The finest guided sleep meditation audio can help you relax your mind and body, allowing you to fall asleep sooner and for longer. Isn’t that appealing? Worries and worries appear to infiltrate our brains in a big manner immediately before we go to bed. There is, however, something you can do if you’re weary of waking up with worry. According to Panday Adikar, medical director of the Indiana Sleep Center, “any meditation that is focused on sleep will typically be effective.” The doctor does caution, though, that “not striving too hard is the key.” Simply said, it’s a case of cause and effect. Most guided sleep meditation, according to Dr. Singh, encourages relaxation, which helps anchor a racing mind: “Anytime you can do this, you will be in a better position to enable sleep to come to you.” There are several sleep applications available, but guided meditation for anxiety is a unique—and extremely low-lift—method of attempting to obtain a better night’s sleep. So, how can you choose the perfect guided sleep meditation for you without trying too hard, as Singh suggests? Here are the ones that are the most highly recommended, highly rated, and easily accessible. Apps for relaxation and meditation may be beneficial for a number of reasons, but the ones listed below will be particularly good before night. Dreams of sweet dreams.

Mindful

Tamara Teragawa, a qualified yoga instructor and the head yoga teacher for Xponential+, recommends mindful.org. She enjoys self-guided mindfulness meditation and brief body-scan meditation before bed.

She can find both on the website, but here’s a free sample of a night meditation designed just for sleep.

“To attain optimum health, good sleep is equally as vital as eating well and exercising frequently,” Teragawa says. “Slow down and make a regular sleep pattern a priority when your body tells you it needs rest, and notice how much better you feel and perform in other aspects of your life.” She suggests exercising, developing a night routine, and avoiding your phone and television before going to bed, in addition to evening meditation.

Headspace

Teragawa also advises Headspace for guided meditation in a deep sleep. You may listen to a 12-minute version here. “Depending on what you’re searching for, these sorts of meditations may be as brief as three to five minutes or as long as 45 minutes or more,” she explains. “They assist you to relax by allowing you to slow down, connect with your breath and body, and understand what you need.” If you choose the yearly subscription for $69.99, you get a two-week free trial of Headspace. A monthly subscription is $14.99 per month and includes a seven-day trial.

Calm is a free-to-download software with a seven-day trial subscription that costs $69.99 per year or $14.99 per month after that. (For a one-time charge of $399.99, lifelong memberships are also available.) The app has been downloaded over 100 million times and has received over 1.5 million five-star ratings. It includes a range of meditations, some of which are specifically oriented at improving sleep—through any kind of meditation may be useful for general calm. Dr. Guy Meadows, the cofounder of Sleep School and its related app, which employs acceptance and commitment therapy to help people sleep, says, “Focusing your attention on anything in the present [may be useful].” “Aim to pay attention to the rise and fall of each breath on a moment-by-moment basis. When your mind wanders to anxiety, gently restore your attention to the breath and the present moment. Remember that the goal is to improve your abilities at identifying and letting go of challenging ideas, not to have an empty mind. According to scientific evidence, everyday practice of 10 minutes each day for eight weeks helps calm the mind.”

The Straight Shooters

On YouTube, you may find a variety of free guided sleep meditations. Though utilizing a video platform for your nighttime ritual goes against Teragawa’s no-screens recommendations, there are certain advantages to adopting free choices, particularly for novices. The Honest Guys’ guided sleep meditations include calming stills that cycle on a regular basis, as well as live streams. While paying the price might help you stay on track (after all, why pay for something you don’t use? ), the key to sticking to a free meditation program is to build a pattern. In fact, many experts advocate this strategy for improved sleep in general, whether or not guided meditation is used. Dr. Creanor recommends “consistency in terms of when you go to bed and when you get up.” “It helps assist your mind in understanding when it’s time to wind down.” Consistency in terms of limiting caffeine use to the morning hours and obtaining adequate exercise. The brain craves regularity; it needs to fall into a rhythm, and when the mind and body are in a predictable pattern, sleeping is much simpler.”

Aura is wellness, sleep, and life app that promises to “change your well-being, sleep, and life.” Breathwork, psychology, poetry, gratitude journaling, life counseling, tales, music, and, of course, meditation are all part of the plan.

Jason Stephenson is a writer and a musician

Jason Stephenson, who also provides healing music and audio affirmations, is another famous creator of guided sleep meditations on Spotify. The South Australian artist has over 90,000 monthly listeners and has produced a large body of material over the years. His work may also be seen on YouTube.

Bernstein, Gabby

Gabby Bernstein’s meditations are shorter and more joyful than others. You can obtain free ones if you join up for her email list, but her full-length albums cost roughly $10. For example, Meditations to Calm an Anxious Mind costs $13.11. Because her meditations are so peppy, they’re also perfect for working out. Regular exercise, according to Teragawa and Creanor, might help you sleep better. “It assists with our deep sleep,” Creanor explains, “which is vital for learning and mending the body.” Why not meditate while working out to get the most out of your workout?

Are you feeling sleepy?

Get Sleepy is a podcast available on Spotify and iTunes that delivers guided not only sleep meditation but also tales. The episodes are released on a regular basis, only a few days apart, and the Slumber Studios production also produces additional episodes for important occasions, such as the new year.