Vagus Nerve Breathing For Deep Sleep (Voice Only)

Hey,

I'm Chibzo Karake.

Welcome to tonight's meditation.

Tonight,

We're going to treat each breath like an ocean wave,

Rising gently,

Falling softly.

At the end of this meditation,

My voice will fade into the background and the sound of gentle ocean waves will continue through the night,

Helping you drift deeper and deeper into sleep.

There's something deeply calming and relaxing about the ocean.

The steady rhythm of the waves has a way of soothing the nervous system and calming the mind.

It also helps to mask outside noise,

Giving your mind and body the perfect environment for deep,

Restorative sleep.

So let's take a few moments to allow ourselves to settle and arrive here,

In our bed,

In our body,

In this breath.

And we'll be using our breath to guide us into sleep tonight.

Something called 4-7-8 breathing.

You might have heard of it.

It's sometimes called a natural tranquilizer for the nervous system.

Studies show that extending the out breath can slow the heart rate and help stimulate our vagus nerve and engage our relaxation response,

Which plays a big role in helping the body shift into rest and repair mode.

The 4-7-8 breath works by slowing the breath right down and then gently nudging the body towards rest.

Now a few people find this way of breathing a little challenging or a bit distracting,

Especially if their mind's already racing.

So you've got options.

If the counting feels like too much,

You can skip it.

Simply breathe a little deeper,

A little slower,

In whatever way feels most easeful for you.

I'll remind you again a little later,

But for now I want you to know there's no pressure,

There's no right way,

Just an invitation to slow down and soften into the moment.

All right,

Let's take a few moments to find a comfortable position.

We might want to lie on our back with our arms by the sides,

Or maybe curled up lying on our side.

We might want to place our pillows around us or underneath us to make ourselves as comfortable as possible.

If there's anything that wants adjusting,

The jaw,

The shoulders,

The blankets,

The mats,

Perhaps gently allowing that now.

This is your time,

So whatever helps bring even one or two percent more ease,

Please feel free to do that now.

And once we've landed in our perfect spot,

Let's allow the body to settle.

Noticing the support of the mattress beneath us,

The gentle weight of our body being held.

Noticing the way the bed rises up to meet us.

We don't need to hold ourselves up anymore.

There's no need to brace or prepare or plan.

We're just softening,

Arriving,

Resting.

If it feels okay,

We might allow the eyelids now to gently close,

Or if we're not quite ready to close the eyes,

Maybe just softening our gaze.

And let's bring our awareness to the breath now.

We're not changing anything just yet.

We're simply sensing the breath exactly as it is.

The gentle rising of the chest,

The falling of the belly,

The coolness of the air coming in through the nostrils,

And the slight warmth as the air leaves.

We're not trying to breathe in any particular way.

We're simply noticing the rhythm that's already there.

We might think of the breath like a wave,

Arriving and returning,

Again and again.

With every inhale,

We might notice a gentle rise,

A quiet expansion through the ribs or the belly.

And with each exhale,

There's an invitation to let go a little more.

We're allowing the arms to be heavy,

Allowing the legs to be heavy,

The whole body softening and sinking into stillness.

We're safe here.

We're here.

We're held.

There's nothing left to do.

And now,

If it feels good,

We'll gently begin to shape the breath.

We're not forcing anything.

We're just inviting a little more softness,

A little more spaciousness.

There's a practice called 4-7-8 breathing that many people find works wonderfully for relaxing the nervous system and preparing the body for sleep.

And how we do this is we breathe in for a count of 4,

We hold the breath for a count of 7,

And we breathe out for a count of 8.

That long exhale helps to switch the body from doing mode into resting mode.

Now remember,

If this kind of breathing feels uncomfortable or distracting at any point,

That's completely okay.

You can simply let the breath flow at its own pace,

In and out on its own,

Perhaps a little slower and a little softer.

Do whatever works best for you.

But if you'd like to try this breath,

I'll guide the count for you.

And if it doesn't feel quite right tonight,

That's fine too.

If it's comfortable,

You can breathe in through the nose and breathe out through the nose or the mouth.

Okay.

Keeping the body relaxed,

Let's breathe in 2,

3,

4,

Hold 2,

3,

4,

5,

6,

7,

Breathing out 2,

3,

4,

5,

6,

7,

8,

Breathing in 2,

3,

4,

Hold 2,

3,

4,

5,

6,

7,

Breathing out 2,

3,

4,

5,

6,

7,

8,

And if the count doesn't feel right,

That's completely fine.

The breath can simply lengthen on its own,

Easy and unforced.

You might like to take a few rounds on your own now,

Breathing in gently,

Holding the breath if it feels okay and then letting the exhale stretch out long and slow.

As we continue,

Perhaps noticing how the breath and body are working together now,

Inviting calm,

Not effort.

