Hi,
It's Matt Young.
This is a guided meditation to help you fall asleep when you're feeling restless or overstimulated,
Or when your thoughts are keeping you up at night.
In this practice,
We'll use a variety of techniques for inducing deep relaxation and calm.
Most importantly,
Be patient with yourself.
You may well continue to feel somewhat restless and agitated right until the moment you fall asleep.
Trust the process and you'll give yourself the best chance of enjoying a peaceful night's rest.
So,
Let's get started.
Lying comfortably in bed,
Point your toes downwards,
Feeling a nice stretch along the tops of the feet.
Hold your feet in that position momentarily and then flex your toes in the opposite direction,
Perhaps feeling a gentle stretch along the back of the calves.
Then breathe in and point the toes once more.
Hold for a moment and breathe out,
Flexing the foot in the opposite direction once again.
Then let your feet rest in their natural position.
Now,
As you breathe in,
Stretch both arms downwards as though you were trying to touch your toes without bending.
Hold for a moment and then breathe out,
Letting your arms return to their natural position.
And repeat.
Breathing in,
Stretch your arms and hands downwards and breathing out,
Let them rest.
These gentle stretches help release muscular tension and encourage relaxation.
Let's continue with a couple more.
Breathing in,
Push both heels down into the mattress,
Feeling the muscles of the legs contract.
Hold and breathing out,
Let the legs relax.
Breathing in,
Push both hands down into the mattress,
Feeling the muscles of the arms and shoulders contract.
Hold and breathing out,
Let the arms relax.
Breathing in,
Push the chest down into the mattress,
Feeling the muscles of the neck and abdomen contract.
Hold and breathing out,
Let the torso relax.
And finally,
Breathing in,
Push the head down into the pillow,
Feeling the muscles of the neck contract and breathing out,
Let the neck and head relax.
Now,
Rest.
Just let your whole body go limp,
As though you were unconscious and all the limbs were as loose and floppy as those of a rag doll.
And if there are thoughts or feelings bothering or distracting you as we proceed,
Make no effort to block them out.
Give them permission to dance around inside your head.
In this way,
You train your brain to remain calm,
Even in the presence of unwanted thoughts and feelings.
This is the secret ingredient to falling asleep fast.
Now,
Become aware of the air flowing in and out of your body.
And just as you have all day,
Let your body breathe naturally for you.
Let the breath move effortlessly in and out of the lungs.
And with the next inhalation,
Focus on the air entering the right nostril.
And as you exhale,
Focus on the air exiting the left nostril.
Then switch nostrils,
Noticing the air as it enters the left and focusing on the air leaving the right.
And repeat this process,
Not trying to lengthen or deepen your breath.
Instead,
Just noticing how it flows and focusing on the passage of air through one nostril at a time,
Alternating nostrils with each breath,
From right to left,
Then left to right.
And continue in this way for another minute or so,
Breathing in,
Feeling the air as it flows into the right nostril,
Breathing out,
Feeling the air as it flows out of the left nostril.
Then switching,
Feeling the air as it flows back into the left nostril,
Breathing out,
Feeling it flow out of the right nostril.
And just continue with that pattern,
Not worrying whether you're following these instructions correctly,
Or whether you're breathing correctly.
Not worrying if you forget which nostril to breathe in or out of,
Or whether you're relaxing.
Not worrying whether you'll soon be asleep,
Or how you feel.
In fact,
If there are any emotions present,
Say anxiety,
Or frustration,
Or sadness,
Or shame,
Just let them be.
Perhaps say to yourself,
It's natural to feel this way from time to time.
And it's natural to have difficulty falling asleep from time to time.
And of course,
This experience will pass.
In fact,
You can notice how your experience changes with every moment.
Notice how thoughts come and go,
How feelings intensify and then diminish.
And for now,
Pay close attention to the sensations in your head.
Notice if there's any tension in the jaw,
Any tension around the eyes,
Any tension across the brow,
Or in the temples.
And notice if that tension releases or changes,
Even just a tiny bit,
As you bring your attention to it.
You might even imagine that your mind is like a tense and knotted muscle,
And that by focusing on the various sensations in the scalp and face,
It's as though you massage your mind,
Working out any knots or tension you find.
You might even sense the whole of the scalp expanding,
So that the brain feels less pressured,
So it feels a little more spacious inside your head.
Then take a brief time out.
Let go of any effort to keep track of what I'm saying,
Or to follow along with these instructions.
Let your mind slip into neutral,
And trust that your ears will keep hearing,
Even if you're not consciously listening.
Trust that you'll fall asleep much faster if you don't try to fall asleep.
Trust that your mind will calm down more quickly if you don't try to shut it up,
Allowing everything to enter and exit consciousness without resistance,
As though you were a blade of grass flexing with each gust of wind.
And you might like to imagine that you were lying on a field of soft grass,
Feeling the breeze play across your skin,
Bathing in the warmth of the sun or the shade of a tree,
Watching as the clouds play overhead,
Wondrous shapes forming and dissolving in the blue sky above.
Or pretend that you're lying in a comfy hammock,
Enjoying a lazy Sunday afternoon siesta,
Lulled into a deep daydream by the gentle rocking of the hammock to and fro.
You might even allow your head to roll gently from side to side in time with the movement of the hammock.
And perhaps you can synchronize your breath with the motion,
Inhaling as you roll your head to one side,
And exhaling as it rolls back to center.
And let your mind follow the movement,
Gradually allowing the breath to become softer and softer,
And the movement to become smaller and smaller,
Until eventually you let your head come to rest.
And as the head comes to rest,
Let your mind come to rest,
As though it were dusk inside your head,
And you watch as the sun sinks below the horizon,
As the wind dies down and the birds go quiet,
As darkness descends like a blanket,
Suggesting stillness and quiet and sleep.
And you might just lie there for a few minutes,
Gazing up at the stars,
Letting the spaciousness and darkness slowly draw you down into sleep,
Letting go of the waking day,
And descending into the world of dreams.
Thanks for listening.
I hope you have a relaxing night.
