Tired eyes: 10-minute noting meditation, at the airport

About this practice

For the times at the airport when tired eyes takes up more room than you would like — 10 minutes, noting. A guided session of about 10 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: tired eyes

Screens reduce blink rate sharply, and the muscles that focus at close range stay contracted. The result is strain, ache and blur by the end of the day.

It tends to show up as:

• Aching, gritty eyes after screen time
• Blurring at the end of the day
• Headaches above the eyes

Closing the eyes is the only real rest they get. A few minutes without visual input is the specific thing your eyes are short of.

Doing this on a plane

• Use headphones, and keep the seatbelt on
• Bring a layer — being cold works against settling
• Skip alcohol; it makes the alertness worse

Cabin noise is constant and will mask the audio more than you expect. Try the headphones before you settle in.

How noting works

Noting is a technique from insight practice: when something arises, you give it a single plain label — thinking, hearing, planning — and return to the anchor. The label creates a small distance between you and the content.

• Use one word, not a sentence — explaining means you have joined in
• Label and return; do not follow the thought to see where it goes
• Drop the labelling if it becomes effortful and just follow the breath

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00Then find the nearest sound. It's probably your own breathing.
2. 0:12Let this be easy, if easy is available.
3. 0:23If your mind is loud, that's information, not failure.
4. 0:34There's a difference between relaxing and stopping. We're aiming for the second one, gently.
5. 0:48Notice the small gap after each exhale. Rest there for half a second.
6. 1:01Follow the breath down into your belly and feel it come back up.
7. 1:14Let the whole of your right foot be heavy.
8. 1:25Feel the back of your neck. That's a place that holds a lot.
9. 1:38Notice your eyebrows. They're probably doing something small right now.
10. 1:50Feel your hips. Wide, heavy, and doing nothing.
11. 2:01Notice where the ache of staring too long lives in your body. Chest, throat, stomach. Rest your attention there without trying to change it.
12. 2:20You do not have to solve the strained eyes after screens in these few minutes. Your only job is to keep breathing while it is here.
13. 2:39Notice how quickly your mind labels things: good, bad, boring, nice.
14. 2:51We'll keep it quiet and unhurried.
15. 3:01Silence. Let your shoulders drop again if they've crept up.
16. 3:13If nothing much is happening, that's not a problem. Nothing much is often the point.
17. 3:27You can be as unimpressive as you like for the next few minutes.
18. 3:40No words for a moment. Only the next breath.
19. 3:51Notice how you're sitting. Adjust if you need to. Then settle again.
20. 4:04Nothing here needs to be efficient.
21. 4:14Quiet for a moment. No need to fill it.
22. 4:25If your mind is quiet, don't grab at it. Quiet comes and goes too.
23. 4:39Feel your heart somewhere in there, doing its work without instructions.
24. 4:51Feel the air as it passes the back of your throat. It's cooler going in.
25. 5:05Nothing changes for a moment.
26. 5:14Feel the parts of you that have gone quiet.
27. 5:25Count down from ten, one number per exhale.
28. 5:36A few seconds more.
29. 5:45Notice the space between your shoulder blades.
30. 5:55Let the exhale empty you a little more than usual, but not to the point of strain.
31. 6:10Let it be this simple.
32. 6:19Let your thumbs rest wherever they landed.
33. 6:29Notice where you feel the breath most clearly. Nose, chest, or belly — pick one and stay there.
34. 6:45Pause here. Count three breaths if you need an anchor.
35. 6:57the heavy lids of a screen-lit day may quiet down, or it may not. Either is fine. We are practising staying, not performing calm.
36. 7:16You have been carrying the ache of staring too long for a while. You can set it down for the length of this session and pick it up after.
37. 7:37Notice that you don't have to start a breath. It arrives by itself.
38. 7:50When the strained eyes after screens presses in, put a hand on your chest or your belly. Warmth and pressure are anchors your body already trusts.
39. 8:09If your mind has wandered, that's not a mistake. Noticing is the practice.
40. 8:22Notice whether you're breathing or holding. Start breathing again.
41. 8:33I'll stop for a moment. Take the pause at your own speed.
42. 8:46If you only manage half of it, that's half more than nothing.
43. 8:59Stay here a little longer.
44. 9:08Let your eyes open when they're ready, not when the words end.
45. 9:21Let your breathing be completely ordinary again.
46. 9:31Let 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.