Stress accumulated throughout the day neither helps in falling asleep nor makes our life easier. If you want to invest in effective sleep and a peace of mind, it is worth to practice basic meditation and relaxation techniques having a positive influence on our nervous system and the level of stress hormone. All you need to do is to get familiar with the following tips and incorporate them in your daily routine before falling asleep. Effects guaranteed!
For starters
Before you start, you need to realise that meditation, even in its simplest form, is one of the best methods for clearing your mind, relaxing, and entering into a state of positive emotions. It will also help you act in harmony with yourself, your beliefs, and the nature of your body. It is a tool that enables you to look deep inside of yourself and fix certain shortcomings. Once you gain experience with various techniques, you will also learn empathy and prevent tensions. If the following methods pose difficulties and do not bring the relief, you can try working out underneath a weighted blanket which activates the proprioceptive network and help our nervous system to work in a totally different way. The level of cortisol goes down, blood circulates slower, and our brain receives signals that we are safe so it can “turn off” the defence mode. The meditation becomes much easier in such conditions.
Sieving method
Lie down comfortable, close your eyes and get into the role of an observer. Observe your mind and thoughts but try not to focus on anything particular. Turn off conscious thinking and let various thoughts cross your mind. Just observe them – notice, welcome, and accompany them until they vanish. Remember that your thinking does not represent actions but rather mere information about your attitude toward various matters. Do not change inconvenient elements, accept their form but do not follow them too long (do not focus on what your boss has said or how bad you have felt). Be a careful observer, look at your thoughts and imagine that they fade away until they finally vanish. After a moment you can also imagine swiping your thoughts just like notifications on your cellphone. Finally, you will see that your mind is less occupied with countless thoughts if you stop following them. They will occur less frequently and finally they will completely cease. Then, a feeling of a pleasant emptiness will follow. It will clear your head, make it lighter and create a space for new things. You will fall asleep shortly after entering this state. If you suffer from sleeplessness, repeat this exercise until it becomes effective. Eventually you will learn to do that.
Distributing method
This technique will allow you to feel as a parcel distribution manager responsible for products reaching their destination appropriately. But your products here will be the joy and positive energy which you can freely distribute. You decide who will get a portion of these goods. But first, you need to focus on three thoughts:
- desire for happiness and good things in life,
- desire for loving yourself,
- desire for loving of what is around you.
First, as a good manager of the distribution centre, you need to think about yourself. After all, the manager who has everything will want his employees to also function properly. Distribute a great deal of happiness, good things, love, empathy, acceptance and a peace of mind to yourself. Think that these resources are unlimited, so fill yourself with happiness as long as you need. Visualise this process! They can be obtained by anyone disregarding their social and economic status. Then think of the person closest to you and fill his or her heart with these values too. Think of each stage and each “ingredient” that the person will get from you. Later repeat the process with your friends in mind. They could also use your energy! Do not forget about the people who are neutral to you, e.g. a bus driver, a shop assistant, or a waiter who served you. Fill them with the goodness from your distribution centre, and with time you will have at your disposal much more patience for anybody you meet.
Scanning method
Stress that we experience is not embedded only in our head. Actually, our body is a network of connected vessels, therefore we can feel all the tensions in our neck and spine, as well as our heart. Also, our hair becomes fragile and start falling out and our skin becomes more sensitive. That is why you can finish (or begin) your evening meditation with running a scanner. While lying, focus on feeling each part of your body. Scan your toes, knees, hips, ribs, etc. as precisely as you can. After a while, you will notice how tense you are and how your muscles have been functioning for the last hours. Try to relax. Once you have gone through this phase, focus on more precise sensations. Listen to yourself and record – are you not hungry, thirsty? What signals does your body send then? While meditating, you can also change the way you feel. If you are nervous, try to imagine becoming peaceful and your body regaining harmony; how the tension slowly drops and your muscles gradually relax. Imagine that and focus on sensations. After some time, you will find out that it really works because your body listens to you and serves you faithfully.
