12 Hours Of Deep Rest For Insomnia And Anxiety Relief

Good evening and welcome.

I'm so glad you're here tonight.

Find yourself in a comfortable position,

Letting your body settle into the surface beneath you.

There's nothing you need to do right now,

Nowhere else you need to be.

This time is yours,

A gift you're giving yourself,

The gift of rest.

Let's begin by simply noticing your breath,

Not changing it,

Just observing.

Feel the cool air as it enters through your nose and the slightly warmer air as it leaves.

Your body already knows how to breathe,

How to relax,

And how to let go.

You can give yourself over to it now,

Completely.

Gently close your eyes or soften your gaze if that feels better.

As you do,

Imagine that with each exhale you're releasing just a little bit of tension.

Maybe it's from your shoulders,

Your jaw,

The small muscles around your eyes,

Whatever feels right for you.

There's no wrong way to do this.

Take a moment now to appreciate yourself for being here,

For taking this time to care for yourself,

To rest.

So many demands pull at you during the day,

But right now you've chosen peace,

You've chosen you.

Now bring your awareness to your feet and really feel them.

Notice the temperature of your skin,

Any points of contact with the bed or floor,

And as you focus there,

Imagine a soft,

Warm light beginning to glow at the soles of your feet.

This light is soothing,

Healing,

And safe.

It carries with it a deep sense of relaxation.

With your next breath in,

Imagine this warm light slowly moving up into your ankles,

Swirling gently around the bones and tendons there,

And as it does,

Everything it touches becomes heavy,

Relaxed,

Completely at ease.

Your ankles soften and release.

Breathing naturally,

The light continues its journey up into your calves,

Wrapping around the muscles like a soft blanket.

Feel the weight of your lower legs sinking down,

Supported completely.

They've carried you all day and they can rest now.

The light moves higher now,

Into your knees,

Releasing any tightness,

Any holding.

Your knees soften and rest,

Settling into perfect stillness.

Up into your thighs now,

This beautiful warm light spreading through the long muscles there.

Your thighs become heavy,

So wonderfully heavy,

Melting into the surface beneath you.

Let them be completely heavy.

The light pulls into your hips,

Your pelvis,

The base of your spine.

This is your foundation and your root.

Let it be held.

Let it be heavy.

Let everything here completely relax and release.

Any tension stored here from sitting,

Standing,

Moving through your day,

Let it all melt away.

As the light moves into your lower back,

Imagine it filling any spaces of discomfort,

Any areas that worked hard today.

It smooths and softens everything.

Your entire lower body now is deeply,

Profoundly relaxed,

Heavy and warm and perfectly still.

The warm light spreads across your belly.

As it does,

Your breathing naturally deepens just a little.

Feel your belly rise and fall,

Rise and fall,

Like gentle waves on a calm sea.

So peaceful,

So safe.

Each breath rocks you a little deeper into relaxation.

The light moves up into your chest now,

Filling your ribcage with warmth.

Your heart has been beating all day without you even thinking about it.

It's been taking care of you,

Pumping life through your body every single second.

Let it rest now in this gentle light.

Feel your heartbeat,

Steady and sure,

A rhythm that's been with you since the very beginning.

Trust that rhythm and trust your body.

The light spreads across your shoulders,

Those shoulders that can carry so much.

Right now,

You can set it all down.

Feel your shoulders drop just a little bit more and a little more still.

The weight you've been carrying dissolves into the warm light.

You don't need to hold anything up right now.

Down your arms now,

The light travels into your upper arms,

Your elbows,

Your forearms,

All the way down to your wrists,

Your hands,

The very tips of your fingers.

Your arms are completely heavy and completely relaxed.

You couldn't lift them if you wanted to,

And you don't want to.

They rest by your sides,

Warm and still.

The light moves up into your neck now,

That bridge between your head and your body.

So many muscles here work all day to hold you upright.

Let them soften completely.

Let your neck be supported by the surface beneath you.

Your head is held.

You don't need to do anything.

The warm light spreads across your jaw.

Perhaps you notice your teeth aren't quite touching,

And there's space between your tongue and the roof of your mouth.

Your jaw becomes softer,

More loose and relaxed.

Release any clenching,

Any holding,

And any tightness.

Feel the light move across your cheeks,

Around your eyes,

The tiny muscles around your eyes release.

