Sleep Echoes: The Beach ✨ Getting Back to Sleep

[00:00:10] Hey, it's me Carissa and I have something new for you this evening and I'm looking forward to sharing it with you. It's a new style of episode that we're calling Sleep Echoes in which a story is repeated to help you fall asleep easily. They're designed to be memorable so you can revisit the story if you wake up in the night.

[00:00:28] These stories are written by Diane Gillespie, an educational psychologist and creative writer who faced vexing sleep problems herself. She overcame late night sleep disruptions through creating stories that she uses in the middle of the night to lull her back to sleep. And now I'm thrilled to be sharing them with you.

[00:00:48] If you love this show, start a free trial of Sleep Wave Premium tonight. You'll relax and sleep easier with no advertisements, enjoy more variety with two premium episodes every month, and unlock the full library of exclusive supporter-only episodes. Join in two taps via the link in the show notes. Cancel any time.

[00:01:09] But now, a quick word from our sponsors who make this free content possible.

[00:01:14] Ready to transform your sleep this fall? For a limited time only, you can dive into Sleep Wave Premium with an extended one-month free trial. You'll unlock over 60 bonus episodes, fall asleep uninterrupted with ad-free listening, and enjoy two premium episodes a month. During your free trial, you can drift off to our entire back catalog of over 200 episodes totally ad-free. And this month, you can try our brand new take on sleep content, Sleep Echoes.

[00:01:43] These are carefully designed stories, filled with sleepy triggers, repeated to easily lull you to sleep. The first Sleep Echo, coming Monday, October 28th, whisks you away to a white sandy beach where the warm sun lulls you into relaxation. It's true escapism.

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[00:02:28] The Motherkind podcast explores how to feel happier, more confident and empowered in your motherhood, even in our world of pressure, judgment and comparison.

[00:02:39] I'm your host Zoe Blaski and every week I speak to an incredible expert to share actionable steps and powerful lessons to living your life as a mother with more joy and unapologetic confidence.

[00:02:52] Listen wherever you get your podcasts. Just search Motherkind.

[00:03:10] So the meditative story I'm about to tell you is specially designed to lead you back to sleep in the middle of the night if you have awakened.

[00:03:18] To make the magic work, you can begin by listening to this whilst falling asleep at bedtime.

[00:03:24] Then, when you wake at night, you can enter right into the story in your mind without even turning on a light.

[00:03:30] If you awaken because you need to go to the bathroom or get a drink of water, put yourself into the story as soon as you step out of bed.

[00:03:39] As you listen to the story, think about the sequence of events so that you have them in mind.

[00:03:44] Feel free to change any details that will relax you even more.

[00:03:48] I will read the story twice to make you extra sleepy and help you cement the sequence into your mind so that it's always available to you when you're seeking sleep.

[00:03:59] You will see that this story has a strategy built into it to help you deal with disrupting thoughts so that you remain in the story.

[00:04:07] Put any worries on a sailboat and watch it drift far out to sea as we begin The Beach by Diane Gillespie.

[00:04:15] You have just come from a leisurely walk along a white sandy beach and settled into a comfy lounge chair.

[00:04:35] Lifting the cap off the bottle of your suntan lotion, you squeeze some on your hand and watch it spread out on your palm.

[00:04:47] You reach down and slowly rub it into your feet and ankles.

[00:04:53] Then, pouring out more, you spread it around your knees and legs.

[00:05:02] And then coat your arms, shoulders, and chest.

[00:05:10] After a clear, hot, sunny day, it is still 80 degrees in the late afternoon.

[00:05:19] You pull the umbrella top down so that your body can get its 15 minutes of sun.

[00:05:29] As you lie back, you hear the waves gently lapping the shore.

[00:05:37] From your chair, you watch those white-capped waves ripple through the blue-green sea.

[00:05:45] The sand on the beach is fine, with only a few pebbles scattered here and there.

[00:05:55] The umbrellas that dot the beach are colorful.

[00:05:59] Their ruffles fluttering in the breeze.

[00:06:02] You have been dreaming of this exact moment all through the winter months,

[00:06:12] when it was bitterly cold in your hometown.

