by jam 70 Replies latest jw friends
My list keep getting longer..Indian Larry "music therapy". The best
sleep I had in a long time we were on vacation(6 mo ago) and in our hotel
room on TV the backgroung music for the Casnio golf course.
It was so calming, I slept for 8 hours straight and each night afterward.
No singing just birds and the sound of running streams and a flute..
audiobook in the background,,,
Theta waves on youtbe via headphones in bed... 5 minutes your in a lucid dream
A friend of mines from the south who knows those old down home remedies says warm beer helps, because of the hops in it.
I had some beer and popcorn about an hour ago (not warm) and must say I'm ready to log off and get in bed, but just about every time I feel tired and do get in bed about 80 per cent of the time I seem to wake up and the TV ends of watching me.
Like sop said. Meditation is a shutting down of the mind. Start doing this during the daytime. Your mind will be a lot tamer by evening time.
You don't need to sqwat or hold your thumbs to your fingers to do this. You can do it while sitting on a chair, or even driving. It makes you more aware, so driving isn't a problem.
S
Jam I don't mean to upset you but if talking about this cult is costing you a good night's sleep perhaps you should get off this forum and think about something alse. Sleep is precious, we need REM sleep to help our brains reboot and work properly the next day.
The best sleep I had in a long time we were on vacation(6 mo ago) and in our hotel...
No singing just birds and the sound of running streams and a flute..
The clue is in your words, you need a break. Take care.
If you are the type like me that won’t take any medications unless it’s absolutely essential, and your best intentions to establish a bedtime routine and wind down during the evening without the internet are always thwarted, you might like to try my method of encouraging my mind to go to sleep. It has worked well for me for many years, doesn’t require training and doesn’t cost a penny/cent. All you need is your imagination.
The idea is actually not to try to clear your mind, but to displace negative and worrying thoughts with positive happy ones.
Once in bed, get comfortable and focus on a place where you are at your most serene and happy and where you feel valued, relaxed, secure, safe and free.
You might like to imagine the beach where you played as a child, a cycle route you enjoy, a boat trip you once took, a family holiday or picnic, a walk in a forest or the mountains. Maybe you would prefer to think about cooking a perfect meal for friends, a day in Disney World, or a party.
If you are not fortunate enough to have had happy experiences to draw upon, you will need to create your story with elements of fantasy…. being a rock star or champion athlete, re-designing your house or let lose in a shopping mall with an unlimited budget, driving a racing car, performing on stage, or whatever would make you feel great.
Then invent a narrative based on your happy place, which incorporates all the ingredients you would like to happen in your perfect day.
Being creative is good. If you enjoy language, decide on the exact words you would use if you wrote the story down.
Strictly avoid any negative emotions, contentious issues, work, politics, religion, JW matters, stressful situations, people that upset, anger or annoy you, and steer the story the way you want it to go towards a happy, successful and satisfying ending.
If your young days were carefree and blissful, you can choose to imagine yourself as a child in your narrative, or twist it to imagine being read the story by a parent or grandparent.
The first night you try this, it might keep you awake creating your story, but the next night, tell yourself the same story again, just tweaking a few details to improve it. Continue this for a few days until you know your story very well and don’t need to change it.
The essential trick is that if at any point you find your mind wandering back to everyday worries or problems, just turn over if it helps, and start again at the beginning of your happy story. If you find that your mind wanders at the same point each time, you need to adjust that part of your narrative to something more interesting and engaging.
If it works for you, you should find that you progressively fall asleep a little earlier in the story each night. The more you use it, the more familiar and safe the story becomes, the better it works.
It’s also great for helping settle a fretful child; get him to tell you what he would do if he was able to spend a whole day in a theme park - just himself and a few friends, or how he would spend a day on the beach. I am a Girl Guide leader and have successfully used this trick at summer camp over many years with homesick girls who can’t get to sleep. Never fails.
My own 'story' is based around designing my ideal garden and would probably be boring to many but it works for me. I tell myself how the sun is shining and the birds are singing. I stroll out of my country cottage, accompanied by my faithful old dog, (neither of which I have in real life). I linger for a while on the yorkstone patio where I have tree ferns and chusan palms in big terracotta pots. Leading off the patio, I walk through a pergola covered in purple clematis and fragrant pink roses which I pause to smell. The pergola leads to a pretty winding gravel path flanked by lavender bushes and I pause to look at all my favourite flowers and shrubs growing in weed-free beds. The flowers are covered with butterflies. At the end of the path is a beautiful antique stone urn containing a box ball surrounded by white alyssum. I turn left and stop to watch the goldfish swimming lazily in the pond amongst the water lilies. I enjoy the sound of the fountain splashing into the sunlit water. Then I go through the archway in the hedge to the garden seat where I sit for a while to watch the bees and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..................... I'm asleep.
My 'story' most probably wouldn't work for you, especially if you have been a JW as it might remind you of 'paradise' (I was never a JW). But you are free to do whatever you choose, as long as it doesn’t remind you in any way of your daily life.
I'd be interested to hear if anyone tries this, how it goes for you.....
Whenever I have trouble sleeping, I'll either read or go on the computer for a while. Both help me to fall asleep.
Do not get too warm. I sleep best in a cool or cold room.
What beautiful writing, HB.
