Returning To Sleep ✨ Guided Meditation For Getting Back To Sleep

[00:00:00] There's something about summer, with its longer days and time away from routine, that makes you want to feel freer from boring worries like bills and admin. That's one of the things I like about Mint Mobile too. No matter the season, they make my wireless bill feel simple. And right now, all of Mint's plans are $15 a month, even unlimited, so you can ditch big wireless and the extra complications that make bills feel like one more thing to manage. I switched to Mint myself, and the process was really easy.

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[00:01:54] Including ones about magical bookshops and libraries, lighthouses and trains, and even some funny ones like my boring stories. Discover why millions have chosen to listen to my voice to get a better night's sleep.

[00:02:11] Search for Stephen Dalton sleep stories on your favorite podcast player, and it will be my great privilege to be the voice that you listen to as you go to sleep. There's something quietly remarkable about the stories people carry with them. The moments that changed everything, the situations nobody could have planned for.

[00:02:40] What was that like is a podcast built entirely around those moments. Each episode, a guest sits down and recounts a real experience. An unusual job, an unexpected encounter, a life turned briefly sideways. True stories, told by the people who lived them, verified so even the most extraordinary ones you can trust.

[00:03:03] Episodes like Elena was friends with Mickey and Scott was an undercover FBI agent give you a gentle window into lives lived very differently from your own. So if you find yourself drawn to real human stories, the kind that make you wonder what you would have done, I'd invite you to spend some time with What Was That Like? Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're listening right now.

[00:03:34] Northern Hemisphere friends, this one's for you. Summer has brought some beautiful evenings, but the warm nights don't always make it easy to sleep. Sleepwave Premium is made for exactly those nights, and with Sleepiest Plus, there's something for every other night too. From now until August 17th, you can try the Sleepiest Plus bundle free for 14 days.

[00:03:55] One plan that unlocks everything on Sleepwave, plus Nightfall's atmospheric bedtime stories, and Sleep Magic's World of Sleep Hypnosis, with no ads and no interruptions. Over 1,200 sleepy episodes across three top podcasts, free to try for 14 days. This month on Sleepwave Premium, we have our brand new 8-hour compilation for pure relaxation. 8 hours of deeply soothing sleep meditations for those long summer nights.

[00:04:25] We'll also be drifting off to Mystery in the Swiss Alps, a cozy tale following Detective Letitia Keen, who arrives at a peaceful retreat for some much-needed rest, only to find herself drawn into another mystery. New subscribers can tap Try Free and Apple Podcasts to unlock all three shows with Sleepiest Plus, or follow the link in the show notes to get started on Supercast. I'll see you there. Hello, my friend. Stephen Dalton here.

[00:04:54] Have you ever thought about what it would be like to go to sleep laughing or at least smiling? Well, I'm here to tell you about my new channel. It's called Humorously Dull History for Sleep. In each episode, I bring you through the history of a particular topic, like the history of houses, or the spoon, or dogs. And I tell you the history in, I hope, a humorous way.

[00:05:22] Find Humorously Dull History for Sleep wherever you get your podcasts. Good evening, Sleepwave. Karissa here, and I'm so happy you've joined us tonight. We've got a calming meditation to help you drift into a deep and soothing sleep.

[00:05:51] This is our weekly free episode. Thanks for listening. If you're enjoying the show, please consider becoming a subscriber. Details below your podcast player. Do you ever have the feeling or thought, things aren't supposed to be this way? Waking up in the middle of the night is hardly what we hope for as we close our eyes at bedtime. When things don't go to plan, lying awake can feel like something has gone wrong. It's easy to say, it shouldn't be this hard to sleep.

[00:06:21] And you're right. It would be nice if we never had to struggle to get the rest we need. But tonight, we are going to simply arrive in this moment and accept it as it is. We'll stop fighting it and allow that gentle lack of resistance to create a sense of ease and peace. Before we begin, our only ad break, which helps make this show possible. To listen ad-free, follow the link in the show notes.

[00:06:51] Settle in, get cozy, and let's meditate to this soothing meditation Billy has written for us. Allow your body to settle in to whatever is supporting you. Notice the simple feeling of being here just for this moment.

[00:07:22] When we head to bed, we usually imagine that the night will unfold in one seamless stretch, from drifting off to waking refreshed in the morning. Sometimes, that's exactly what happens. Sometimes, it isn't. During the day, we often carry this same habit of mind. The line at the checkout shouldn't be this long.

