One reason hypnotists like myself prefer to use rapid or speed hypnosis methods late in the day is that it’s very easy for folks to fall asleep at that time, particularly if you use any sort of relaxation based hypnotic induction or guided meditation. This is also why many meditation teachers suggest that folks not meditate while lying down.
Now, if you want to get to sleep, this sort of thing is worth knowing.
Here’s a bit of wisdom on the subject from Kripalu:
I paraphrase him: “If you meditate lying down, pretty soon the whole place will be filled with the sounds of snoring.” Of course, I had to test his theory; this experiment resulted in some lovely, guilt-laced naps.
Accordingly, Goenka also recommended meditating while drifting off to sleep — or, as some people on the Internet call it: beditation.
Though scientific studies are undecided on whether meditation actually improves sleep (some researchers say it does by easing depression; some say it makes you need less sleep; some reveal increased alertness), I find it the spiritual equivalent of counting sheep.
Here’s what I do.
Beditation 101:
Snuggle into going-to-sleep position. For me this is on my belly with one leg up and bent in Frog pose. It’s surprisingly comfy.
Start noticing the thought torrents — work, that conversation I had that I didn’t quite do “right,” how I finished a big project — and the subsequent feeling waves: stress, shame, relief.Find the breath. The other day I heard Buddhist teacher Sharon Salzberg say in a talk that we should think of attuning to the breath in the way we notice a friend in a crowd. We don’t stop seeing the other people (aka thoughts), we just focus on our friend (the breath). I’m finding this helpful. It’s the opposite of pushing anything away, and it’s friendly — the breath is a buddy, not a daunting challenger I must watch vigilantly or lose. When my friend fades, I just return to my nostrils, feeling the air going in and out.
Ride the waves. Sometimes I get to: “I can’t do this, I’m just going to read in the living room.” But really, I don’t have to believe that; it’s just another thought. I gently notice, I breathe, and I stay in the process with my breath BFF. Pretty soon, I’m out and snoring, just like Goenka said I would.
I know it’s not that simple for everyone — certainly chronic insomnia isn’t usually cured with a breath meditation. So if that’s not doing it for you, there are many guided audio meditations with suggestions and visualizations.
See more of this at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kripalu/meditation-for-sleep_b_2978456.html.
Of course, regular readers here know how important I feel breathing is and that I often use it with trance processes . . . both those useful for breath reduction as well as for other contexts (such as Breatherotic work, yep, breathing orgasms).
Brian
www.BrianDavidPhillips.net
