Off to Sleep

Physical relaxation, breath awareness and visualisation combined in this track designed to help you slow down and fall asleep. Calm, clear Australian accent.

Transcript

Off to sleep by Kirsten Doesle,

Still Potential.

Ensure you're in a position of comfort.

Take a moment to wriggle about and position yourself in any way that maximises your sense of being supported and being able to let go.

As always you are welcome to move throughout the session.

In this routine you will be switching off the muscles.

It may help you to imagine the flicking off of a switch,

Just like a light switch,

Or the closing down of the power on your computer.

Once you are comfortable,

Take your awareness to your forehead.

Soften and release.

Allow your forehead to feel smooth.

Switch off.

Slide your attention to your scalp and allow it to unwind and loosen.

Notice your eyes and let your eyelids rest gently closed,

Like soft velvety curtains.

Sense the eyeballs sinking and resting deep in the eye sockets.

Turn off the activity here.

Allow your muscles of facial expression to become liquid and serene.

Soften around your mouth and nose.

Drop your jaw.

Allow your teeth to come a little apart and your tongue to be fat and soft in the bottom of your mouth.

Tip of your tongue sitting just behind the top teeth.

Loosen your jaw again and feel it drop back.

Allow your throat and the front of your neck to feel wide and fat.

Slide your attention to the back of your neck and sense the letting go of the neck muscles.

Release into the support.

Feel a subtle lengthening and softening of your neck as the tension releases.

Switch off the muscles.

Allow your head to feel supported.

Give over the weight of your head and thoughts to the support.

Let any tightness flow away.

Notice the tops of your shoulders and soften.

Let go the holding.

Take a load off your shoulders.

Notice the front of your chest wall and with your next breath in feel an opening and a softening.

A widening from tip to tip.

Slide your attention to your shoulder blades.

Loosen,

Breathe into the shoulder blades,

Then let go into the support.

If your attention has wandered,

Gently draw back,

Kindly,

In a non-judgmental manner.

Notice your arms now,

Right arm first,

Switch off around the shoulder,

The top of the arm,

Through to the elbow,

Forearm,

Wrist and hand,

Fingers and thumb.

Allow the muscles to hang on the bones.

Unwind,

Release.

Let your awareness to your left arm.

Does it feel different?

Repeat this power off from your shoulder,

Down to your elbow,

Through the forearm,

At your wrist,

Thumb and fingers.

Let go,

Switch off.

Your arms may feel soft or floaty or light,

They may feel heavy,

Warm or loose.

Notice your trunk.

Let your whole trunk and abdomen melt into the support.

Move over the weight to gravity.

Surrender in safety to the support.

Slow down.

Feel the wave of your breath gently moving your belly.

Release and soften around your organs.

Unwind any ropey tension in the muscles down either side of the spine.

Drop in and melt to the support.

Take your awareness to your legs.

Allow them to surrender to the surface.

Sink in,

Unwind.

Notice your right leg,

Switch off,

Thigh,

Around the knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Foot and toes.

Loosen,

Let go.

Move your awareness to your left leg.

Does it feel different?

Far off,

Down your left leg,

Through your thigh,

Knee,

Calf,

Ankle,

Foot and toes.

Gently and lightly sense an overview of your whole body.

Draw your attention to the physical sensations of resting muscles.

Know that your body is resting now.

Feel the sensations.

Perhaps you feel warmth or coolness,

Firmness,

Comfort.

This is a non-thinking,

An observation of sensation.

Now move your attention to your breath.

No need to change it.

Just allow your awareness to sit lightly on the act of breathing.

Again return your focus to the dialogue,

Should your attention wander.

You may notice the thoughts that you have coming in.

Simply let them go.

And if they are concerns about sleep,

Thank you mind,

That's nothing new.

Draw your attention back to this breath focus.

Some thoughts are helpful and some are not.

Right now your focus and awareness is on the physical sensation of breathing.

Follow your breath as you count.

One on your in-breath,

One on your out-breath.

Continue your count to five.

Slide your attention to your body now and slowly and luxuriously scan your body.

Make any adjustments for comfort or pleasure.

And then bring your attention back.

In your mind's eye,

See yourself lying as you are now.

Expand your image in your mind to take in the whole room.

Notice the details,

Your position,

Your coverings.

Your eyes are closed and you are imagining and remembering the room around you.

And we are now going to begin to view your day from the start.

Starting at the end of the reflection to here and now.

So through this routine,

Spending a little time on reflecting each part of the day.

So begin with the morning.

Recall getting out of bed.

Follow your preparation for the day.

Recall the room around you,

Perhaps the clothing you chose.

Maybe your breakfast routine.

What the morning held for you.

Once you have played that scene,

Let it go.

Allow it to fade and move forward through your day.

Late morning,

Middle of the day,

Seeing the spaces,

The actions,

The people,

The interactions,

The things around you,

Early afternoon,

Mid afternoon,

Into your evening.

