Back to Sleep at 3am

Before we begin, a few important things. This session is designed to be listened to while you are lying down in bed, in the dark, exactly as you are right now. You do not need to do anything except allow yourself to be here. You are safe. There is nothing that needs your attention tonight. If you are driving or operating any machinery, please stop this recording now and return to it when you are safely in bed. This session is not a substitute for medical advice. If you have ongoing sleep difficulties, please speak with your healthcare provider. Now, if you haven't already, lie back and allow your body to sink into your mattress. Let your arms rest naturally at your sides, or with your hands resting gently on your belly or your lap, whichever feels most comfortable. Let your legs fall open naturally. You do not need to hold any position. You can move at any time if you need to. In this session, you will be guided through a series of gentle sensory experiences that will help your mind let go of any activity and drift naturally back into sleep. There is nothing to figure out, nothing to solve, and nothing to remember. You simply need to listen, and let go. You may find yourself drifting off before the session ends. That is perfectly fine. That is exactly what this session is for. Close your eyes now, and let's begin.

Feel the weight of your body against the surface supporting you. [7 second pause] Notice the pressure of the mattress beneath your shoulders. [8 second pause] Beneath your back. [8 second pause] Beneath your hips. [9 second pause] The surface is holding you completely. [8 second pause] You don't have to hold yourself up. [9 second pause] You can let every muscle release into that support. [10 second pause] Notice the temperature of the air on your skin. [8 second pause] Perhaps a little cool on your face. [7 second pause] Perhaps warm beneath the covers. [9 second pause] Just notice. [10 second pause] Notice the weight of the blanket or duvet across your body. [8 second pause] Its gentle pressure. [9 second pause] Like a soft hand resting over you. [10 second pause] Your body already knows how to sleep. [8 second pause] It has done it thousands of times before. [9 second pause] And right now, your only job is to feel. [10 second pause] Feel the rise and fall of your chest. [8 second pause] Not controlling it. [7 second pause] Just noticing it. [10 second pause] Each breath moving through you like a slow, quiet wave. [9 second pause] Rising. [8 second pause] And falling. [10 second pause] Notice the sounds around you. [8 second pause] Whatever they are, near or far. [9 second pause] Let them be part of the background. [10 second pause] Like distant sounds heard through a closed window. [9 second pause] They don't require anything from you. [10 second pause] You are already beginning to let go. [12 second pause] Your eyelids heavy. [9 second pause] Your jaw soft. [10 second pause] The muscles around your eyes releasing. [12 second pause] That's right. [10 second pause] Just like that.

Imagine that your mind is like the surface of a very still lake. [9 second pause] In the daytime, the surface can ripple and move. [8 second pause] Thoughts crossing it like stones thrown from a distance. [9 second pause] But right now, in the deep quiet of the night, the water is becoming still. [10 second pause] The ripples are slowing. [9 second pause] Spreading outward. [8 second pause] Wider and wider. [10 second pause] Until the surface is smooth. [12 second pause] Like dark glass. [10 second pause] And above that lake, a night sky. [9 second pause] Vast and deep and quiet. [10 second pause] Stars scattered like distant lights. [12 second pause] Not asking anything of you. [10 second pause] Just there. [12 second pause] And you are floating on the surface of that water. [9 second pause] Gently. [8 second pause] Safely. [10 second pause] Held by the stillness beneath you. [12 second pause] The night air is cool and soft on your face. [10 second pause] The water beneath you is perfectly warm. [12 second pause] And there is nothing out here. [10 second pause] No edges. [9 second pause] No demands. [12 second pause] Just this. [14 second pause] Just stillness. [15 second pause] Just you, floating, in the deep and quiet dark. [15 second pause]

