PowerPoint for a peaceful sleep
Be kinder to yourself. And then, let your kindness flood the world. ―Pema Chödrön
👥 Serves: 1 person
🎚 Difficulty: Easy
⏳ Total time: 30 minutes, repeated nightly
🥣 Ingredients: An open mind, solitude and quietness
💪 Nutritional values: Relaxation, Peace, Gratitude, Calmness, Improved sleep
PowerPoint for a peaceful sleep
📝 Description
PowerPoint-style gratitude reflection for improved sleep.
PowerPoint presentations are universal in the world of work for many reasons: they are concise, creative, effective, and useful for learning and teaching. Have you ever considered how you may use PowerPoint in your personal life for your self-care routine? What about improved sleep?
This recipe has been inspired by the work of mindfulness teacher, community organisation, author, and self-care activist Shelly Tygielski, and adapted by our wellbeing content writer collaborator Marissa Del Mistro.
👣 Steps
Step 1 – Preparing for rest (5’)
When it’s time to sleep, go to bed earlier than you normally do. Get into your bed and lay still in the darkness. Allow your body to recognise the space with your senses, which will likely be heightened by your closed eyes.
Notice the smells of your space, feel the soothing comfort of your mattress and bedding, and appreciate the sound of silence or perhaps the soft lull of the outside world.
Spend 5 minutes slowing down and centring into the moment, signalling to your brain, it is time to rest.
Step 2 – Downloading your day (10’)
Here comes the PowerPoint – remixed!
With your eyes closed, download your day right to your mind. Press play, with your presentation starting from the moment you woke up, and replay your day, including all of the details.
Think and reflect on aspects such as: What socks did I wear? What was the number of the bus I took to work? How did my coffee/tea taste? What happened during my day? What did I do after work? Did I send/receive any funny text messages? How did I move my body? Did I write anything down?
Consider the little moments that you may have overlooked at the moment. The more details of your day you gather, the better.
Step 3 – Practicing gratitude (10’)
Noticing the little details, shift the focus to gratefulness for the moments in your day you may have overlooked in the moment. These could be moments such as a smile from a stranger, a hug from a friend, delicious food, a compliment at work, a joke that made you laugh, or having a warm shower.
Once you recognise these as truly special moments, repeat to yourself in your mind 2–5 things you are grateful for by thinking statements like:
- “I am grateful for ____.”
- “I am lucky to have ____.”
- “I deserve ____.”
- “The little moments like _____ are what make my life magical.”
Step 4 – Sleeping soundly (hopefully the entire night!)
Relaxation and practising gratitude will help your mind slow down and your body relax, inviting you into a deep, restful, and restorative sleep. According to research done by the Journal of Psychosomatic Research, the feeling of gratefulness can help people sleep longer and deeper. This is down to harnessing positive thoughts before sleep, which can actually relax and calm the nervous system.
It is recommended to do this practice every single night, for at least a week, to properly reap the benefits of improved rest. In addition to improved sleep, you will likely notice more magic throughout your days, with increased mindfulness and gratitude in your day to day.