10-minute guided body scan practice for mindfulness — before bedtime

About this practice

Slow, spoken guidance for mindfulness. A body scan session you can do before bedtime. A guided session of about 10 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: mindfulness

Attention spends most of its time in the past or the future. Being present is not a state you find, it is a return you keep making.

It tends to show up as:

• Missing conversations while composing replies
• Arriving somewhere with no memory of the walk
• Eating without tasting

Every return to the senses is a repetition of the actual skill. Losing it is part of the practice, not a break in it.

Doing this before sleep

• Dim the lights and put the phone out of reach
• Do it in bed if that helps you stay there
• Let yourself fall asleep rather than finishing it

Checking anything afterwards undoes most of it. Let this be the last thing.

How body scan works

A body scan moves attention systematically through the body, region by region. It does not try to change what it finds — it builds a map of what is actually there, which is often different from what you assumed.

• Move slowly, head to feet or feet to head, and do not skip the uncomfortable areas
• Meet each region with plain curiosity rather than a verdict
• Numbness and absence of sensation are findings too

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00Let the first out-breath be longer than the in-breath. Nothing dramatic, just longer.
2. 0:13We will travel down through the body, one region at a time, and leave each one softer than we found it.
3. 0:30We'll start broad and narrow down. Nothing sudden is coming.
4. 0:42We're going to let the body lead and the mind follow for a while.
5. 0:56Notice that you don't have to start a breath. It arrives by itself.
6. 1:09Notice where you feel the breath most clearly. Nose, chest, or belly — pick one and stay there.
7. 1:25Feel the back of your neck. That's a place that holds a lot.
8. 1:38Notice the backs of your knees, which you feel more than you think.
9. 1:51Feel the middle of your back, the part that never gets attention.
10. 2:04Move to your forehead. Let it be smooth instead of gathered.
11. 2:16Let the exhale carry a little of the ordinary present tense with it. Not all of it. Just a little, one breath at a time.
12. 2:35You do not have to win against the present moment you keep leaving. You only have to breathe until the next moment arrives.
13. 2:53Notice the tone of your own inner voice. Is it kind?
14. 3:05Visit each area with plain curiosity, not with a verdict. Sensation is information, not a problem.
15. 3:20I'll leave a gap here. Use it however you like.
16. 3:32If your mind has wandered, that's not a mistake. Noticing is the practice.
17. 3:45Your only job is to notice what is there, region by region, without fixing anything.
18. 3:59Let's rest here in silence. It's short.
19. 4:09If a worry shows up, name it quietly and let it sit beside you.
20. 4:23If a region feels numb, that is a finding too. Note it and move on.
21. 4:37Quiet for a moment. No need to fill it.
22. 4:48Notice your breathing getting quieter on its own, without you deciding anything.
23. 5:01Let it be this simple.
24. 5:10Now the right shoulder. Let it be a centimetre lower than it was.
25. 5:23Let your breathing be boring. Boring is good here.
26. 5:34Stay a moment longer than is comfortable.
27. 5:44Feel your upper arms hanging. They're heavier than you remember.
28. 5:56Let your shoulders stay still while your ribs move.
29. 6:07Remain here for a few more breaths.
30. 6:17Feel your forearms, from the elbow down to the wrist.
31. 6:29Let the breath get soft, the way it goes when someone is reading beside you.
32. 6:43I'll be quiet for a moment. Stay with the breath.
33. 6:55Think of the here-and-now your attention skips as a guest that arrived without knocking. You can let it stand in the hallway.
34. 7:13If the ordinary present tense has been with you all day, it is probably tired too. Let it rest alongside you.
35. 7:30Let your breathing get quieter rather than deeper.
36. 7:41Each time your mind hands you the present moment you keep leaving, treat it like a leaf on a stream. Present for a moment, then carried on.
37. 8:01Your mind will leave about a hundred times. Come back about a hundred times.
38. 8:15If you feel numb, that's a valid thing to feel. Nothing to fix.
39. 8:28I'll stop for a moment. Take the pause at your own speed.
40. 8:41Move at the speed of your attention, not the speed of a checklist. There is no schedule to keep.
41. 8:57Stay here a little longer.
42. 9:06Come back slowly. There's no prize for finishing fast.
43. 9:17Stretch whatever feels stiff, then carry on.
44. 9:27Just the breath, still.

Questions people ask

Meditation is a practice, not a treatment. If you are dealing with ongoing distress, please also reach out to a professional.