And as you float there, I want you to notice that with each breath you exhale, you sink just a little deeper into relaxation. [10 second pause] Not into the water. [9 second pause] But deeper into yourself. [12 second pause] Deeper into the warmth and the quiet. [14 second pause] I'm going to count down slowly from ten to one. [8 second pause] And with each number, you will find yourself drifting further. [9 second pause] Further from the busy surface of the mind. [10 second pause] Further into the deep, restful darkness below. [12 second pause] Ten. [10 second pause] Letting the body become heavier. [12 second pause] Nine. [10 second pause] The mind growing quieter with every breath. [12 second pause] Eight. [11 second pause] Drifting. [13 second pause] Seven. [11 second pause] Sinking deeper into that warm, supported stillness. [14 second pause] Six. [12 second pause] The thoughts of the day dissolving now. [13 second pause] Like mist over the water. [14 second pause] Five. [12 second pause] Halfway down. [13 second pause] And already so much more relaxed. [15 second pause] Four. [13 second pause] Deeper still. [14 second pause] Three. [13 second pause] Your body so heavy now. [15 second pause] So completely at ease. [16 second pause] Two. [14 second pause] Almost there. [15 second pause] One. [18 second pause] Deep. [18 second pause] Still. [20 second pause] And perfectly at rest. [20 second pause]

Your mind is learning something important tonight. [12 second pause] That the night hours are not for working. [14 second pause] They are for rest. [15 second pause] When you wake in the early hours and find thoughts beginning to stir, you now have a choice. [12 second pause] You can feel the weight of your body against the mattress. [13 second pause] And that sensation alone becomes a signal. [14 second pause] A signal that says, not now. [15 second pause] This time belongs to sleep. [18 second pause] Any thought that arises in the night is simply a visitor. [13 second pause] It does not need to be entertained. [14 second pause] It does not need to be solved. [15 second pause] You can simply notice it, the way you notice a cloud passing across the sky. [16 second pause] And let it drift on. [18 second pause] The mind is learning to trust that everything it needs to hold onto will still be there in the morning light. [14 second pause] Nothing is lost by letting go tonight. [16 second pause] In fact, the mind that rests completely is far more capable, far more clear, far more creative when the sun rises. [15 second pause] So tonight, you give yourself permission. [13 second pause] Full and complete permission. [14 second pause] To let the night be the night. [18 second pause] To let the mind be quiet. [18 second pause] To let the body rest completely. [20 second pause] And as you drift deeper now, you notice something. [14 second pause] The thoughts are already further away. [15 second pause] Like voices heard from another room. [16 second pause] Muffled. [14 second pause] Indistinct. [18 second pause] And getting quieter. [20 second pause] That's right. [20 second pause]

From this night forward, something has shifted. [15 second pause] When you find yourself waking in the early hours, the first thing you notice is the weight of your body. [14 second pause] The warmth of the bed around you. [15 second pause] And that noticing is enough. [16 second pause] It brings you back. [18 second pause] Back to the body. [16 second pause] Back to the breath. [18 second pause] Back to the stillness. [20 second pause] Each time this happens, it becomes easier. [16 second pause] Each time you return to the body, the mind follows. [18 second pause] Quieter each time. [20 second pause] Faster each time. [22 second pause] Until the night becomes a place of deep and easy rest. [20 second pause] A place your mind and body trust completely. [22 second pause] And on those nights when sleep comes quickly and deeply, you wake feeling restored. [18 second pause] Refreshed. [20 second pause] Clear. [22 second pause] As if the night did exactly what it was meant to do. [25 second pause]

Return now to the image of that still, dark lake. [18 second pause] You are still floating. [20 second pause] Still held. [22 second pause] The sky above you vast and quiet. [25 second pause] And the water beneath you is pulling you gently downward now. [20 second pause] Not down into the water. [18 second pause] But down into sleep. [22 second pause] Deep, natural, restful sleep. [25 second pause] Your body is heavy. [22 second pause] Your mind is quiet. [25 second pause] The night is doing its work. [28 second pause] And you are letting it. [30 second pause] There is nothing more to do. [28 second pause] Nowhere to go. [30 second pause] Nothing to figure out. [32 second pause] Just this. [30 second pause] Just the slow, steady rhythm of your breath. [35 second pause] Rising. [30 second pause] And falling. [35 second pause] And with each breath out, you drift a little further. [35 second pause] A little deeper. [40 second pause] Into the soft, dark quiet of sleep. [40 second pause]

Let the darkness hold you now. [35 second pause] Let the silence wrap around you like something warm and familiar. [40 second pause] Your body knows this place. [38 second pause] It has always known it. [45 second pause] And it is taking you there now. [45 second pause] Gently. [40 second pause] Slowly. [50 second pause] All the way down. [50 second pause] Into sleep. [55 second pause] Deep sleep. [60 second pause] Restful sleep. [60 second pause] That's right. [65 second pause] Just let go. [70 second pause]