Breathing meditation for falling asleep (5 min), on a day off

About this practice

5 minutes to meet falling asleep with less of a fight. A breathing practice, on a day off. A guided session of about 5 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: falling asleep

Falling asleep is a passive process. The harder you aim at it, the further it moves, because the effort itself is arousal.

It tends to show up as:

• Watching the clock
• Getting frustrated at being awake
• Sleep only arriving after giving up

Attention on something boring and continuous is the oldest trick there is. That is all a sleep story is doing.

Doing this on a rest day

• Do it without a reason or a target
• Later in the day, unhurried, in good light
• Let it be longer than usual if you want

Rest that has to be justified is not really rest. This one is allowed to be pointless.

How breathing works

A breathing practice uses the breath as the object of attention and as the control lever. Because exhaling slows the heart through the vagus nerve, it acts on the nervous system directly rather than through thinking.

• Keep the exhale longer than the inhale — that is the active ingredient
• Count the exhales and start again whenever you lose count
• Do not force depth; let the breath find its own level

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00Turn your phone face down if it's within reach. If it's in another room, even better.
2. 0:15Your anchor for the next few minutes is the breath itself. Nothing else needs following.
3. 0:29If it helps, imagine your attention is a torch beam. Right now it's wide and soft.
4. 0:44Let your body be exactly as tired as it is.
5. 0:56Notice how many breaths you take in a minute. Don't change the number, just check.
6. 1:10Feel the last part of the exhale, where it turns into nothing.
7. 1:23Notice the space between your shoulder blades.
8. 1:33Notice your eyebrows. They're probably doing something small right now.
9. 1:45Feel the outline of yourself, from the top of your head to your heels.
10. 1:59Keep following the air.
11. 2:08Keep the exhale a little longer than the inhale. That is the entire technique.
12. 2:22Notice the pull to make this mean something. It doesn't have to.
13. 2:35Each time your mind hands you the slow drift toward sleep, treat it like a leaf on a stream. Present for a moment, then carried on.
14. 2:54Remind yourself, slowly: I am safe in this moment, even while the thoughts that keep the light on is here. Safety and difficulty can share a room.
15. 3:14Let your belly rise first, then your chest, then the tops of your lungs.
16. 3:28Think of the surrender at the end of the day as a guest that arrived without knocking. You can let it stand in the hallway.
17. 3:47If you're counting the minutes, that's fine. Count them and come back.
18. 4:00Let me stop talking. Follow the breath instead.
19. 4:11Follow the air from the nostrils down to the belly, then back out. One full trip at a time.
20. 4:27If you're going straight back to work, take ten seconds at the doorway first.
21. 4:41Let your body keep settling.

Questions people ask

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