5 step sleep guide

You may struggle to get to sleep, or perhaps you wake in the night. Insomnia can cause enormous strain. But, quality sleep is about prioritising. So, begin to prepare yourself for bedtime with my 5 step sleep guide using some hypnotherapy style techniques;

Step 1 - Slow your day down

Try moving more calmly and take deep breaths at intervals throughout the day. Then speak more positively to yourself. Tell yourself that you can, and you will efficiently complete everything.

Step 2 - Take control of your thoughts

Write down on a piece of paper your worries, or list tomorrow's tasks to be completed. By putting your thoughts on a page, you will free you from the clutter in your head, which will prepare your mind for bedtime and the morning ahead.

Step 3 Quiet-time visualisation

Find a quiet place to sit in a relaxed position with your eyes closed. Then visualise yourself walking along a beach, with the waves coming in and out on the shore. Imagine the beach represents your whole life, and each grain of sand symbolises your skills, talents and experiences. Imagine you are holding a handful of sand each grain depicts your stresses. Then see how small the sand grains are in comparison with the vastness of the whole beach. Now allow the grains to slip through your fingers as you imagine letting go of your problems. Visualise the waves washing them away. There will always be things we have to deal with in life. You will often find you have a small pile of sand in your hand. But imagine that you can let it go each day. (try this technique on the train or bus on the way home or after dinner in the evening).

Step 4 - Bedtime

Quietly and calmly enter the bedroom. Once you are in bed, feel the softness and protection of the bedclothes. Be aware of the feeling of being inside your body.

Step 5 - Rapid eye-blinking technique

This hypnotherapy technique relaxes you and tires your eyelids. Lay comfortably in the dark with your eyes open. In your mind begin counting backwards from 300. And, slowly count the numbers, until you feel you can't keep your eyes open any longer. Then blink rapidly, as fast as you can, for 30 seconds. Or until your eyelids begin to feel heavy and sleepy. When you can't blink your eyes anymore, close them, and feel yourself let go. Allow yourself to sink into the bed beneath you and drift off to sleep.

Further sleep solutions

Here is a short film with ideas for a good night's sleep which includes some hypnosis techniques to break insomnia.

Click to read more about my hypnosis Good Night's Sleep hypnosis download - Sleep Awareness Week

You can read more in my book about my hypnotherapy methods for relaxation, sleeping well, releasing anxiety and managing depression. Cut the Crap and Feel Amazing (published by Hay House).

Today I offer one-to-one hypnotherapy phone sessions to help clients sleep well. Because by break old sleeping patterns and restoring new habits, you can get a good night sleep again. When you are frustrated, you may say 'Help I can't sleep'. But over two and four hypnotherapy sessions you can change your feelings towards sleep. During appointments, we work on the factors which could be stopping you getting to sleep or interrupting your sleep. There are many common causes which prevent healthy sleep patterns which include; relationship strain, living with young children, work worries, financial stress and fear of not waking on time. Often excess drinking can disrupt sleep patterns. If people can't sleep, they can reach for an alcoholic drink to help them sleep better. But over time the effects of the alcohol begin to wake them up in the night. Hypnotherapy reprograms the subconscious mind by breaking both the cycle of drinking and not sleeping well.