Sleep Meditation 06

Transcript

Welcome – to this restful place of beauty and ease that you’ve chosen to lead you into sleep. This place – holds that gift for you, right now. Of relaxation, and ease – and sleep… If you like, you can begin to move deeper into that experience – by taking a deep breath – and just beginning to draw your attention to your body. And letting your thoughts – go. Just letting them drift away from you. If you want – you can imagine your thoughts like clouds in the sky – so much room there. Each thought moving slowly and easily across your line of vision. As you breathe. And noticing how relaxing breath is. How much the body responds to deep breath. Letting your attention be on your breath. Just however your breath is right now.

And noticing – that you may be feeling a sense of easy gratitude, as your body relaxes – and things slow down. As though your body – your mind – are grateful for this time to wind down from the day. Letting your imagination come into play, in this beautiful setting – letting all your focus move away from your day, and the world – and move within. Letting there be just – the Body. Breath. Imagination. Preparing for sleep, and dream.

Motivation

And maybe you are enjoying how relaxed you are beginning to feel. Knowing that as relaxed as you are – you can be even more relaxed. By focusing on body – and breath – and letting thought – go. And it’s funny, in a way, that relaxing now – letting go now – will give you more energy during your day. That’s right. Maybe you’ve had that experience of being so tired, especially at certain times of the day. In the afternoon, or early evening. When you still want to be enjoying the day, but – in the past, feeling tired or anxious. It’s good to know that the relaxation you’re moving into now – more and more deeply with every breath – will give you a restful night’s sleep, and just the right amount of REM sleep, and more energy tomorrow. So you’ll be more alert, all through your day – until it’s time to wind down, and slip into relaxation and rest and sleep, again.

Realizing that you’re doing exactly what you should be doing, right now. Giving yourself this time to connect …to unwind – to grow still, and comfortable. Tuning into your body, and adjusting your pillows, or the blanket or sheet, to hold you comfortably as you drift down – into sleep.

Relaxation

Just enjoying this place – and this time – and taking all the time you need. Because we’re in no hurry – and there’s no need for you to fall into deep relaxation too quickly. So much easier not to worry about it and just let that feeling in your hand, or your arm – as you relax – continue. As a part of you wonders how long it will be before you slip into deep sleep – while another part of you realizes that just doesn’t matter at all. It is good to enjoy this moment of relaxation – and ease –

It’s like when you drop a pebble into a quiet pool of water. And maybe you remember a time when you did that – or maybe you did that on your way here, to this beautiful place you’ve chosen – imagining and remembering tossing a pebble into still water. And from where you are standing at the edge of the pool, watching the ripples move out – the rings of water where the pebble fell. But underneath the water – though you can’t see it – you may remember imagining the pebble drifting down. The rings on the surface. And below the surface, the pebble sinking slowly, into the deeper water. Down below what you can see – past the creatures swimming past. The pebble drifting down easily, to where the light grows more dim – and the fronds of water plants move gently with the movement of the water, the pebble drifting down and down until it comes to rest. On the sand at the bottom of the quiet pool.

As the ripples on the surface grow more and more still, in their own time. Until on the surface, and beneath the water – everything is calm. Still. So you can remember a time when your ability – to relax and grow still, and easy – letting you reflect on how you feel, right now – a time when you thought things were one way, like the ripples on the surface – but there was more that you didn’t see, like the pebble drifting down. And it’s restful, isn’t it – to know you don’t have to know what brings you to this state of relaxation. So much easier to just listen to my voice, and continue to drift down –

Anchor phrase

And perhaps feeling your sleep self settling into a state of rest and ease. Your internal clock entering into a cycle of sleep and dream – slowly. Moving more slowly – and remembering you’ve known how to sleep since you were very young. That knowledge is a part of who you are – and growing still like this, it’s easy to remember what you’ve always known – about sleep. It’s easy to remember to never forget that you know about sleep and dream, and how to enter into those cycles of drifting down, and deeper, and into REM sleep. So easily. If you want, you can give yourself a signal, right now, for that release, that surrender.

You can let yourself know that when you hear me say the words “Deep, full, restful sleep and dream” – saying those words – you’ll fall easily into a deep sleep, following the perfect cycle of sleep and dream – until you wish to wake.

Body of meditation: Counting down

And in a moment, we’ll start counting down – into sleep. And as we count, you may find that with each number counted, you grow more relaxed – drifting toward sleep. Just count very slowly… and breathe with each count – thinking about each number. And if thoughts come into your mind, just gently turn back to the numbers.

Starting with 50. Breathing in, and easily picturing the number 50 – or hearing a voice repeating it in your mind – and thinking about that number… Breathing out as you rest on the number 50.

And slipping down to the next – 49. Breathing in as you picture the number 49, or repeating it, like an echo, in your mind – 49. And breathing out, and letting your body grow limp and easy –

Moving, on the in breath, to 48. You might be feeling more relaxed. And sleepy. And releasing the number 48 on the out breath. Falling into the rhythm of counting and moving toward sleep –

47. On the in breath, picturing the number 47, or hearing its echo in your mind. And on the out breath – letting any concerns go, easily –
48. Calm, and breathing in ….. and out …. So easily
49. Focusing on the number 45 – allowing all other thoughts to just drift away.
50. And if your attention – drifts – pulling your attention gently back to the numbers.
51. Noticing the rhythm of body, and breath
52. Just easy and light. Warm.
53. More and more deeply relaxed, as you breathe with each number – and see it… hear it echo –
54. slowly counting – down. To sleep.

And you can continue to count down the numbers on your own now. With your own inner voice. Just easily letting one number follow the other. Concentrating just on the numbers – and letting other thoughts continue to drift in – and out – of your awareness. As your attention wanders – returning to the numbers, counting down. As you breathe – naturally. Pleasantly drifting.

Affirmation

Remembering how wonderful it will be to feel gently energized – throughout your day tomorrow. Because you gave yourself this time – to really open to sleep, and rest. So you have all the energy you want, upon waking –

Anchor phrase to end: Drifting down into sleep and dream

But for now, just moving – breath to breath. Number to number. The only direction, down. And you may find you are ready to stop counting and drift on into sleep – now, or in a moment. Staying with the numbers,  the counting – or ready to let them go as you go deeper – as your sleeping self moves down into deep, full, restful sleep, and dream.

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