Greetings, Reader!

I'm one week into my new sleep ritual, and let me tell you, getting more sleep is pretty magical. I'm still figuring out my rhythm, but I've gone to bed between 9 and 11 pm every night this week, and I've gained a lot of insight into my obstacles and how to navigate them.

I’m using a method I learned in an amazing public health course I took many years ago when I was a doctoral student that focused on behavior change. I wrote my undergraduate neuropsychology thesis on self-restraint and motivation, so I was pretty pumped to take this course.

It was taught through project-based learning, and our assignment was to pick one habit we wanted to develop and approach it with scientific zeal. A lot of my classmate rolled their eyes, but I was all in.

I used this opportunity to reboot my meditation practice, which had become less consistent with the stress, pressure, and lack of sleep induced by trying to balance school, work, and tight finances, and it worked like a charm.

First, I wrote down all of the reasons why I wasn't meditating daily. The biggest reason was that I was too tired in the morning to get up early, and I was hitting the snooze button more often than I wanted to admit, trying to catch a few extra zzzz. That led to less time to get ready in the morning, and since I took the bus to campus, I didn't have much wiggle room.

I firmly believe that the system gets the results it is designed to produce. Since I wasn't getting the results I wanted, I had to change the system.

The method we learned in this course was to choose one intervention at a time and to test it like a hypothesis. I collected data, tracking how many mornings I successfully sat on my cushion to meditate, and every time I didn't, I wrote down the reasons why. I was able to analyze those reasons and keep tweaking my system until I was getting the results I wanted and meditating every day.

What I realized is that, in order to meditate, I had to wake up earlier, and in order to wake up earlier, I had to go to bed earlier 🤦. But it wasn't exactly that simple. In order to go to bed earlier, I had to eat dinner earlier, which meant that I had to plan ahead.

Many spreadsheets and statistical analyses later, I finally cracked the code: The secret to my morning meditation success was meal prepping. A few hours every Sunday prepping meals for the week ahead meant that I could eat dinner right when I got home from the gym and have enough time to digest before going to bed by 10.

Wouldn't you know, it worked! And it stuck because I had a system that set me up for success.

I don't need spreadsheets or statistics this time around, but my method to getting back on track with my sleep schedule has been similar. I know I need to wind down earlier, which means I have to train my nervous system to be ready to rest.

Every night at 9 pm, I do my neurosomatic exercises to signal to my nervous system that it is time for bed. The combination that is working best for me right now is this set of vagus nerve practices:

• Drawing five circles in each direction in each ear while humming;
• Massaging the pathway of the vagus nerve behind my ears and down the sides of my neck;
• Turning my eyes and head to look towards my right armpit until I yawn, and repeating the same thing to the left.

Some nights, if I'm having trouble falling asleep, I also guide myself through a body scan, and that has really helped me relax into sleep.

I know that if I keep this up, my nervous system will learn to rest with these cues.

I'm developing a system that will eventually lead to predictable results, but what is just as important, if not more so, is my motivation.

I realized that when I don't sleep, I'm convincing my nervous system that it isn't safe, and that is not how I want to attune my nervous system.

Here is the question I asked myself to catalyze this clarity:

What would I do if my nervous system already felt safe?

My answer was crystal clear: I would feel tired as the sun was setting, and I would go to bed soon after, resting deeply until sunrise when I would awaken naturally and flow right into my contemplative practices to attune my energy and start my day with presence and intention.

From that place of clarity, it feels easier to commit to prioritizing sleep. If I want my nervous system to feel safe, I have to act like it.

Whether sleep is your Achilles' heel, or it is something else, I'm curious: If your nervous system felt safe, how would you act? What can you do every day to make that a reality?

In love and solidarity,

Rachel Doctor of Physical Therapy & Integrative Pain Specialist Build a resilient nervous system to help you flow through the seasons of your life with courage, wisdom, and compassion.

PS: These types of challenges would be great things to discuss in a free Nervous System Attunement Strategy Session. You'll get clear on what your nervous system needs and what is keeping you stuck, and we can develop a customized plan tailored to your unique nervous system to help you feel like yourself again. Book some time on my calendar. I'd love to help you find a path forward.

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