{"id":4503,"date":"2020-11-07T13:39:37","date_gmt":"2020-11-07T13:39:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/?p=4503"},"modified":"2021-09-19T15:21:38","modified_gmt":"2021-09-19T15:21:38","slug":"easy-meditation-for-sleep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/easy-meditation-for-sleep\/","title":{"rendered":"An Easy Meditation for Sleep: Stop Stressing, Start Resting"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>I lay there awake, mind racing, desperately tired but unable to sleep. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The worst part? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I had to get up in just a few hours to commute across London for a job I hated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>My mind raced, flooded with anxiety about needing rest, but not being able to get it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This continued night after night, a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach as evening approached. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Until I found an easy meditation for sleep that is\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The importance of sleep<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you suffer from sleep issues, this is likely a familiar scenario. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And a troubling one, considering its importance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sleep is an integral component of good health, preventing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhs.uk\/live-well\/sleep-and-tiredness\/why-lack-of-sleep-is-bad-for-your-health\/#:~:text=Your%20risk%20of%20injury%20and,high%20blood%20pressure%20and%20diabetes.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">health conditions<\/a> such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not to mention <a href=\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/how-to-wake-up-refreshed\/\">waking up<\/a> to optimal performance during the day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;ve ever tried to operate on insufficient rest, you&#8217;ll find yourself forgetful, confused and utterly <a href=\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/how-to-improve-decision-making-in-life\/\">indecisive<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Combined with physical lethargy, you feel like a zombie, existing in a daze. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, how can we use <a href=\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/meditation\/\">mindfulness meditation<\/a> to help?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An easy meditation for sleep<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>An easy meditation for sleep is the body scan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We spend our entire lives trapped in our mind, consumed by thought, which either transports us into the past or predicts an unrealised future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This incessant mental chatter is frequently negative in nature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After all, the brain is a problem-solving machine constantly scanning for potential threats, even where none exist. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Great for evolutionary survival but unpleasant when we&#8217;re warm and safe in bed seeking sleep. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While meditation, in general, is great to understand the nature of thought, at night I&#8217;ve found it better shift my <a href=\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/focused-attention\/\">attention<\/a> entirely, bypassing the source of anxiety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The body is the perfect <a href=\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/where-to-focus-while-meditating\/\">object of focus<\/a>, allowing us to observe fleeting feelings and sensation while escaping our head for long enough to relax. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s how I do it\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to meditate in bed for beginners<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol><li>I lie on my back with arms at my side<\/li><li>I take a few deep breaths noticing inhalation and exhalation in my airway or the rise and fall of my chest<\/li><li>I gradually become aware of the field of sensation created by my body, a background static present but previously unnoticed<\/li><li>From this general feeling, I hone in on specific areas, starting at my feet<\/li><li>Often I can feel tingling or buzzing, an energy-like phenomenon. Sometimes you might even feel discomfort or pain, although this is also fine.<\/li><li>I try to maintain my attention noticing any subtle changes in sensation<\/li><li>Rather than mentally moving towards the object of focus, I allow the feelings to simply appear in the open space of consciousness, encouraging psychological release<\/li><li>After spending a few minutes on my feet, I move my attention into my legs, repeating the process above<\/li><li>I work my way up the body covering all areas, repeating as necessary until I feel the gentle tug of sleep<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Benefits<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The result? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I find that racing thoughts tend to settle as I&#8217;m not fueling their fire with my attention. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instead, I&#8217;m present with the (often pleasant) sensations arising in my body. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Consequently, any physical tension decreases and my body sinks into a restful state, sending relaxation signals to an overactive mind. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this way, the interdependent <a href=\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/breath-and-mind-connection\/\">mind-body connection<\/a> is activated; relax one and the other releases by default.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is an incredibly easy meditation for sleep. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But obviously, to make it more effective, all the usual advice applies, from exercise and diet to cutting caffeine and late-night screen time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you really want to aid your efforts, try a nice warm shower or bath before bed to relax your body even further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Get some rest<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In an age of increasing psychological strain, the importance of getting a good night&#8217;s sleep can&#8217;t be underestimated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The quality of our nights determines the quality of our days and to function at optimum capacity, we require rest and recovery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Experiment with the above and you&#8217;ll hopefully get the peaceful slumber you need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I lay there awake, mind racing, desperately tired but unable to sleep. <\/p>\n<p>The worst part? <\/p>\n<p>I had to get up in just a few hours to commute across London for a job I hated. <\/p>\n<p>My mind raced, flooded with anxiety about needing rest, but not being able to get it&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4506,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>An Easy Meditation for Sleep: Stop Stressing, Start Resting | Bloomsoup<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Looking for an easy meditation for sleep? 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If you need to stop stressing and start resting, click here to see how I do it.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/easy-meditation-for-sleep\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Bloomsoup\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/bloomsoup\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-11-07T13:39:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-09-19T15:21:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/pexels-photo-416160.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1880\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1253\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Joel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@joelface\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@thebloomsoup\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Joel\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/easy-meditation-for-sleep\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/easy-meditation-for-sleep\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Joel\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/#\/schema\/person\/540656bb1e42797634f467f16f584da7\"},\"headline\":\"An Easy Meditation for Sleep: Stop Stressing, Start Resting\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-11-07T13:39:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-09-19T15:21:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/easy-meditation-for-sleep\/\"},\"wordCount\":664,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Meditation\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/easy-meditation-for-sleep\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/easy-meditation-for-sleep\/\",\"name\":\"An Easy Meditation for Sleep: Stop Stressing, Start Resting | Bloomsoup\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bloomsoup.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2020-11-07T13:39:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-09-19T15:21:38+00:00\",\"description\":\"Looking for an easy meditation for sleep? 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