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When I was a little kid, I was told to count sheep in my head if I couldn’t fall asleep…and I have since updated my sheep counting for my adult life with a little visualization routine.

Before bed, I set my mind up to dream and help me find information I am looking for…and I tend to get answers in my dreams, or more clarity.  This little exercise helps me to focus, and it also, often, puts me to sleep before I actually finish it!

My nighttime countdown visualization:  I lay in bed on my back and occasionally hug Bob (my puppy) but often just lay myself and breathe.  I start counting down and breathing from 100 to 0, and .  Sometimes I imagine myself walking down steps that are numbered if I am having a hard time relaxing. Once I am at zero, if I am still awake (!), I play like a film in my head from my left to right, as though reading a book, a film of what I’d like to see happening play out on my head. Its like a mini-movie before bed.  Sometimes its seeing a problem solved.  Sometimes its experiencing a feeling I am missing.  Its a nice imagination workout.  At some point while watching this little movie in my mind, flipping pages and replaying the scenes I love, I’ll fall asleep.

Whether or not its invested with any purpose beyond helping me relax, I love my renovated sheep counting!  Wishing you sweet dreams! And if you’d like to explore more of these imaginative exercises that make my life more colorful, check out Shakti Gawain’s classic book,  Creative Visualization.  xoxo Dana