[00:06:19] The ice and snow kept you inside for many days.

[00:06:24] And when you walked down to your local grocery store,

[00:06:31] not even your long down coat could keep out the frigid cold.

[00:06:39] At the memory, you feel your body tense slightly,

[00:06:44] imagining the wind nipping at your face.

[00:06:49] Such cold you hadn't experienced before.

[00:06:53] And now, here you are on vacation.

[00:07:00] Away from that cold winter.

[00:07:03] On this beach.

[00:07:05] Warmed by the sun.

[00:07:09] You have these days all to yourself.

[00:07:14] Since mid-afternoon, after a leisurely lunch,

[00:07:18] you have been walking,

[00:07:21] swimming,

[00:07:23] reading your mystery,

[00:07:24] drinking iced chamomile tea,

[00:07:29] and watching some children build sandcastles.

[00:07:33] The children shouted as the waves advanced on their fragile structures,

[00:07:39] as if their voices could push back the ocean.

[00:07:45] Now, all around you are soft sounds.

[00:07:50] A radio playing music in the distance.

[00:07:53] Several couples laughing or calling out to their children.

[00:07:59] The waves lapping against the sandy shore.

[00:08:05] While you watched the children as they raced bravely toward the waves,

[00:08:12] you thought about your own situation back home.

[00:08:17] The day before you left,

[00:08:20] one of your co-workers had unexpectedly missed an important meeting.

[00:08:25] That was so unlike her.

[00:08:29] You knew that she would have a valid reason,

[00:08:32] and that when you returned,

[00:08:35] she would explain what had happened.

[00:08:39] Still, you wondered.

[00:08:41] You were worried.

[00:08:42] But you promised yourself not to think about anything else this week,

[00:08:48] except sand,

[00:08:50] sun,

[00:08:52] and sea.

[00:08:56] You deliberately step back from that memory,

[00:09:00] and the tensions it was starting to raise inside you.

[00:09:04] You focus your attention,

[00:09:09] sun,

[00:09:10] on your body.

[00:09:12] Then,

[00:09:14] looking toward the horizon,

[00:09:17] you consciously put the memory,

[00:09:20] and its tensions,

[00:09:22] on the sturdy sailboat that is tacking across the large inlet.

[00:09:28] Ah,

[00:09:31] your worries are sailing away.

[00:09:36] You feel light,

[00:09:38] and buoyant.

[00:09:40] The sailors have no notion that they are now carrying your freight.

[00:09:45] You lie back on your lounge chair,

[00:09:52] and close your eyes,

[00:09:56] taking a deep breath,

[00:09:59] and exhaling it slowly.

[00:10:02] You feel the tension in your shoulders,

[00:10:06] and neck,

[00:10:11] adjusting the lounge chair,

[00:10:14] and turning over on your stomach,

[00:10:17] to give your back some sun.

[00:10:20] You lift a handful of warm sand,

[00:10:24] and let it sift through your fingers.

[00:10:30] A round, white rock appears in your hand,

[00:10:34] from underneath the sand,

[00:10:37] and you gradually turn it,

[00:10:40] feeling its smoothness.

[00:10:43] You notice that someone has left a small bucket,

[00:10:48] with a scoop under your chair.

[00:10:51] You smile,

[00:10:53] remembering your joy as a child,

[00:10:56] filling a bucket with sand.

[00:11:01] Your dad had helped you count.

[00:11:04] You reach for the empty bucket,

[00:11:07] and begin scooping sand.

[00:11:11] How many scoops will it take?

[00:11:41] You think to yourself,

[00:11:44] it doesn't get better.

[00:11:48] You feel calm,

[00:11:50] and centered.

[00:11:54] Before you recognize it, though,

[00:11:57] you are thinking about work again,

[00:12:00] and bemoaning the shortness of this winter vacation.

[00:12:07] You find yourself feeling tensions rising,

[00:12:11] at the thought of being back at your office,

[00:12:16] catch yourself,

[00:12:18] raising your head up,

[00:12:20] and finding the sailboat,

[00:12:22] and finding the sailboat,

[00:12:22] that is already carrying your stress.

