Recuperative Sleep and Bowenwork™   We go to bed with good intentions, having taken the usual precautions against late night eating, watching violent TV, we even worked out so we would be extra tired but alas, we hit the sack and the brain kicks into gear. We start analyzing - The bane of the busy mind – and you can’t analyze yourself out of it either because the thinking process loves a continuous loop to keep itself going. But you can ask yourself “who is doing the thinking”? You may say it is you. But then who asked the question? The answer to that is the real you, the observer that has stepped back to watch the busy mind. Thinking happens like digestion and circulation – it is an element of you but does not need to become your identity anymore than your need to focus on your heartbeat too keep it going. The single most effective way to remove the power from the thinking train is simply to observe it. No judgments, don’t take it personally, don’t let it sneak in the back door with more justifications. Just watch it. Resist the temptation to believe that the next thought will be the really good one. In meditation, when great insights come rolling through it is not wise to stop meditating to put them into action as you may find they are half baked ideas.     Try this to get a better view of the thinking process. Imagine your thoughts are the tips of the iceberg of each situation that wants to be resolved and your busy mind is jumping from tip to tip wanting to dig deep to mine the answers. Just Be the ocean (pretend that it is warm of course) – the source of all the thinking, the greater truth of who you are that lies below the surface supporting the affairs of human life. Digging from the top down may be a daytime affair but if you want to sleep well you must trust that the greater part of any problem is being cradled in that sea of optimism. I say optimism, but I mean Being, Spirit, God.  You may think that to stop thinking (no pun intended) sounds scary but when you think again (as you surely will) the process will be rested and more efficient. You are also learning to be in control of your thinking rather than it being in control of you. This may sound like a form of meditation.  Yes and No. There is a tendency for people trying to meditate to fall asleep. There are two reasons for this that can be used to our advantage when wanting to sleep.  First to meditate one might precede the process with feeling the vibrant power of life as it fills every fiber of your being. Let’s replace this feeling with a short tense/relax period starting in the toes and working to your head to let go of stored energy. Isolate muscles that flex and those that extend but don’t worry if you miss any. You don’t even need to move, just contract the muscle a little for a second then let go. The focus should be on the letting go as each part sinks deeper into the mattress. If desired, a simple affirmation like “Thank you” or “I let go now” may be beneficial. Secondly, meditation that is done without a genuine interest of what can be revealed is more likely to turn to sleep. When I am asked how Bowen works I am drawn to two ways of answering. Either the technical version with about 10 different mechanisms of scientific and ethereal actions or the second version which is, who cares it just does. Repeat after me, who cares it just does. Be the ocean and let the icebergs take care of themselves tonight. You may find that a little internal global warming has taken place and they have gotten smaller in the morning. At the root of Bowenwork™ is the awareness that underlying every human problem there is perfection waiting to be realized. It is a working metaphor for the ocean that is spirit within and all around us. Bowenwork™ is a tool, another signpost to align the human with the being. Yes, it gets fantastic results in resolving pain and promoting sleep but it also touches the soul of who we are when that internal strength and intelligence is put into action.    Return to Articles