Each breath in is like the tide gently rising,

Bringing in calm.

Each breath out is like the water slipping back across the sand,

Smooth and steady.

We're not trying to breathe too deeply and definitely not pushing the breath.

This is all about relaxation whatever feels gentle and easeful is enough.

And as we continue to breathe,

Just checking to see if the body is relaxed.

Is there any tension around the forehead?

Maybe softening the eyes,

The jaw and shoulders,

Perhaps allowing the belly to soften,

The legs to rest heavy,

And maybe we're starting to notice some shifts,

Subtle changes in sensation or tingling across the skin,

Maybe a gentle pulsing or a light vibration somewhere along the spine and if there's no sensation that's okay too.

And now if we haven't already we can let go of the counting and just allowing the breath to return to its natural rhythm,

Taking a moment to check in with the body,

Noticing what's present now.

Is the breath a little slower?

A little softer?

Maybe just a touch deeper?

We're not making the body breathe,

We're allowing the body to breathe.

Just like we're not making ourselves fall asleep,

We're allowing ourselves to fall asleep,

Allowing the breath to be soft,

Allowing the body to unwind,

Allowing the breath to be steady,

Inviting the body to let go.

There's nothing to do now but relax,

Allowing the calmness of sleep to gently wash over us and if the mind wonders,

Which it probably will,

That's perfectly normal.

The mind makes plans,

Replays conversations,

Remembers things,

But as soon as we notice that we've drifted off in thought,

We gently guide ourselves back to the breath,

Back to the body.

We're simply noticing the thought and letting it go.

We don't have to follow the thought,

We don't have to push it away,

We just watch it pass like a leaf floating on a stream and if the thoughts linger,

That's okay too.

We can allow the thoughts to be in the background while we stay with the breath,

Feeling the breath roll in like a gentle wave gathering at the shoreline and feeling the breath roll out flowing back into the sea feeling the body gently expanding and softly releasing with every in-breath we're welcoming calm with every out-breath we're sinking deeper into rest.

There's nothing to fix,

Nowhere to go nothing to do just being here as we are letting go of any pressure and allowing sleep to happen and now let's gently shift our attention to the body we'll start at the very top of the head and slowly drift our way down let's begin by bringing awareness to the scalp and forehead noticing if there's any tension there and allowing this area to soften and if there are any thoughts present that's okay too we're not trying to push them away we're just noticing them and letting them be let's take a gentle breath in here and out here and then we can let it go slowly as the forehead softens noticing the space around the eyes the jaw letting everything gently release let's take another slow breath in and a soft breath out inviting the jaw to unclench inviting the face to relax moving down into the neck the shoulders perhaps noticing if we're holding anything here and if we are holding any tension maybe just letting them drop even just a little allowing the arms to be heavy the hands resting quietly the fingers bringing the attention now to the chest perhaps a sense of openness or warmth we're inviting this area to soften and now to the ribs perhaps noticing any sensation of expansion or release and gently allowing the ribs to rest just as they are and moving now to the belly noticing the rise and fall with each breath allowing the belly to be soft easy relaxed bringing awareness now to the hips perhaps noticing the contact with the bed the weight the stillness gently inviting softness there perhaps taking another soft breath in and a slow breath out allowing the hips to settle now to the thighs sensing any tension or holding and seeing if the thighs can release just a little more into rest and now to the knees allowing them to soften to settle just as they are continuing down the legs at our own pace moving gently slowly without hurry bringing attention now to the calves noticing any sensations here perhaps heaviness now to the ankles softening this small but important joint letting it be still at ease and finally to the feet the heels the soles of the feet the top of the feet the very tips of the toes letting go here completely gently inviting the last bits of tension to melt away each exhale like a low tide wave no need to rush we're simply inviting each part of the body to soften to rest to let go and now let's expand our awareness to include the whole body sweeping through from the top of the head all the way to the fingertips and down to the tips of the toes noticing any sensations of relaxation any softness that might be spreading naturally through the body with each breath we're allowing that sense of relaxation to deepen like warmth slowly soaking through every muscle every cell we're simply resting here letting go allowing the body to find its natural rhythm allowing the mind to grow quieter softer more peaceful maybe we're already beginning to feel it that slow sinking feeling perhaps there's a sense that we're ready ready to drift ready to sleep perhaps taking a moment to simply enjoy this feeling letting it wash through the body letting it settle returning now to the breath the soft rhythm of breathing in and breathing out we're breathing slow we're breathing easy we're allowing the whole body with the breath gently rising gently falling unwinding softening settling into stillness the body becoming heavier nothing more to do nowhere else to be we're simply here resting deeply steady and soft the body resting our system powering down drifting quiet spacious still still breathing soft sinking deep letting go a little more floating softening settling drifting off into a deep