Mindful Sleep Aid: Fall Asleep Faster & More Easily

This session is not a guided meditation,

But rather a sleep aid that can be used to help reduce nighttime stress,

Help you fall asleep faster,

And allow you to experience better quality sleep.

This session will guide you into a restful slumber.

Do not worry about turning off this recording before you fall asleep.

Allow it to play as you fall asleep and continue to sleep.

It will turn off on its own long before you wake up.

Before starting,

Make sure to eliminate any unnecessary distractions and turn your device to Do Not Disturb.

Also,

Turn your volume to a soft level that you can hear comfortably,

But is not so loud that it will keep you awake.

Enjoy.

Tonight or today,

Depending on the time that your sleep takes place,

We will tap into your ability to fall quickly into slumber and experience a healthy,

Restful,

And nourishing sleep.

Why do we struggle to fall asleep?

Biologically,

Sleep is something that is intended to occur naturally in the human body.

It is designed to replenish the energy that the body and mind exert throughout the waking day.

A body thrives on routine.

It loves to eat at the same time every day.

It loves to play at the same time every day.

It loves to sleep at the same time every day.

And loves to wake at the same time every day.

So why do we struggle so much to achieve that natural sleep state?

Difficulty sleeping can occur when we unintentionally work against the body's natural sleep function.

How do we end up working against our own body?

The body's natural sleep function is initiated when the body is given permission to relax.

When the mind is given complete permission to relax.

And when the body and mind are both given the full opportunity to let go of everything that they experienced throughout the day that had just passed.

So sleep struggle occurs when the mind is overstimulated,

Overactive,

And has not been given the means to relax and let go.

The activities from the day do not serve you in this moment of rest.

The trials,

Tribulations,

And conflicts that you encountered throughout the day do not matter at this time.

The thoughts that are racing through your mind at bedtime are completely unserving to you.

Sleep is the only thing in your life that matters right now.

In this moment,

We will train your body to relax for sleep.

We will train your mind to make space for sleep,

Dreams,

And regeneration.

We will train your entire being to completely let go.

To be done with the day behind you.

And to surrender to the sleep that awaits you.

Relax.

Let go.

And surrender completely.

It's time to settle in.

Lay back into your bed.

Pull up your blankets.

Snuggle into your pillows.

Find a healthy position that is comfortable for you.

For this moment,

We recommend a position that involves laying flat on your back.

But if that is not comfortable for you,

Any position suitable for sleep will do.

The main intention here is to get you undeniably comfortable.

And settle into your little sleep oasis.

Once you have cradled into your bedtime nest,

If you have not done so already,

Allow yourself to softly close your eyes.

Feel your eyelids become heavy.

Acknowledge the sense of relief you feel as you close your fragile eyes off from the dry outside air and feel grateful for this moment as you come into a state of peace,

Calm,

And relaxation by closing off your visual senses from the overstimulation that surrounds you.

You see nothing.

And this is exactly the kind of peaceful spaciousness that will make way for your restful,

Nourishing sleep.

Do not force what feels unnatural.

Simply let your eyes rest after a long day of taking everything in that you see throughout your waking hours.

Simply rest.

Come down from the day.

Allow yourself to relax completely.

Lower the energy levels inside of you.

Turn down the chaos.

Turn down the internal noise.

Turn off the movement and the fidgeting.

Turn it down.

Turn it all way down.

Watch the restless energy escape your body all the way from the very top of your head to the very tips of your toes.

Watch it all drain out.

Watch as you release all of the stressful energy.

It escapes your body and is replaced with the spacious feeling of peace and relaxation.

Take a long,

Drawn out,

Deep breath in.

Take a long,

Drawn out,

Deep breath out.

Do it again.

Take a long,

Drawn out,

Deep breath in.

Take a long,

Drawn out,

Deep breath out.

Now hold your breath for just a moment.

Take a long,

Drawn out,

Deep breath in.

Take a long,

Drawn out,

Deep breath out.

Hold your breath again.

Breathe in completely.

Breathe out completely.

And hold your breath.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

And hold.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

And hold.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

And hold.

Continue this process of breathing in,

Breathing out and holding.

Do it over and over again for as long as it feels comfortable.

Holding the breath at the bottom of the cycle lowers the energy existing in your body.

If you were to hold the breath at the top of the cycle,

This would,

Instead,

Increase the energy within the body.

Breathwork with the hold at the top is an excellent exercise for when you're trying to build energy in the morning so that you can take on the day.

Because our intention is to lower energy levels and make way for sleep,

We practice our breath with the hold at the bottom.

Use your breath to lower your energy levels.

Allow your body to work in favor of your sleep-focused intention.

If you are ready,

You may discontinue your three-part breath cycle and comfortably fall into a calm,

Natural breathing rhythm.

Keep breathing.

Relax and breathe.

This moment is entirely about you and your sleep.

Absolutely nothing else matters.

