This is a guided practice to listen to in preparation for sleep.
This practice should only be done when you're in a safe place to fall asleep,
Preferably comfortable and warm and somewhere you're unlikely to be disturbed.
I would suggest lying on your back with your legs uncrossed and straight out,
With a little bit of space between them and allowing the feet to fall out to the sides,
Just relaxed.
And your arms can be by your sides,
Again a comfortable distance away from the body.
And making sure your head is comfy and supported by a pillow,
Maybe also with a pillow or bolster under the backs of your knees if that feels good.
This is a guided practice to prepare the body and mind for sleep,
And during the practice you might begin to feel very sleepy.
Either during or at the end of the practice you might have the urge to adjust your position in preparation for sleep.
You may even feel yourself relaxing deeply and drifting off to sleep during the practice,
And this is absolutely fine and if that happens,
Just go with it.
The purpose of this practice is relaxation and preparation for sleep.
Midway through the practice or at the end,
When the body begins to feel heavy and the mind starts to drift into the sleep state,
Just go with it.
So allowing the eyes to close.
Let's begin now by turning your attention to all the places of the body making contact with the bed beneath you.
So starting with the back of the head.
Notice the contact between the back of the head and the pillow.
Notice the weight of the head upon the softness of the pillow.
If you need to adjust the head at all,
Do it now.
And then allow the full weight of the head to sink into the soft pillow and come to stillness for now.
Moving the attention into the back of the neck and the back of the shoulders,
Both making contact with the bed.
Again,
Noticing the contact between them and allow any tension in the neck and shoulders,
Any tension they're holding,
Just to release into the soft pillow or mattress below.
Imagine or visualize or feel any tension or stress in the neck and shoulders being absorbed by the bed below.
Notice a softening and easing in those areas now.
Moving the attention down the rest of the back now,
Making contact with the bed and the backs of both of the arms resting at the sides.
Noticing the weight of the arms.
The softness of the bed beneath the back of the body.
Moving the attention down to the backs of the legs,
Making contact with the bed.
Noticing the weight of the legs.
The feel of them resting on the soft bed.
And releasing any tension they might be holding.
Just letting go of that.
Good.
So whilst the weight of the back of the body is going down into the bed,
The breath of the body is gently rising up with the inhale and falling away,
Releasing with the exhale.
Just take a moment to notice that the weight of the body going down into the bed and the breath of the body gently rising up and then falling away.
Just to remind you that if at any point you feel the body or the mind drifting off into sleep,
Then just let it go.
We're going to do a guided practice called a yoga nidra,
Which means yogic sleep.
So first I'll invite you to set an intention for this practice which can be as simple as deep relaxation or falling asleep easily and staying asleep.
Or if you want to be more specific,
Something like falling into the best most replenishing sleep ever and waking up in the morning feeling energized and more rested than I felt in a long time.
So after setting that intention,
Which we'll do in a moment,
After that I'll guide you in a body scan of sorts.
I'll name different parts of the body in fairly quick succession and invite you to take your attention there by imagining,
Feeling or sensing that part of the body and then moving fairly quickly on to the next.
And if you catch the mind thinking any thoughts,
Don't worry,
Just guide yourself back to the practice.
Just bring it back.
Or if the body or mind starts drifting off into sleep,
Then just go with it.
And now is the time to make that intention.
Allow the mind to settle on a simple phrase or sentence for what you'd like to achieve from this practice.
Allow that to form.
And silently say that to yourself in your mind three times over.
Do this now.
Deep rest,
Falling asleep.
Best night's sleep.
Good.
And now take your awareness to the right hand.
And in particular,
The right hand thumb.
Moving to the first finger.
Moving to the second finger.
Third finger.
And now the little finger.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
The right wrist.
Lower arm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
The right shoulder.
Armpit.
The right side of the body from the armpit down to the hip.
The right thigh.
Back of the thigh.
Kneecap.
Back of the knee.
Calf muscle.
Shin.
The right ankle.
Heel of the right foot.
Sole of the foot.
Top of the foot.
Big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
The little toe on the right foot.
Moving the awareness across the body to the left hand.
The left hand thumb.
First finger.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Little finger on the left hand.
Palm of the hand.
Back of the hand.
Wrist.
Lower arm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
Left shoulder.
Armpit.
The left side of the body from the armpit to the hip.
Thigh.
Back of the thigh.
Kneecap.
Back of the knee.
Calf muscle.
Shin.
Left ankle.
Heel of the left foot.
Sole of the foot.
Top of the foot.
Big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
Little toe on the left foot.
Moving the awareness to the back of the body and the top of the right shoulder.
Top of the left shoulder.
Right shoulder blade.
Left shoulder blade.
Right side of the lower back.
Left side of the lower back.
The base of the spine.
The length of the spine from the base to the top.
Back of the neck.
Back of the head.
Top of the head.
Moving the awareness to the front of the body,
The forehead.
Right temple.
Left temple.
Right eyebrow.
Left eyebrow.
Right eye.
Left eye.
Bridge of the nose.
Right cheekbone.
The left cheekbone.
Tip of the nose.
Right ear.
Left ear.
Right side of the jaw.
Left side of the jaw.
The right nostril.
The left nostril.
Both nostrils together.
Top lip.
Bottom lip.
Both lips together.
Chin.
The throat.
Right collarbone.
Left collarbone.
Right side of the chest.
Left side of the chest.
The top of the abdomen.
The navel.
Lower abdomen.
Right side of the groin.
Left side of the groin.
The whole of the right arm.
The whole of the left arm.
Both arms together.
The whole of the right leg.
The whole of the left leg.
Both legs together.
The whole of the back of the body.
The whole of the front of the body.
The back and front of the body together.
The whole of the face.
The whole of the head.
The whole body all together.
The whole body all together.
The whole body all together.
The whole body is now more relaxed and more restful than it's ever been.
The whole body and the mind is now ready for a deep and restful sleep.
Possibly the most deep and restful sleep you've ever had.
And during this sleep,
The body and mind will truly have an opportunity to rejuvenate and replenish.
Filling your cup of energy.
Allowing all your systems to rest and recharge.
And when you wake from this sleep,
You'll have a peaceful sense of having had an amazing sleep.
Feeling refreshed and ready to do whatever you want or need to do with a sense of peacefulness and ease.
If you haven't already,
Now is the time to adjust,
If you want to,
To any position that feels good to sleep in.
If you haven't already,
You'll soon feel yourself drifting off into a deep and restful sleep.
If you haven't already,
Just allow yourself to completely switch off and let go now.
With each breath,
With each gentle exhale,
You can feel yourself relaxing deeper and deeper.
As the body and mind drifts closer and closer and closer to deep sleep.
Allowing the body and mind now to rest and relax.
Just letting go.
Drifting into a deep,
Deep restful sleep.
