Falling asleep can be a struggle, especially when you’ve had a long, stressful day at school or work and you have what seems like a million items left on your to-do list. That’s why we created our list of the best podcasts for sleep or relaxing, which has a variety of genres, including old-time detective mysteries, classical music, and meditation, to help you take your mind off all your worries and help you fall into a deep sleep.
Meditation, in particular, is a great tool for rest and relaxation, especially as you get ready to hit the sack. It can help reduce stress, control anxiety, enhance self-awareness, and even help reduce age-related memory loss, just to name a few benefits. You also don’t need any supplies to get started: just your body, your mind﹘and maybe a meditation podcast.
While there are many meditation podcasts available, we’ve narrowed it down to five of our favorites. So whether you want a guided meditation with or without music, short or long, or one perfect for beginners, there’s an option for you.
So get ready to relax, unwind, and find some inner calm before bed. Here’s our list of the best meditation podcasts to help you clear mind and body to fall asleep.
Guided Sleep Meditations
Tracks to Relax creates meditation tracks specifically designed to help listeners fall asleep at bedtime. Every episode of Guided Sleep Meditations features a speaker with a smooth, soothing voice and calming sounds of ocean waves, soft crickets, or space travel, depending on the episode’s theme. These meditations are typically less focused on breathing techniques and more on visualizing positive situations or peaceful settings, making it ideal for people who have trouble slowing down their minds before bed. Each episode varies in length, but most are around a half-hour, enough time to slowly nod off before falling into a deep slumber.
The Meditation Podcast
Founded by husband-and-wife team Jesse and Jeane Stern, The Meditation Podcast has been helping people relax and rejuvenate since 2006. The goal of the podcast is to give people an extraordinary meditation experience in their everyday lives, but we think these episodes are perfect for listening to as you drift off to sleep.
Hay House Meditations
Meditation is a great tool for relaxing and preparing for bed, but those new to the practice may find it too repetitive﹘or worse﹘boring. If you find your mind wandering when meditating, try a guided meditation from Hay House. Every week, the podcast brings a featured author to take you on a journey on a topic that can be anything from health and healing to overcoming fear and gratitude. While these short meditations aren’t specifically designed for sleep, they’re the perfect way to feel a little more accomplished at the end of the day, as you learn more about yourself each episode.
Meditation Station by Stin Hansen
The cleverly named Meditation Station podcast is easy to navigate, as each episode is named for the topic it covers. Rather than listen to the sounds of nature, listeners are lulled to sleep by the soothing sound of the female host as music plays gently in the background. These meditations are a good gateway to the practice, as the host guides you every step of the way so you know exactly what to do.
Meditation Oasis
Listening to music while meditating not your thing? We get it. Meditation Oasis offers over 60 different guided meditations with and without music. This podcast from Richard and Mary Maddux, who have been practicing and teaching meditation for over 40 years, is great for any time of day really, but if you want to fall asleep, these meditations will do the trick.
The next time you’re struggling to sleep and listening to white noise isn’t doing the trick, try one of these guided meditation podcasts and wake up feeling refreshed, renewed, and ready for the day ahead. Sweet dreams!
You can find all of the mentioned podcasts for free on Castbox.fm. And if you like these, be sure to check out some of the other 50+ million plus selections available on the app.
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