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Hi there, I'm Jessica Porter, and welcome back to Sleep Magic, a podcast where I help you find the magic of your own mind, helping you to sleep better and live better. Thank you everybody for being here, for supporting the show in any way that you do, whether it's talking about it, subscribing to it, writing reviews, we really appreciate it all.
I just want to say, I recently did a little episode for another podcast called the Wake Me Up podcast, and it's a little bit of hypnosis to help you come out of sleep and into the day. So go over to the Wake Me Up podcast and look for that. It recently went live, and let me know what you think. Before we get started, let's hear a quick word from our sponsors who make this free content possible.
Also, I've been hearing from lots of listeners. Maurice, who is going through a big loss, and I'm glad Sleep Magic is helping you to get some sleep, and I'm sorry for your loss. And Amanda, a mom in Canada, who is finally getting some very deep sleep that she was telling me about, so I'm very, very happy about that. Thank you, everybody, and enjoy tonight's show. So, get sleepy at the solstice.
Frankly, I have mixed feelings this time of year. It's not unusual for me as we slide through November into December, into the darkness, to feel a little down. But at the same time, I get excited knowing that December 21st represents the point where this planetary boomerang turns around.
And we, in the Northern Hemisphere at least, begin to tilt toward the sun again. And yet the darkness we go through beforehand, I think, is important. It brings us inside ourselves. It forces us to slow down, listen more, and get some rest. In Eastern thought, darkness represents a more feminine energy, where things gestate and transform.
So as we experience this time of year at this extreme, let's give ourselves permission to go deep, to relax, and to savor everything we learn from it as we feed our dreams gestating in the darkness inside of us.
And to all our friends in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and all the other Southern Hemisphere countries listening tonight, bust out your bathing suits. Thanks for listening. And this recording should work well for you too, because every night takes us deep inside ourselves. So get yourself into a safe and comfortable position, and let's begin. Allow your eyes to close easily and gently.
as if you're not going to close your eyes gently. Like you're going to smack them shut. Don't smack them shut. Let them close gently. And now bring your awareness to your breathing. Just reel in your awareness like a fishing line, pulling it back from your day, from all the thinking and doing, and just pull it back to your breath. Allow your awareness to just rest on your breath for a moment.
as you bring yourself home to your body, as you bring yourself home to your breath. It feels nice to come home at the end of the day. Good. Now bring your awareness up into your eyelids and imagine that the little muscles of your eyelids are feeling heavy, sleepy, and that delicious heaviness in your eyelids getting heavier and heavier. I'd like you to imagine that this heaviness is so complete that your eyes are opening
unable to open. Now, of course, they can open, but we're imagining that they can't. So now, accepting this fantastical suggestion that your eyelids simply will not open, I'd like you to test them to make sure they won't open by wiggling your eyebrows. So give your eyebrows a little tug. Good. As your eyes stay closed. Good. Perfect.
Now this relaxation that you have around your eyes is the same quality of relaxation that you will soon have throughout your entire body. So let's imagine this relaxation around your eyes falling into your head. This warm mist of relaxation taking over every single cell of your brain. Oh yeah, that feels so nice. As your head sinks further into the pillow,
and the muscles of your face become soft and relaxed. As you imagine warm waves of relaxation lapping up against the beach of your mind, feel those warm waves of relaxation lapping up against the beach of your mind. As all mental tension disappears, as you allow that warm mist of relaxation to move down to your neck,
The large muscles of your neck releasing and warming, letting go. As the relaxation moves down into your shoulders now, your shoulders sort of melting like butter into the bed. And the relaxation moves all the way down your arms. Your arms are feeling so nice and heavy, heavy. As the relaxation moves down into your hands and your fingers, the palms of your hands are feeling warm and open.
Perhaps the palms of your hands even tingle a bit as the relaxation moves down into every single finger. Every finger feeling full, heavy, and totally relaxed. Good. As you take yourself deeper and deeper, you may be aware of the sounds going on around you and your environment. And that's okay because no sound that you hear will bother or disturb you in any way. In fact, from this moment on, any sound that you hear
other people in the room, in other rooms of your home, noises from the street. Those sounds will actually cause you to go deeper and deeper into relaxation. Bring your awareness to those sounds now and let them take you deeper. Open to them and let them help you. Well done. The only sound you're paying any real attention to is the sound of my voice.
and the sound of my voice also takes you deeper and deeper. And very soon the sound of my voice will seem like a background sound, something that is calming you, lulling you, but you don't really need to listen to as you release into your own experience, into sleep. As we imagine that warm mist of relaxation now moving down into your chest,
That lovely warm mist softening and expanding your chest cavity. Do you imagine that mist of relaxation surrounding and supporting your heart? Just imagine it surrounding and supporting your heart as any emotional tension that's built up over the day or even the last little while has disappeared. Good.
As the warm mist of relaxation moves down inside of you, deep inside your belly, your pelvis feeling heavy on the bed. As the relaxation moves down your legs now, your legs are feeling nice and heavy, like they're made of marble. As the relaxation moves down into your feet, the soles of your feet feel warm and open. Perhaps they even tingle a little.
