This practice is designed for when you are lying on your back and need to get to sleep.
Make yourself as comfortable and as relaxed as you can.
Now you're comfortable and relaxed,
Let's begin by observing what's going on in your mind for a few moments.
Is your mind busy and active or relatively peaceful and settled?
Let's step back and observe the thoughts passing through without getting caught up in any particular thought.
Simply observe what's going on and then thank your mind for trying to help,
Be useful and kindly saying thanks for working so hard but not now as it's time for me to sleep.
Then bring your attention to your eyes,
Allowing your eyes to relax and soften and release the muscles around your eyes.
Then gently lowering your eyes as if they're looking down your body towards your feet.
Relax and release any tension around your face and jaw if you can.
Then take three slow and deep breaths that begin with your abdomen and end with the expansion of your chest,
Exhaling slowly as you relax and release any obvious tension in your body.
Then breathe naturally with your attention and awareness resting into your belly.
Extend your awareness down your arms to your hands and explore the sensations in the palms of your hands.
Then extend your attention and awareness all the way down to the soles of your feet using curiosity to explore the sensations that you find there,
Tingling,
Moving energy and starting with your big toe,
Working through each toe on each foot,
Noticing the sensations on the mounds behind your toes,
The heel,
The inner arch,
Comparing the different sensations between one foot and another.
And every time that your mind grabs your attention,
Gently instruct not now to your mind as you return your attention back to the soles of your feet at the other end of your body,
Continuing to explore the sensations you find there.
And if your attention is taken away in thought again,
Acknowledge what's happened with a not now and gently shift your attention back to the soles of your feet as many times as it takes until you gently drift off to a deep revitalizing peaceful sleep.
