It's bedtime now,
Time to snuggle into bed and let go of your day.
Before closing your eyes,
Take a good look around the room you are resting in.
Without judgment,
Begin to catalog each and every detail you find,
Taking note of objects you may see,
Furniture,
Pictures,
Bedding,
Lighting,
Anything and everything you see.
Continue breathing and looking around as you take this thorough inventory.
That's it.
Good.
Now let your eyes softly close.
Notice how warm and safe and comfortable you feel.
Let's begin with a counted breath to find stillness.
Inhaling to the count of three,
Holding the breath for three,
And exhaling for five.
Ready?
Inhale,
Hold,
Exhale.
Good.
Inhale,
Hold,
Exhale.
Last one.
Inhale,
Hold,
And exhale.
Beautifully done.
I invite you to take a moment to bring your awareness to thoughts or feelings that are not serving you or that you are ready to let go of.
These could be remnants of your day,
Or bits of negative self-talk,
Limiting language,
Negativity,
Resentment,
Anything that you feel you are ready to let go of.
Using the breath,
We will now work to release these thoughts and feelings.
I invite you to select one such thought or feeling.
Think of what you stand to gain from this being removed.
What may you need to bring in to loosen or lighten it?
As you inhale,
Bring in what you need,
And as you exhale,
Let the thought or feeling that is no longer serving you go.
If you are someone who benefits from an example,
I offer that as I do this practice with you,
I am inhaling the energy I share with all living things,
And I am exhaling the idea that I am not enough.
I invite you to select that which you need,
And that which you are ready to let go,
And allow the breath to move these through you,
Bringing in what is needed on the inhale,
And letting go what is not on the exhale.
Beautiful work.
Letting go of the day can be difficult.
I appreciate your willingness to release that which is not serving you.
We will now move into another phase of readying our mind for sleep.
If we think of our brain as a computer,
We are at times getting into bed with a host of programs running.
This next section is intended to focus your mind and allow the background programs to close,
Allowing you to drift off to sleep.
As you let your body become heavy,
Fully supported by the bed below you,
Allow yourself to move into the most comfortable and relaxed position possible.
Feel the muscles releasing in your forehead,
The muscles in your eyes relax,
Your ears release,
Your tongue falling away from the roof of your mouth,
And your jaw relaxing.
Each and every muscle down your neck releases,
Into your shoulders,
Your back and chest cease their gripping,
Your belly becomes soft and supple,
Lower back releases,
The muscles in your pelvis and through your hips let go,
Your quads and hamstrings relax,
Knees and calves soften,
And finally your ankles and feet all the way to your toes release.
Your body is now completely relaxed and ready for a deep rejuvenating sleep.
During this last section,
The recording will be silent to allow you to drift off to sleep.
Thank you for joining me in this bedtime practice.
I hope it has helped you to find peace and comfort.
And here is the final section of our bedtime practice.
Remember that inventory we took earlier?
We will now return to it while keeping our eyes softly closed.
Take the next few moments to recreate the room you are resting in with as much detail as possible.
Remembering the objects you inventoried and their placement,
Take as much time as you need to fill the space as vividly in your mind as you can.
Sleep well.