[00:07:50] Traffic shouldn't be so slow. We shouldn't be running behind. We shouldn't feel so busy, or so tired, or so restless. Our minds become very good at imagining a version of this moment that would be just a little better than the one we're living. But what happens when you realize that all of these little moments, the ones you imagined ought to be different,

[00:08:21] are the story of your life? They say life happens on a Tuesday. The small things that arrive without much fanfare, that may have a tinge of boredom, the messy, unresolved things that exist imperfectly, these are the building blocks of a life. As these words settle around you, notice your breathing.

[00:08:51] There's no need to change anything about your breath. Let the breath do whatever it wants to do. Simply notice the gentle rise and the gentle fall. Taken separately, they may seem insignificant or even a nuisance, some obstacle on the road to something better.

[00:09:22] But together, they are something extraordinary. They are a window into life. They are where you are. Where breath is. Feel the bed beneath you. Notice how completely it supports your body.

[00:09:55] There is nothing you need to hold yourself up. If we can lean in just a bit and meet these moments with a bit of curiosity, a bit of wonder, we may meet more than moments. We may meet ourselves right where we are.

[00:10:25] In 2001, researchers published a wealth of historical evidence that humans used to sleep in two distinct chunks. They would fall asleep about two hours after dusk, followed by a waking period of one to two hours, and then a second sleep. It seemed to be simply common knowledge

[00:10:52] that there was a first and second sleep up until about 1920. Whether or not that pattern was universal, it reminds us of something surprisingly comforting. Waking during the night isn't necessarily a sign that something has gone wrong. Sleeping for a solid eight hours isn't wrong either.

[00:11:24] Whether your sleep comes in one long stretch, or with a quiet pause in between, perhaps you're not in the wrong place at all. Perhaps you are even in the right place. So if you are awake for a little while tonight, perhaps there is nowhere you need to rush.

[00:11:55] Let your breath continue at its own gentle rhythm. Let your body become just a little heavier. There is nothing to force. Notice the gentle weight of your body being supported by the bed beneath you.

[00:12:26] Feel the places where your body naturally makes contact with the mattress. Perhaps the back of your head, your shoulders, your hips, your legs. Notice the temperature of the room. The softness of the blankets. The feeling of the air moving across your skin.

[00:13:01] There are distant sounds drifting in from beyond the walls. A passing car. The hum of a fan. The quiet settling of the house. Allow these sounds to be there as they are. These sounds belong. There's a particular quality

[00:13:29] that the night holds. The night welcomes sleep, yes. But it also welcomes reflection, quiet rest, even wakeful relaxation and meditation. Many people become anxious when they wake up at night.

[00:13:58] Sometimes that anxiety itself keeps sleep at bay. History offers a comforting perspective. The fact that many of our ancestors very likely experienced two phases of sleep take some of the pressure off. For them, that quiet period of wakefulness

[00:14:24] was simply part of the rhythm of the night. Some prayed. Some read. Some reflected. Some simply rested before sleep returned in its own time. If you are in one of these periods now, perhaps nothing has gone wrong. Perhaps this, too,

[00:14:54] belongs to the night. The night offers you its special kind of mood, which may be somewhere between waking and dreaming. Embrace the night and allow the night to embrace you as you softly allow your breathing to occupy a little more space

[00:15:23] in your awareness. Notice the air flowing in through your nostrils. Sense the coolness of the night air entering the nose and filling up your lungs. Feel the chest.

[00:15:53] A natural pause at the top of the inhale circulates awareness to various parts of the body. A calm exhale through the mouth or the nose allows the belly or the chest to descend. giving weight to the body and releasing unnecessary tension from the neck

[00:16:23] and shoulders. The inhale travels to the areas that feel tight, sore, or stuck gathering tension. The exhale allows that tension or soreness to flow out with the breath itself. The space that remains is a little more quiet,

[00:16:53] a little more receptive, a little more relaxed. Meet each moment. Imagine that the subtle thoughts, feelings, and sensations are like guides arriving at the door, showing you

[00:17:23] how to flow through the changes that life always brings, moment to moment, day to day, season to season, year to year. change is not always welcomed or hoped for. But even the changes that arrive unbidden,

[00:17:53] they carry unexpected gifts. Breathe in at your own pace for some time.

