Posted by ClearSkies on April 10, 2008, at 9:17:00
In reply to DBT, posted by Nadezda on April 9, 2008, at 19:49:40
Hi there, Nadezda - and sorry if I already know you!
I practice mindfulness every night in order to empty out my head so that I can get to sleep. I used to get a lot of anxiety created over not being able to sleep, and then I started to listen to some different CD's for creating calm and stillness within.
My favourite turned out to be one that had me concentrate on what I was immediately aware of - the noises in my room, the feelings in my body, the tenseness of my muscles - all to the exclusion of every other thought. Whenever I find that my mind starts to drift back to the busy-ness of the day, and those monkey brain tricks that it likes to play on itself, pretending that anything else is more important than the business of the exercise, I start all over again.
There have been times when I have had to start over again three times, but I think of it as a game I play with myself - nothing that I win or lose at, but something that I observe in myself, like, Wow, my brain sure doesn't want to let go of this day! I always do this exercise lying on my back and my signal to myself that I have relaxed enough to actually slip into sleep is when I hear myself snore a bit. Then, I turn on to my side and let it come as it will.
It has become a beloved ritual at the end of every day. I do surround it with other nice touches, such as an aromatherapy linen spray I mix for myself, which gives me something else to be aware of. And if my windows are closed and I'm not able to hear any ambient noises, sometimes I'll put on a CD of waves crashing on a shore. Zzzzzz.
ClearSkies
poster:ClearSkies
thread:822476
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/esteem/20071011/msgs/822558.html