In a previous post, I explained how to manage your sleep. The seventh step I discussed was hypnotizing yourself into a deep relaxed state to be able to enjoy your sleep, and in this post I will discuss the method for doing so.

Once you get the steps memorized, you can do this nightly, weekly, or just when you are feeling particularly stressed.

Steps:

1) Lie down on your back in a dark room.

2) Close your eyes and try to focus on the shapes of light that you will “see” when your eyes are closed.

3) After a minute of focusing on those shapes, you should feel tranquil. At this point, raise your left arm at 45 degrees and hold it for a count of five. At the end of the count, forget that your arm is connected to your torso and just let gravity take control - your arm will drop to the mattress.

4) Next, raise your right arm, holding for a count of five and then releasing. Move on to your left leg, raising it 45 degrees in the air for a count of five, then release. Repeat for right leg.

5) The last step of relaxation is to remove all stress from your neck, which is a common part of your body that “bears the brunt” of your difficult day. Slowly raise your neck slightly off the mattress for a count of five, and then release and let gravity take hold.

6) Lying there, with your eyes closed, your entire body should feel completely at ease - almost weightless.

This is a different level of hypnosis than what we often see on TV or at live shows. Those hypnotists are getting you into a deeper hypnosis of your mind and body, while here we are only calming your body (your mind is taken care of by the earlier steps of the “Manage Your Sleep” post).

Hopefully this will serve you well - it has truly helped me.