
Let it be heavy.
Let it feel supported and held.
Your upper back relaxing even more.
Your shoulder blades,
Muscles that run along your spine,
Everything softening.
Muscle by muscle,
Even bone by bone.
As each vertebra lets go,
Your nervous system resets.
It recalibrates,
Realigns itself with rest.
The lower back releases.
Hips,
Pelvis,
And glutes relax fully into the surface beneath you.
Feel your legs soften from the back of the thighs,
Through the knees,
Down through the calves,
To your ankles and heels.
You are safe to let go.
You are safe to relax.
You are safe to surrender.
Let's move into the front of your body now.
Soften through your upper chest,
Into your lungs.
Feel your heart.
No need to change anything.
Just be with it.
Allow it to slow.
Relax your ribs,
Your belly,
Your entire digestive system,
All of the vital organs,
Allowing them to do their job properly,
To help you remain healthy.
Let it all soften.
Trusting in each organ of your body.
The tops of your legs release.
All the way down to the tops of your feet.
You are safe to let go.
You are safe to surrender.
Now gently bring awareness to the right side of your neck.
Relax the muscles there.
Bring awareness now to the left side of your neck,
Letting that side soften.
Feel your throat relax any tension.
Feel your jaw soften.
Each exhale melting away any tension.
Relax your tongue from the roof of your mouth.
Soften your ears as though they are melting towards the earth.
Any sound you hear is just a vibration of relaxation flowing into your ears.
Feel the breath through your nose.
Gentle flow in and out,
Letting that rhythm lull you deeper.
Muscles around your eyes begin to relax even more.
With every breath you take,
Your entire head,
Face,
And neck softens into a state of ease.
Let go of any tension in your forehead.
Melt away any tightness there.
Allow the thoughts behind the forehead to soften too.
Your right brain,
The space of creativity and intuition,
Eases into a deep calm.
Your left brain,
The center of logic and planning,
Can rest now.
Your sleep becomes more accessible when we allow this kind of surrender.
Every part of you is now bathed in calm.
Just be here for a little while.
No need to do anything.
Allow your body to take over.
Let it do what it knows how to do.
You don't need to direct or manage it.
The body is wise.
It knows what's needed.
This is your natural state.
When the mind steps aside and the body leaves,
When you rest fully,
Your cells reorganize,
Your hormones rebalance,
And your heart recalibrates.
This sleep is how your system returns to wholeness.
Let go into the support beneath you.
Allow yourself to drift.
Dissolve into deep.