[00:20:10] There is a subtle difference between being awake and struggling against being awake. One is simply an experience. The other is the story we begin to tell about that experience. The first experience may simply be this moment. Eyes open, a body resting in bed, breath moving gently in,

[00:20:40] and out. The second layer, why am I awake? This shouldn't be happening. Sometimes, the mind creates a second experience, woven from worry, judgment, and anticipation. Before long, we find ourselves

[00:21:09] responding not only to the night itself, but to the story we've built around it. If you notice that story unfolding, simply notice that it, too, is here. This is also meeting yourself where you are. Meeting only

[00:21:38] the peaceful parts would mean missing so much of yourself. The restless parts belong, too. The part that wants this moment to be different. The part that is anxious about tomorrow. The part that wonders when sleep will come.

[00:22:09] The parts that are trying so hard to help. Whatever you find here tonight. let it be enough to meet. Not because it needs to stay. Simply because it is here with you.

[00:22:42] And breathe at your own pace for some time.

[00:24:51] Imagine a small cottage warmed by the last embers of a fire. A candle flickers softly on a wooden table moves through the trees. Somewhere in the distance an owl calls into the darkness.

[00:25:20] There is no clock to consult. No glowing screen to announce the hour. No expectation that something has gone wrong. They pull a blanket a little closer.

[00:25:48] They listen to the sounds of the night. Perhaps they offer a prayer. Perhaps they simply rest for a while before sleep finds them again. It's simply part of the rhythm of the day. As

[00:26:18] familiar as waking with the dawn, washing, sharing a meal, tending to the day's work, and returning home beneath the fading light. Villages and fawns, countless windows beneath the star. Some

[00:26:48] people slept, some stirred, lay awake for a while, listening to the crackle of a fire, the rustle of leaves, the breathing of those they loved nearby. Wakefulness was simply another thread woven into the fabric.

[00:27:18] The night wasn't something to get through. It was something to inhabit. Perhaps the night is still something to inhabit. it. Then, perhaps, little by little, you can allow your body to inhabit it as well, without asking anything more of

[00:27:48] yourself. Notice, once again, the gentle support beneath you. The mattress has been receiving your weight all along. There has never been a moment when it asked you to hold yourself up. You have been supported from the beginning.

[00:28:19] See if you can trust that support just a little more. Perhaps your heels settle a little more deeply, your calves, the backs of your thighs become heavier, your hips release without effort.

[00:28:49] There's nothing you need to carry for these next few moments. Whatever was accomplished has been accomplished. Whatever remains can wait for another sunrise. For now, allow yourself to experience what it's like to set the day down completely,

[00:29:18] even if only for the length of a single breath. some time,

[00:31:37] notice the gentle rise and fall of your abdomen. There's no need to change the rhythm of your breathing or make it deeper than it already is. The breath has been finding its own way since your very first moments of life. Each inhale arrives on

[00:32:07] its own. Each exhale leaves in its own time. Like waves reaching the shore, there is no urgency. only a steady rhythm that has carried you through every day and every night. Feel the subtle

[00:32:36] movement of your ribs as they expand and soften again. Sense the weight of your shoulders becoming a little more familiar with the bed beneath them. If there's even the smallest amount of effort still lingering there, see if it

[00:33:05] might loosen by just a fraction. There's no perfect amount, only the next small invitation to settle.

[00:33:41] Your forearm, your wrists, the palms of your hands, and finally to the tips of your fingers. The hands spend so much of

[00:34:11] the day reaching, holding, carrying, typing, lifting, creating, comforting. They're free to rest

[00:34:40] exactly as they are.

[00:35:49] Mental awareness to your face. Notice whether your jaw might soften just a little. Perhaps there is a little more space between your teeth. Let the muscles around your eyes become smooth. Feel the back of your head resting comfortably

[00:36:19] against the pillow. Support it as your body settles. Every part of you that softens is met by something already there to support it. The mattress beneath you has been holding your weight. The

[00:36:51] pillow has been supporting your head from the moment you lay little by little you're able to let go because there's less for you to hold. You are already

[00:37:45] and if sleep comes soon let it arrive as naturally as the next breath. If wakefulness lingers a little longer let this moment be enough as well. meet yourself where you are. There is nowhere else

[00:38:15] you need to be. You have already in this room in this night. to Thank you.