A calmer bedtime

Small habits for the hour before sleep, and a breath to fall asleep with.

Sleep tends to come more easily to a body that has been told the day is over. A few small habits in the last hour make that clearer: the same time each night, lights down, screens away, and something slow and quiet.

Then, in bed, a long slow breath with the out-breath longer than the in-breath, and a slow count down.

The steps

• Lights down: Dim the lights and put your phone out of reach.
• Lie down (Resting pose): Lie on your back or your side, and let the bed hold your weight.
• Slow breaths: Breathe in for four, out for seven.
• Count down: Count slowly down from ten, one number on each out-breath. Start again if you lose count.

Tips

• Go to bed and get up at about the same time every day, weekends too.
• Keep the bedroom cool, dark and quiet.
• Swap the phone for a paper book in the last half hour.
• If you cannot sleep after a while, get up, do something quiet in dim light, and go back when you feel sleepy.

Related

• Wind down for sleep: a guided meditation
• Bedtime yoga
• All the calm lessons

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