Letting go for insomnia: 7 minutes, before work

About this practice

A 7-minute letting go session for insomnia, before work. No app, no account — press start. A guided session of about 7 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 before a busy day

• Do it before the first message or notification
• Aim for steadiness rather than energy
• Decide the first task afterwards, not during

The point is to begin without already being behind, not to prepare for every possibility.

How letting go works

Letting go is about loosening grip rather than dropping things. It works on the effort attached to a problem — the holding, rehearsing and bracing — which is separable from the problem itself.

• Pick one thing you are gripping and loosen a single finger
• Release the effort with the exhale, not the issue
• Set down temporarily; you can pick it up again after

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00Drop your attention from your head into your chest for a second.
2. 0:13Small efforts are the whole method.
3. 0:23We're going to move through the body in order, roughly from top to bottom.
4. 0:37You can let your eyes close now if they weren't already.
5. 0:49Let the breath move at the speed of a sleeping person.
6. 1:01Feel the last part of the exhale, where it turns into nothing.
7. 1:14Notice your breathing, without changing it.
8. 1:24Notice your whole body as one shape, sitting or lying here.
9. 1:36Notice your shoulders, one at a time. The left one first.
10. 1:48Think of the wide-awake mind at 2am as a guest that arrived without knocking. You can let it stand in the hallway.
11. 2:06You do not have to like the counting of hours until morning to breathe through it. Liking was never the requirement.
12. 2:23Notice your ears, which mostly just receive things.
13. 2:34Just the breath, still.
14. 2:43Let the exhale empty you a little more than usual, but not to the point of strain.
15. 2:58Feel your forearms, from the elbow down to the wrist.
16. 3:10You can be as unimpressive as you like for the next few minutes.
17. 3:23If nothing much is happening, that's not a problem. Nothing much is often the point.
18. 3:37A few quiet breaths. That's all this is.
19. 3:48Let this be easy, if easy is available.
20. 3:59You might be planning something. Notice the planning, then come back.
21. 4:11Breathe in for four, out for six, if you'd like something to count.
22. 4:24Quiet now. The next part will wait for you.
23. 4:35This is not the last time the frustration of not sleeping will visit. That is not bad news. It means you will get more practice.
24. 4:54the wide-awake mind at 2am may quiet down, or it may not. Either is fine. We are practising staying, not performing calm.
25. 5:12Let the breath be shallow if shallow is what your body wants.
26. 5:25Notice whether you're breathing or holding. Start breathing again.
27. 5:36Notice the difference between a thought and the space around it.
28. 5:48Pause here. Count three breaths if you need an anchor.
29. 6:00There's no need to try harder than this.
30. 6:11Let your jaw, shoulders and hands be loose as you finish.
31. 6:23If you drifted off, that was rest, and rest counts.
32. 6:35Let the pause stretch out.

Questions people ask

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