[00:12:24] The boat is farther out now.

[00:12:29] You send it any worries about what awaits you at work,

[00:12:35] hoping it won't come.

[00:12:39] You watch as it sails further,

[00:12:43] a white feather,

[00:12:45] and as it vanishes over the horizon,

[00:12:59] once again,

[00:13:00] feel all.

[00:13:07] Putting the umbrella back up,

[00:13:09] you get out of the direct sun,

[00:13:14] click on the lounge chair cushions,

[00:13:17] you remain present with your body,

[00:13:20] feeling warm.

[00:13:25] Tonight,

[00:13:26] you will eat dinner at an outside restaurant,

[00:13:29] and face the ocean,

[00:13:31] and watch the moon rise.

[00:13:34] It will carve its sparkling path across the ocean,

[00:13:39] shimmering on the ocean.

[00:13:42] You close your eyes,

[00:13:44] and hear a family in the distance,

[00:13:47] packing up and leaving.

[00:13:49] A couple lies on lounge chairs,

[00:13:53] several yards away.

[00:13:55] The woman is reading,

[00:13:58] and the man,

[00:13:59] sleeping.

[00:14:01] The beach is quiet now,

[00:14:05] except for the hypnotic sound of the wave against the shore.

[00:14:13] As the tide comes in,

[00:14:18] you open your mystery,

[00:14:21] but find your eyes closing.

[00:14:25] You drift off to sleep,

[00:14:28] as you imagine floating in the water.

[00:14:36] You have just come from a leisurely walk

[00:14:40] along a white sandy beach,

[00:14:43] and settled into a comfy lounge chair,

[00:14:49] lifting the cap off the bottle of your suntan lotion.

[00:14:54] You squeeze some on your hand,

[00:14:59] and watch it spread out on your open palm.

[00:15:07] Reach down,

[00:15:09] and slowly rub it into your feet.

[00:15:20] You spread it around your knees,

[00:15:27] and then coat your arms.

[00:15:39] Hot,

[00:15:40] sunny day.

[00:15:42] It is still 80 degrees in the late afternoon.

[00:15:46] You pull the umbrella top,

[00:15:52] so your body can get its 15 minutes of sun.

[00:15:58] As you lie back,

[00:16:02] you hear the waves gently lapping the shore.

[00:16:09] From your chair,

[00:16:11] you watch those white-capped waves ripple through the blue-green sea.

[00:16:19] The sand on the beach is fine.

[00:16:26] With only a few pebbles scattered here,

[00:16:33] the umbrellas that dot the beach are colored,

[00:16:39] their ruffles fluttering in the breeze.

[00:16:45] You have been dreaming of this exact moment

[00:16:50] all through the winter months

[00:16:55] when it was bitterly cold in your hometown.

[00:16:59] The ice and snow kept you inside for many days,

[00:17:08] and when you walked down to your local grocery store,

[00:17:12] not even your long could keep out the frigid cold.

[00:17:25] You feel your body tense slightly,

[00:17:29] imagining the wind nipping at your face.

[00:17:35] Such cold you hadn't experienced before.

[00:17:53] On this beach,

[00:17:56] warm these days all to yourself.

[00:18:06] Since mid-afternoon leisurely lunch,

[00:18:13] you have been drinking iced chamomile tea

[00:18:25] and watching some children build sandcastles.

[00:18:32] The children shouted

[00:18:34] as the waves advanced on their fragile structures,

[00:18:42] as if their voices could push back the ocean.

[00:18:47] A radio playing music in the distance.

[00:19:03] Several couples laughing

[00:19:05] or calling out to their children.

[00:19:09] The waves lapping against the sandy shore.

[00:19:17] While you watched the children

[00:19:20] as they raced bravely toward the waves,

[00:19:24] you thought about your own situation back home.

[00:19:32] The day before you left,

[00:19:34] one of your co-workers

[00:19:36] had unexpectedly missed an important meeting

[00:19:40] that was so unlike her.

[00:19:45] You knew that she would have a valid reason,

[00:19:50] and that when you returned,

[00:19:53] she would explain what had happened.

[00:19:56] Still, you wondered.

