Hello,
My name is Sam and welcome to this meditation to help you fall into a deep and restful sleep.
Before we begin,
Take a few moments to settle the body into a comfortable position.
You can adjust your pillows and blankets so that everything feels just right.
A good tip to remember is that the body will fall asleep sooner if it's a little cooler,
So you might like to leave the covers off for now.
Find a position to lie in that requires no effort to maintain.
Let your limbs be heavy,
Let your limbs be heavy and fully relaxed.
Draw the shoulders away from the ears and possibly turn your palms face up if you're on your back or if you prefer to lie on your side.
Try lying on the right hand side as this puts less pressure onto the heart.
If you like the lights off,
Turn them off now.
Gently close your eyes and relax.
Take a full deep breath into the nose and let it go however you please.
You might like to make an audible sigh through the mouth as you release it.
That can be very soothing for the heart.
Let's take another deep breath in,
Carrying the breath all the way down to the belly and sigh the breath away.
Notice how quiet and still you are when the breath leaves the body.
Letting go of any control over the breath,
Allow it to find its own natural rhythm now,
Breathing in any way that feels comfortable to you.
Allow any remaining fidgets and movements to occur as the body settles into its sleeping position.
Relax across the chest by softening the muscles and releasing any grip through the shoulders.
Feel the collarbones gently separate and the shoulders sink back and down into the bed.
Become aware of your back gently sinking down into the mattress.
The more you let go,
The more your body feels enveloped by the soft cushion underneath.
Notice how much more of your back comes into contact with the bed as you let go.
You might notice the weight of the spine lowering.
Let go of your belly completely.
Just let it go.
Release any hold or tightness you are feeling.
Sometimes we can be holding it in without even realizing.
Feel that softness radiate throughout the abdomen,
Rippling through your intestines,
Liver and other organs,
Dissolving tension along the way.
Bring your awareness to the buttocks and relax all of the muscles that surround the hips.
See if you can find the muscles deep inside the glutes and hip flexors and relax those too.
Notice how heavy the pelvis feels as it sinks deeper into the mattress.
Let go of your legs fully.
They may roll out slightly as you let go of any hold.
Notice how heavy the big muscles of the thighs are.
Check in with the kneecaps,
Making sure they're loose and free.
Consciously relax the calf muscles and the skin that surrounds the lower leg.
Have a sense of spaciousness in the ankles and relax the arches of the feet that have supported you all day,
Letting go through the toes and feeling the skin that surrounds the foot easy.
Gently shift the focus to the fingers and allow them to curl to their natural relaxed position.
The muscles surrounding the thumb soften and the wrist relaxes and tension dissolves away.
Allow the forearms,
Elbows and upper arms to become completely limp.
Let's move the focus up to the head and neck.
The head is now supported by your pillow,
So the neck muscles can take a well-deserved break.
Relax the muscles down the side of the neck,
Those long ones that start behind the ear and run down to top of shoulder.
They've held your head high for the whole day and it's time for them to rest.
Slacken the jaw so that the teeth fall slightly apart.
Allow the tongue to feel heavy in the base of the mouth and notice just how this movement allows the throat to open and relax more.
Soften from the corners of your nostrils to the corners of your mouth,
Releasing any tension you may be holding.
Relax the skin that covers your face,
Feeling any tightness easing away and your skin feeling beautifully supple and soft.
Smooth the skin across the forehead,
Allowing the tension to dissolve away.
Have a sense of space around the ears,
Through the temples and around the hairline.
Let go of your scalp and you might feel your hair move a little or maybe your forehead shifts slightly.
Allow your eyes to feel heavy and notice how they sink a little deeper into the sockets.
Soften the corners of the eyes.
Think of your face like a blank canvas with no expression other than an image of serenity and peace.
Take a moment to enjoy this state of relaxation and stillness.
Allow your awareness to envelop your entire body and feel it become even heavier.
Surrender your full weight to the bed and let it gently hold you.
Notice how your breath is gently slowing down,
Shifting into a sleep pattern.
The heart rate is also slowing,
Getting the body ready to sleep.
Do you notice the body feeling a little cooler?
The blood pressure is lowering and your whole being feels so much calmer.
The constant rhythmic breath is very soothing.
Breath comes in,
Breath goes out.
The chest rises,
Then falls,
Gently breathing in and out,
Letting go of the head.
The body sinking deeper into the mattress.
The body feeling very heavy now.
The mouth relaxes as we breathe in and out,
Everything slowing down.
It's so nice to just let go of the day.
Breathing and relaxing,
Thoughts drifting in and out.
Let your mind drift away.
It feels so good to surrender to the heaviness of sleep.
Breathing out,
Softly resting and sinking.
So sleepy.
Drifting away,
Drifting down.
It's so comfortable here and we're just letting go,
Falling to sleep.
Falling to sleep,
Sinking deeper and deeper into a restful sleep,
Pleasant deep sleep.
Allow yourself to drift away.
Let the sleep overtake you.
Breathing in,
Breathing out and silence,
Letting your mind drift away.
The body resting,
Renewing,
Softly sinking into this deep comfort,
Full sleep.
