Gratitude for insomnia: 5 minutes, in the morning

About this practice

A 5-minute gratitude session for insomnia, in the morning. No app, no account — press start. A guided session of about 5 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: insomnia

Insomnia is often maintained by the fear of not sleeping. Anticipating a bad night raises arousal at bedtime, which produces the bad night.

It tends to show up as:

Dreading bedtime
Hours awake with a busy mind
Sleeping worse as the week goes on

Removing the pressure to sleep is the active ingredient. This gives you something to do that is not trying.

Doing this in the morning

Do it before checking your phone — the first minutes set the tone for the rest
Sitting up is better than lying down, or you will drift back to sleep
Light on your face helps more than any practice

Mornings can become a performance of productive habits. This one does not need to be done well.

How gratitude works

Gratitude here is an attention practice, not a demand for a positive mood. Attention defaults to threats because they are urgent, so pleasant and ordinary things get skipped simply for being safe.

Pick one ordinary thing rather than something impressive
Stay with it for two breaths — depth beats length of list
Do not aim at feeling grateful; aim at noticing

What happens, minute by minute

0:00If you're lying down, let the mattress hold all of you. You can stop holding yourself up.
0:15We are not forcing positivity. We are just noticing what went right, however small.
0:29If it helps, imagine your attention is a torch beam. Right now it's wide and soft.
0:44If your mind is loud, that's information, not failure.
0:55Feel the air move past your upper lip. It's the coolest spot on the way in.
1:10Feel your breath move down your back, all the way to your lower ribs.
1:24Let your thumbs rest wherever they landed.
1:34Feel your knees. They're just hinges, but they've worked hard.
1:46Move to your forehead. Let it be smooth instead of gathered.
1:58Let your body keep settling.
2:07Let it be unimpressive. Small good things are the most reliable ones.
2:20Notice if you're being hard on yourself about any of this.
2:32Think of the counting of hours until morning as a guest that arrived without knocking. You can let it stand in the hallway.
2:50Feel the weight of the frustration of not sleeping somewhere specific, then let the floor take a share of it.
3:07Let the breath be shallow if shallow is what your body wants.
3:20If the wide-awake mind at 2am shows up, let it be there without arguing with it. You are not trying to remove it, just to sit beside it.
3:40If you feel numb, that's a valid thing to feel. Nothing to fix.
3:53Silence for a few breaths. Nothing to do in it.
4:05Pick one ordinary thing from today — a warm drink, a dry walk, a message — and let it count.
4:22Let the next breath be the start of the rest of the day.
4:35Let the quiet do its work.

Questions people ask

What does this session help with?

Insomnia is often maintained by the fear of not sleeping. Anticipating a bad night raises arousal at bedtime, which produces the bad night. Removing the pressure to sleep is the active ingredient. This gives you something to do that is not trying.

Where and when should I do this one?

Do it before checking your phone — the first minutes set the tone for the rest. Mornings can become a performance of productive habits. This one does not need to be done well.

What actually happens during the 5 minutes?

Gratitude here is an attention practice, not a demand for a positive mood. Attention defaults to threats because they are urgent, so pleasant and ordinary things get skipped simply for being safe.

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