Just as if you were replaying a scene from a movie.

Watch it,

See yourself in it,

Then release it and move on to the next scene.

No matter if the details are not clear and no matter if you leave a few parts out or if they are not replaying in the exact order.

Simply keep that viewing moving on.

If there is one memory that presents you with a lot of details,

Allow it to play out that way.

And then once you have watched it,

Send it off and move forward again.

If one event wants to be replayed,

Watch it in slow motion once.

Then thank you,

Snip the attachment and allow it to move on.

Bringing yourself in time and your reflection and review through the afternoon and evening and to the time just before you came to bed.

Gather your whole day now.

Pack it up into a ball.

All that it was,

Gather into this ball and place that ball into a setting sun.

Watch your ball disappear as the sun sets below the horizon.

Sinking,

Taking with it all that it was.

You have replayed and filed your day.

Let it be.

Observe the final rays of your sun sinking,

Setting and it's gone.

Let it be.

It has been and you are here now.

Be here now.

This is the only moment you can be in.

Take your attention to your incoming breath.

In your quiet body and quiet environment,

Can you feel the passage of air?

Notice the air moving through the nostrils to the throat to expand your chest and trunk.

Watch the tide of your breath.

On your next breath in,

Repeat to yourself,

I am.

As you allow the air out,

Think the words OK and resting.

I am OK and resting.

I am OK and resting.

You may find your mind interrupts with comments.

Quickly move them on and return to this dialogue.

Notice the expiration is a little longer than the inspiration.

I am OK and resting.

You may prefer the words trust as you breathe in and let it be with your expiration.

Trust.

Let it be.

Trust.

Let it be.

There may be other words that come to mind that feel right.

Right now,

Simply free your mind.

Allow it to think or not.

Any thoughts,

Even the old familiar ones,

Allow them to slide in and fade.

Feel expansive and free in your mind.

Bring your attention now to your body.

Simply notice sensations in each body part as you scan down your body.

You may notice sensations of temperature,

Pressure,

Texture.

There may be clear sensations or perhaps there is not much sensation.

No matter,

Simply notice the flow of attention over your body and the sensations from your physical body.

Now draw that awareness up to your central chest space and follow the rise and fall of your breath.

Attention now being cocooned in a soft gossamer wrap.

This wrap sits just slightly away from your body.

You feel held,

Safe and secure.

Sense the texture of your wrap,

Maybe a fine thread or perhaps it is fluffy.

The colour is a soft pinky gold sheen.

See this wrap as it folds and drapes your whole body.

Sense the softness and secure energy of your shimmering cocoon wrap.

Allow yourself to rest into a deep sense of safety and ease.

Know that your body and mind are resting.

Repicture and feel that gossamer wrap of energy sitting softly around you.

Your body is deeply resting,

Your mind becoming serene.

Your thoughts coming to stillness,

Just like glitter coming to rest in a snow dome.

Slowly,

Gently,

The swirling thoughts drop away,

Revealing calm and stillness.

Resell in your body,

Resting,

Floating,

Calm,

Strong and clear.

Move a little if you wish and feel how you luxuriate in being enveloped in the strength,

Stillness and security of your wrap.

You are safe here,

You can rest here.

Let go and feel,

Centre awareness on your chest.

Rest into safety and stillness.

Should you still be wakeful,

Bring your gentle focus to counting,

Enough to keep your mind on track but not too complex that it creates stress or concentration.

Drawing your count from ten to one,

Drawing your attention back to your counting if your mind wanders.

You may wish to see a colour in your mind's eye,

A colour that you find restful and serene.

With a light attention,

Imagine this colour or perhaps simply say the word.

Allow this colour to spread over your whole mind's eye.

Imagine should your attention wander,

Gently draw back to your colour.

And know that your body is resting,

Rejuvenating.

Relaxation.

Rest in stillness.

Reviews

I really love this guided meditation. I didn’t fall asleep this time so I’m going to listen again. Beautiful relaxing words. And thank You for not using music ❤️

Fell asleep so fast. I may have to listen again! Thank you! 😊🙏🏻

Great! Loved the australian voice so relaxing

Put me right out and woke feeling great! Thank you

Excellent practice thank you

Put me back to sleep when I needed it. Have bookmarked for the future.

Always so effective, in minutes off to sleep😊 thank you

Put me right to sleep✨

One of my faves! Thank You!

Works every time. Amazing.🙏

I have never heard the end yet - this meditation is aptly named! Namaste!

I've used this many times and am always asleep by at least the halfway mark. I had no idea what the rest includes until I played it for my son in a noisy hotel room tonight. He's snoring away now.

Wish I could finish this but I'm always asleep, thanks‼

I often struggle to fall asleep, but the technique used in Off to Sleep almost always works

Just discovered this fabulous meditation and will return often. Thank you !

Off to sleep I went. Thank you

Out after first several minutes.

Very pleasant and effective.