[00:20:00] You promised yourself

[00:20:02] not to think about anything else this week,

[00:20:07] except sand and sea.

[00:20:15] You deliberately step back tensions

[00:20:20] it was starting to raise inside you.

[00:20:25] You focus your attention on the war.

[00:20:34] Looking toward the horizon,

[00:20:37] you consciously put the memory

[00:20:40] and its tensions

[00:20:42] on the sturdy sailboat

[00:20:46] that is tacking across the large inlet.

[00:20:53] Your worries are now sailing.

[00:21:04] The sailors have no notion

[00:21:06] that you lie back on your lounge chair

[00:21:15] and close your eyes,

[00:21:19] taking a deep breath

[00:21:21] and exhaling it slowly.

[00:21:24] You feel the tension

[00:21:26] in your shoulders

[00:21:27] and neck,

[00:21:31] adjusting the lounge chair

[00:21:33] and turning over on your stomach

[00:21:36] to give your back some sun.

[00:21:40] You lift a handful of warm sand

[00:21:44] and let it sift through your fingers.

[00:21:52] It appears in your hand.

[00:21:58] You gradually turn it,

[00:22:00] feeling its smoothness.

[00:22:05] Notice that someone has left a small bucket

[00:22:09] with a scoop under your chair.

[00:22:14] You smile,

[00:22:16] remembering your joy as a child

[00:22:19] filling a bucket with sand.

[00:22:24] Your dad had helped you count.

[00:22:28] You reach for the empty bucket

[00:22:30] and begin scooping sand.

[00:22:34] How many scoops will it take?

[00:23:17] Before you recognize it, though,

[00:23:20] you are the darkness

[00:23:27] of this winter vacation.

[00:23:30] You find yourself

[00:23:32] feeling tensions rising

[00:23:34] at the thought of being back.

[00:23:40] But you catch yourself

[00:23:42] raising your head up

[00:23:44] and finding the sailboat

[00:23:47] that is already carrying your stress

[00:23:53] is farther out now.

[00:23:56] You send it any worries

[00:23:59] about what awaits you at work,

[00:24:02] hoping it won't go on.

[00:24:07] You watch as it sails further,

[00:24:11] a white feather in the wind

[00:24:16] into the deep blue sea.

[00:24:20] As it vanishes over the horizon,

[00:24:24] you sigh and once again

[00:24:28] feel all the tension.

[00:24:35] Putting the umbrella,

[00:24:39] you get out of the direct sound chair cushions.

[00:24:46] You remain present with your body

[00:25:01] and face the ocean

[00:25:04] and watch the moon.

[00:25:09] It will carve its sparkling path

[00:25:12] across the ocean.

[00:25:20] You close your eyes

[00:25:21] and hear a family in the distance

[00:25:24] packing up.

[00:25:35] The woman is reading.

[00:25:42] The beach is quiet now,

[00:25:45] except for the shore

[00:25:53] as the time you open.

[00:26:04] You drift off to sleep

[00:26:07] as you imagine floating.

[00:26:19] I remind you once again

[00:26:22] of the sequence of events

[00:26:23] in the story

[00:26:24] so that you can recall them

[00:26:27] if you awaken

[00:26:29] in the middle of the night.

[00:26:30] You return from a walk

[00:26:35] on the beach

[00:26:36] and sit

[00:26:38] in a comfy lounge chair.

[00:26:43] You watch the waves

[00:26:45] lapping the shore

[00:26:47] and some children

[00:26:49] building sandcastles.

[00:26:54] You remember

[00:26:55] the cold winter

[00:26:58] and relish the sun.

[00:27:06] You find yourself

[00:27:14] remembering

[00:27:15] an incident from work.

[00:27:19] Catch yourself

[00:27:22] and put those worries

[00:27:24] on a sailboat

[00:27:26] at sea.

[00:27:31] You turn over

[00:27:33] and find a bucket

[00:27:36] which you slowly fill.

[00:27:48] Another worry

[00:27:49] enters your mind

[00:27:51] and you put it

[00:27:53] on the sailboat again.

[00:27:55] You are now

[00:27:59] worry free

[00:28:02] with song.