Earlier posts in this series covered what the research says about hypnosis for sleep, and how to write a script. This one simply gives you a script: about fifteen minutes long, ready to record and use tonight.
Before you record
- Use your phone’s voice recorder. No special equipment is needed.
- Speak slowly, at about half your normal pace, and a little lower than usual.
- Pause. Where you see three dots, leave three to five seconds. Where you see (pause), leave ten.
- Do not aim for perfection. A stumble or two does not matter.
- Change anything that does not sound like you. Swap the garden for a place you love.
- There is no “wake up” at the end. The script simply fades out.
Read it through once before recording so the rhythm is familiar.
The script
I am lying comfortably in bed… and there is nothing I need to do now… nowhere I need to be… This time is for rest.
I let my eyes close… and I take a slow breath in… and let it go… And another slow breath in… and let it go… With each breath out, I settle a little further into the bed. (pause)
I do not need to try to sleep… Sleep is something that comes by itself… All I do is rest, and listen, and let my body grow comfortable.
I bring my attention to the top of my head… and let the scalp soften… My forehead smooths out… The small muscles round my eyes let go… My cheeks soften… My jaw loosens, and my teeth part a little… My tongue rests easily in my mouth. (pause)
That soft, loose feeling moves down into my neck… and across my shoulders… My shoulders sink into the mattress… The feeling flows down my arms… through my elbows… my wrists… into my hands… all the way to the tips of my fingers… My arms are heavy… and comfortable… and still. (pause)
My chest rises and falls, easily… My breathing finds its own slow rhythm… My stomach softens… My back sinks into the bed, supported all the way along… (pause)
The comfort spreads into my hips… down through my thighs… my knees… my calves… my ankles… into my feet… and to the tips of my toes… My legs are heavy… warm… and at rest. (pause)
My whole body is resting now… heavy… and warm… and comfortable.
If any thoughts come along, that is fine… I do not need to follow them… I can let them drift past, like clouds across an evening sky… and come back to the sound of this voice. (pause)
Now I imagine a path leading down through a quiet garden in the early evening… The air is soft and still… The light is fading to a gentle blue…
There are ten wide, shallow steps leading down… and with each step I take, I drift deeper into comfort… deeper into rest.
Ten… stepping down… Nine… more relaxed… Eight… drifting… Seven… deeper… Six… calm and heavy… Five… halfway down, and so comfortable… Four… letting go… Three… deeper still… Two… nearly there… One… (pause)
At the bottom of the steps there is a place to rest… a seat, or a hammock, or soft grass… I settle into it… It holds me completely.
I notice what I can see here… the last of the light… the shapes of the trees… I notice what I can hear… perhaps leaves moving… perhaps water somewhere… I notice the air on my skin, just the right temperature… (pause)
Here, there is nothing to work out… nothing to plan… Everything that needs doing can wait until tomorrow… Tomorrow I will be rested, and I will deal with it easily. (pause)
My mind grows quieter… and slower… Thoughts become softer… further away…
My body knows how to sleep… It has done it thousands of times… I can trust it to do so again tonight.
Sleep comes easily… and naturally… I sleep deeply and peacefully through the night…
If I stir in the night, I simply notice how comfortable I am… take one slow breath… and drift back down into sleep. (pause)
In the morning I wake feeling rested… and refreshed… and ready for the day.
And now there is nothing more to listen to… I can let this voice fade into the background… drifting… floating… sinking gently down… into deep… comfortable… restful… sleep… (long pause, then stop the recording)
How to use it
- Go to bed at your usual time, when you feel sleepy.
- Start the recording, put the phone face down, and use a sleep timer or leave it to finish.
- Do not try to stay awake to the end. Falling asleep halfway is the aim.
- Use it nightly for two to three weeks before judging it.
- If you wake in the night, you can play it again, or just run through the breathing and the steps in your mind.
Adjust it to suit you
- Prefer “you”? Record it as “You are lying comfortably…” Some people find a second-person voice easier to follow.
- Do not like gardens? Use a beach, a cabin, a boat on calm water, a favourite room.
- Worries at bedtime? Before you start, write tomorrow’s tasks on paper and leave it outside the bedroom.
- Too long? Cut the body section short. Too short? Repeat the garden passage.
- Music? Quiet, slow, wordless sound underneath is fine. Keep it low.
Why it is written this way
- “I do not need to try.” Effort keeps people awake.
- Present tense and positive wording throughout.
- Permission for thoughts to come, so you do not fight them.
- A suggestion for waking in the night, the commonest problem.
- A suggestion for the morning, so you do not feel groggy.
- No instruction to wake.
Give sleep a chance
A script will not overcome poor habits.
- Keep regular sleep and wake times.
- Get daylight in the morning.
- No caffeine after midday.
- Keep the bedroom cool, dark and quiet.
- Leave screens out of bed.
- If you are awake for more than twenty minutes, get up and do something quiet until you feel sleepy.
When to see a doctor
If you have had trouble sleeping at least three nights a week for three months, or you snore heavily, stop breathing in your sleep, or are very sleepy by day, see your doctor. Cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia is the recommended treatment for chronic insomnia.
The bottom line
Record it in your own voice, keep it slow, and let it play. The less you try, the better it works.
Next in the series: Three-Minute Self-Hypnosis: Quick Resets for a Busy Day
This article is for general information and is not medical advice. Never listen to a sleep recording while driving.