If you find yourself getting distracted,

Whether it be by a thought,

Sound or other nuisance,

Simply allow the distraction to pass and bring your mind back to focusing solely on your sleep.

Our minds have a tendency to wander.

Wandering of the mind is completely normal and entirely natural.

However,

This type of wandering can distract from and take away from your task at hand or initial intention.

In this case,

Your intention being to sleep.

The positive part about this is that everyone has the ability to acknowledge that their mind is wandering.

Then they can allow the distraction to pass and direct their mind back to their focus,

Intention or,

In this case,

Restful sleep.

If at any point during your sleep aid session,

You find your mind wandering off where it shouldn't be,

Simply acknowledge that you've deviated from your intention,

Give the distraction permission to leave your mind,

And then redirect your focus back to your sleep guide.

It does not matter how many times your mind wanders off,

You will always have the ability to redirect it back to where it needs to be.

Just continue to relax your mind.

The more you relax,

The less energy your mind will have to wander and the more accessible your sleep state will become.

Accessing restful sleep is entirely within your human right.

If you have not done so already,

Softly close your eyes.

Take this moment to clear the clutter and chaos that takes up space in your mind behind your eyes.

The intention here is to create a dark,

Blank screen in front of you.

You are removing the leftover visuals from your day from your mind.

Sweep away any unserving imagery that pops up on your dark screen.

Permit any visual distractions to leave your mind and disappear from your current existence.

Become familiar with this clear blank screen that you see.

It is dark,

Spacious,

Peaceful,

And calm.

It is a black canvas behind your eyes.

As you stare into this beautiful blank clearing,

Centralize your focus on the very center of the screen behind your eyes.

A point in front of you,

Right between your eyes.

Stare at this spot with your eyes still closed.

In this focal point,

Visualize a small,

Black dot.

A dot no bigger than the pupil in one's eye.

Focus on this dot.

Pay attention to its size.

Notice its circular form.

Acknowledge that it is a darker shade of black than the screen or canvas behind it.

All you see is a dark,

Black screen with an even darker small dot in the center of it.

Focus only on the dot.

Give it your full,

Undivided attention.

Stare deeply into it.

So deep.

Deeper.

Continue to stare even deeper.

The black dot that you stare into is a doorway.

It is a portal.

It is an entrance you may use to access your dream state.

The deeper you stare into this black portal,

The more accessible your dreams become.

Continue to stare deeply into this entrance.

Over time,

As you continue to focus,

Parts of your dream will begin to appear.

Do not rush them.

They will appear naturally when they are ready.

Be patient.

Be welcoming.

Be accepting.

When they do appear,

They will be vivid.

You will be able to see them clearly in contrast with the black background behind them.

They will appear,

Morph and progress fluidly.

The dream images may or may not make sense or be meaningful to you.

They may be things as simple as shapes such as squares or triangles.

They may be constructs that are obscure with irregular forms and unfamiliar colors.

They may show up as objects that you use in everyday life or keep within your home.

They may present as familiar faces such as friends,

Family members or acquaintances.

They may appear as something else entirely.

Whatever images come about in this process,

Give them space.

Welcome them and allow them to guide you deep into your dreams.

Do not force the narrative.

This is something that will occur naturally that you are simply permitting to occur.

This is a calm,

Comforting and blissful experience.

Allow your journey from wakefulness to dream state to be one of the easiest and most enjoyable moments of your day or night.

When your dream images appear,

Allow them to take over.

Allow them to grow and interact with you.

Allow them to move and change.

Allow them to guide you to where you need to be.

Your dream images have your intention at heart and will inevitably take you to the sleep that you seek.

These images will appear when they are ready.

Continue to hold space for them.

Do this by deepening your focus on the black dot on your dark screen.

Your focus on the black dot on your dark screen.

This is a soft focus.

Do not stress or furrow your brow.

Simply drop into the black dot and submit to the process.

Your dream images and visualizations are on their way.

And they will take you into your full dream state very soon.

Just relax.

Everything will unfold as it should.

As you continue to await your dream imagery and as you allow your dream imagery to guide you,

Simply relax.

There is nothing you need to do at this time.

Just lay back and fall deeply into the experience.

Let the music guide you.

Let the images guide you.

Allow all of the transitional processes guide you.

You are simply a passenger,

Settling in for a restful and relaxing ride.

This is your moment to surrender to sleep.

Do not worry about the time.

Do not think about when you need to wake up.

I am here to guide you.

You will fall fast asleep very soon.

And you will awake again when the time is right.

Until then,

Stay true to your focus.

Relax.

And the dreams will find you where you are.

Restful sleep and peaceful dreams are all that matter in this moment.

Restful sleep and peaceful dreams are all that matter in this moment.

Restful sleep and peaceful dreams are all that matter in this moment.

Restful sleep and peaceful dreams are all that matter in this moment.

Sweet dreams.