Sometimes, despite your best efforts and intentions, you find you just can’t stay awake for the duration of your meditation.
Falling asleep during meditation is quite common, especially for beginners. When first practising meditation, while trying to achieve that balance between focussed attention and relaxation, it is easy to drift too far in one direction or the other.
And sometimes you’ll find you try too hard and end up uptight and anxious, perhaps annoyed with yourself that you just can’t ‘get it right’. Forgetting that there is no ‘right’ way to practice meditation. And certainly no ‘right’ outcome or experience.
And at other times, you’ll drift in the direction of sleepiness. Perhaps blaming yourself for not being able to stay awake, for ‘wasting’ the time spent meditating.
Falling asleep during meditation is not a bad thing. In fact, you should give yourself a pat on the back that you managed to relax enough in order to fall asleep. Well done you.
Drowsiness is perfectly normal and happens to the best of us and, while dropping off occasionally is ok, if it’s becoming a regular problem, there could be a number of reasons for this.
Reasons For Dropping Off
Problems in your life making you tired.
Difficulty adopting the skill of relaxation.
Difficulty learning the difference between meditation and sleep.
Perhaps the meditation you are attempting is too long for you at your current skill level. If you’re a beginner, doing a 30-to-40-minute guided meditation might feel like a lifetime.
Perhaps you are not meditating in the right environment. Maybe your room is too warm, or there is not enough airflow. Lying down, especially in bed, sends the message to your brain that it’s ok to go to sleep. Or there might be distractions in your environment causing you to tune out.
It could also be that you are genuinely tired and need to catch up on some sleep. Examine the reasons for this. Have you been running yourself ragged and having some late nights, or do you have some emotional problems weighing you down, causing you to toss and turn at night?
If you are genuinely tired and lacking in sleep, don’t try to force yourself to stay awake. Attend to the reasons you are not getting enough sleep, practising self-care and prioritise getting your sleep back on track so that it no longer interferes with your practice.
If sleepiness becomes a persistent problem, even after you have managed to address the reasons causing your lack of sleep, then keep reading to discover some suggestions below.
Some Suggestions You Could Try Doing Before Your Meditation:
Make sure the room you are in is well-ventilated. Perhaps crack the window to let some fresh air in before you get started.
Try doing some activities that increase blood flow prior to your session, such as singing or dancing to your favourite tune just before doing your meditation.
Try some light stretching before your meditation or do some breathing exercises.
Don’t eat just before meditating, especially a heavy meal or something difficult to digest.
Don’t drink alcohol just before your meditation.
Certain medications or drugs can make you drowsy, perhaps try taking them after your meditation if possible.
Try going for a walk just beforehand.
Take a 10-minute power nap before meditating.
Set an intention before starting your meditation. Having a specific intention helps focus your mind and may help you stay awake.
Examine your expectations before you start. If you believe you are tired and that you are going to fall asleep during your meditation, then believe you me, you will. Your mind is always working to give you what you believe to be true.
Some Ideas For Changes You Could Make To Your Meditation Practice:
If you do your meditation session at night and are regularly falling asleep, perhaps try doing it first thing in the morning instead.
Don’t meditate in the same room that you sleep in. Your brain associates your bed and bedroom as the place you sleep, not the place you stay awake!
Pick a position that is slightly uncomfortable. This way you hopefully won’t be able to relax enough to fall asleep.
Don’t meditate lying down. Try sitting up, or perhaps even do a walking meditation instead.
Try a different meditation technique. Maybe you need to do a moving meditation, mantra or chanting instead. While there certainly are benefits to practising the same technique regularly in order to obtain the full benefits, sometimes you just need that bit of variety.
Or use the same technique but change it in some way. Perhaps making it shorter, including some movement or making it more complex so it becomes more active.
Experiment with keeping your eyes open during your meditation. There is no rule stipulating that you have to close your eyes in order to have a productive meditation session. And try practising with the lights on.
Try shorter meditations and gradually build up to longer ones. You could start with 5-10 minutes a day, and progressively build up over a few weeks or months to longer sessions. Think of meditation as a muscle needing to be exercised. Start off slowly and gently. If you make it too hard or too long, you’re going to think of it as a chore, instead of something to look forward to.
What If This Still Doesn’t Help?
If none of this works, and you continue to fall asleep regularly during your meditation, then perhaps it’s because you are still really very tired and you haven’t been getting enough sleep.
Listen to the needs of your body and respect them. Your body always knows what is best for you.
Sleep is so important and has so many benefits, including helping you ward off colds and flu, and make you feel happier and less anxious.
So perhaps try a nice hot bubble bath, a quick read of a relaxing book in bed, and then an early night. Once you’ve caught up on your sleep, then you can get back to focusing on your meditation practice.
“Sleep is the best meditation”