As the relaxation moves down into your toes now, every toe feeling full, heavy, and relaxed. Imagine you are walking in the snow under the moonlight. You're wearing a warm coat so you feel cozy. You have a wool hat, a soft scarf, and dry fuzzy boots. Your hands are nestled in warm gloves.
The moonlight is reflecting off of the snow, causing it to sparkle. The air is brisk tonight. You look up and see the stars also sparkling. You take some nice deep breaths of the cool air and your whole body feels expanded and refreshed. And as you exhale, you watch the vapor of your breath issue out
into the night. As you walk, you hear the crunch of the snow beneath your feet and feel your whole body adjusting your weight with every step as you walk on this soft, crunchy, uneven surface. You come to a stop as you realize you're standing on the top of a ridge. Below you is a snowy valley.
with a frozen river snaking along its floor. Across the river, on the other side of the valley, you see a glowing light and you feel pull toward this light. But first you must go down into the valley. So you begin making your way this ridge, your fuzzy boots sinking deep into the snow with every step. And in a moment,
I'm going to count backwards from 10 to 1 and with every number I say you will be taking one big step down into the valley toward the glowing light. 10 9 as you go deeper and deeper into the valley 7 the deeper you're going the more relaxed you're becoming. The deeper you're going the more relaxed
you're becoming six. The moonlight on the snow is so beautiful. Four, three, going deeper and deeper. Three, two, one. You are at the bottom of the valley and you walk through the snow toward the river. You can see a sheet of ice over the top of the river, but as you get closer, you notice the faint
Sound of the water burbling under the ice. Although the surface has transformed into still and frozen ice, there is movement underneath in the depth. You stand on the ice of the river. It is strong and holds you steady while the water runs beneath you, quiet.
You cross to the other side of the river as the glow from the hillside becomes brighter. And as you get closer to it, you see that it is the entrance to a cave with people inside. And the glow is coming from their fire. They are laughing and smiling around the fire, which flickers on the rock walls of the cave.
As you get closer to the entrance of the cave, you are feeling warmer inside. You recognize one of your good friends who calls your name and invites you in. You step into the warm and you feel welcome here. The people around the fire are all individuals in your life with whom you feel safe.
You notice the smoke of the fire is spiraling up through a hole in the rock at the top of the cave. It is cozy here, warm and comfortable. You take off your hat and your scarf and your gloves. You warm your hands by the fire as you relax, going deeper and deeper. This cave feels full of love.
Everyone is smiling, laughing. Some are singing. And as others join in song, someone passes around warm beverages. This is a celebration of the solstice. The light from the fire's flame flickers against the wall, bringing light into the darkness. It feels good to be alive. It feels good.
to connect with other human beings. You smile, feeling your affection for these people and for all the people you've ever loved. It is the same love, a warm energy in your heart, the love you've ever received and all the love that you have given. The flames are dying down now.
and the cave is becoming darker, but it still feels comfortable and cozy. You lean against the wall and close your eyes, relaxing as you go deeper and deeper. And in this darkness, you check in with your body, with your feelings. Now that it's dark, your perceptions are less about seeing, about feeling. From deep inside,
It's comforting to be in this cave. Everything is slowed down. Everything is peaceful. And everyone is waiting. Waiting for the river to thaw. Waiting for the sun to come back. For the water to flow. Everyone in suspended animation. Together. This is winter. The energy has been pulled down.
from your head into your body and you feel the primal human connection, the primal human connection to one another. We survive as a whole. As the fire burns down to its glowing ember and the cave is becoming darker and darker, you're going deeper and deeper, tuning in with your heart, feeling
the deeper feeling of the season, the sweetness and the melancholy that comes at this time. It's safe to connect with your heart. It's safe to feel as you go deeper and even deeper. And in this cave, in this darkness, you sense deep within your belly, your inner knowing, your inner world.
You connect with your inner being. The darkness is helping you to go inside in a way that you don't at other times. Deep, deep inside where you find your inner truth. Are you feeling peaceful, sad, hopeful, expansive? You want more of in your life. Joy, strength, connection. What are you creating?
What is being born in you? What are you creating? How do you want to feel in the next six months? Allow the answer to come. You know what you want deep inside. You know what you're creating. Now the fire has burned out completely. It's dark. All you can see is the moonlight coming in through the hole in the rock.
at the top of the cave. And as you meditate on this moonbeam, you connect with your intention for your next creation, your next chapter. As you feel the feeling you want more of in your life, as you repeat after me, with the power of the solstice propelling, I am creating with the power of the solstice propelling me
I am feeling with the power of the solstice propelling me. I am. Well done. You've set your intentions. And now you relax as your intentions spiral up like smoke. Floating out the hole in the cave where they're released into them. Carried by the forces unleashed tonight. Carried by the power.
You notice a warm sleeping bag and a fluffy pillow lying against the edge of the cave. You crawl inside, feeling warm and relaxed as you go deeper and deeper, as you drift and float and dream.
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