Your eyelids are heavy,

So heavy,

Resting gently like butterfly wings.

Across your forehead now,

The light smooths away any tension,

Any lines,

Any tightness.

Your forehead is wide and smooth and calm,

Like a still lake at dawn.

The light fills your entire head now,

And your whole body is glowing with this soft,

Warm,

And peaceful light.

From the crown of your head to the tips of your toes,

You are completely relaxed,

Completely safe,

And completely held.

Take a moment to feel this wholeness.

Your entire body,

Unified in peace,

Every cell resting,

Releasing and renewing.

Now,

I'd like you to imagine yourself in a place of absolute peace.

This might be somewhere you've been before,

Or somewhere that exists only in your imagination.

There are no rules here.

This is your sacred space of rest.

Perhaps you're lying in a meadow on a perfect summer evening,

The grass soft beneath you,

The sky above turning from blue to purple to deep indigo.

You can hear the distant sound of crickets beginning their evening song,

A lullaby older than time itself.

Or maybe you're on a quiet beach,

And you can hear the rhythm of waves rolling in and rolling out,

In and out,

Matching your breath perfectly.

The sand is warm beneath you,

And the air smells of salt and summer and endless possibility.

You might be in a cozy cabin,

Wrapped in the softest blankets,

Watching snow fall gently outside the window.

A fire crackles quietly nearby.

You are warm and safe,

And completely at peace,

Protected from the cold,

And held by the warmth.

Or perhaps you're floating on calm water,

Under a starlit sky,

Held effortlessly by the gentle current,

Looking up at countless stars scattered across the darkness,

Like diamonds on velvet.

Wherever you are in your mind's eye,

You are completely safe,

Completely welcome,

Completely free to rest.

This place holds you with such tenderness.

The light around you now begins to shift,

Becoming even softer,

Like moonlight.

This gentle moonlight seems to know exactly what you need.

It knows every thought you've had today,

Every worry,

Every moment of stress,

Every challenge you faced,

And it simply holds all of it with such tenderness,

Such compassion and understanding.

You don't need to fix anything right now.

You don't need to solve anything,

Figure anything out,

Or make any decisions.

All of that can wait.

Right now,

This moment,

You are simply allowed to be,

To rest,

To sleep,

To let go of everything you've been carrying.

With each breath,

You're drifting deeper into relaxation.

Your body is so heavy now,

Sinking into perfect stillness.

Your mind is quieting more and more,

Thoughts passing by like clouds in a distant sky,

Moving across your awareness without disturbing your peace.

If a thought comes,

That's okay.

That's completely natural.

Just notice it gently and let it drift on by.

You don't need to hold on to it.

You don't need to follow it.

You don't need to solve it.

Just let it float away on your next exhale,

Like a leaf on a stream.

Your breath is slower now,

Deep and even.

Your heartbeat is calm and steady.

Everything in your body is working in perfect harmony to support you in rest,

To prepare you for deep,

Restorative sleep.

Feel yourself floating now,

Weightless and free,

Held by something much bigger than yourself.

You are supported completely.

You are completely safe.

You can let go completely.

There's nothing to fear and nothing to worry about.

Only peace.

The space between your thoughts is growing wider.

There's more and more quiet,

More and more stillness,

More and more peace.

Like the stillness of a forest at midnight,

Or the hush of the world covered in fresh snow.

Pure,

Clean and quiet.

Your body knows how to heal itself while you sleep.

Your mind knows how to process and release what you no longer need.

All you have to do is rest and let your body and mind do what they were designed to do.

Trust the wisdom of your body.

It knows the way.

Sleep is your birthright.

Rest is your natural state.

You are returning home now to the deepest peace within you.

The peace that was there before you were born and will be there always.

Let your breathing become so soft,

So quiet,

So gentle.

Almost like you're not breathing at all.

Just being breathed by the universe itself.

And as you drift now into sleep,

Know that you are exactly where you're meant to be.

Tomorrow will take care of itself.

All those things waiting for you will still be there and you will meet them with renewed energy.

But now you rest.

Now you sleep.

Now you heal.

Everything is well.

Everything is safe and peaceful.

Everything is exactly as it should be.

Let go now and sleep deeply.

Sleep well,

Dear one.

Sweet dreams.