Excerpt from Training Series Video "Common Concerns"
Sacred Acoustic recordings are specifically designed to get the listener into a hypnagogic, or hypnopompic, state. These are states that we are all in every single day, at least twice when we are first waking up in the morning and when we are falling asleep at night.
That’s the state between awake and asleep when you are still kind of relaxed but maybe you are remembering some dream fragments or sometimes at night maybe you’re reviewing things that happened during the day. Just kind of that soft mind wandering.
That’s the state we are trying to achieve and so some people will naturally just fall asleep. They won’t be able to maintain that awareness they’ll simply just fall asleep. This can be kind of frustrating for those of you who are trying to generate some kind type of experience to simply fall asleep.
Try a different time of day to listen. If you are listening at a time when you usually fall asleep, say normally a time where you might take a nap in the afternoon or when you are very tired at night before you fall asleep, maybe that’s not the best time to listen.
Try listening first thing in the morning which is good for anyone that falls asleep easily because you’re already well rested, in theory, and it won’t be as easy to fall asleep.
At the start of your listening session, hold your arm up and as you start to fall asleep, your arm will naturally fall. This usually has the effect of jolting the listener back to their awareness so you’ll want to practice and find that balance.
Avoid listening in the place where you normally would go to sleep. Since we recommend lying down, many people choose their bed and for those who can stay awake that’s great. However, if you are falling asleep, try to change your position to maybe a recliner where you are sitting up, maybe lay on the couch where you don’t normally fall asleep or even the guest bed. Try different positions so that you can stay relaxed but not fall asleep.
Repeat listening is also another way to combat this. Over time your body learns to allow the physical part to fall asleep while your awareness can still stay alert. Don’t give up, there are many things to try if you’re simply falling asleep. Try it all to see what works best for you.
Thanks for the suggestions. I have been falling asleep, even in the morning, but my sleep pattern has changed, for a number of different reasons. I have been using the ‘wake-up’ 10 minute session if this happens. I also tried the siesta session instead of a deeper one. That has worked but I have only short data to stand behind that. I will continue to use, experiment, and learn. It’s been a great way to start a solid habit of meditation. My health issue is helped by this practice.
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Knowing how to maintain a core sense of presence and balance creates a foundation of strength to move from empathy to compassion, and at your finest, altruism, when you take action to help another without concern for yourself.
Karen Newell
Author
co-founder of Sacred Acoustics and co-author of Living in a Mindful Universe