If you're lying here tonight with your mind spinning, you're not alone. Maybe your thoughts are jumping from tomorrow's to-do list to that conversation you had today. Maybe you're mentally organizing, planning, trying to get ahead of tomorrow before it even arrives.Our minds think they're being helpful when they do this, like diligent assistants trying to solve everything while we rest. But here's what's really happening. All that mental activity, even when it feels productive, is keeping your nervous system in alert mode when it needs to shift into rest mode.Tonight, I want to show you a gentler way to think about the changes you want to make in your life. It's called setting intentions. And here's the beautiful thing. When you learn to set intentions instead of rigid plans and goals, you not only treat yourself with more kindness, you actually sleep better. Because intentions create peace, where goals create pressure. So what exactly are intentions? And how are they different from goals? A goal might be, I will exercise five times this week, or I will save $500 this month, or I will call my mom every Sunday.These are specific, measurable. All the things we're told goals effective. But notice what happens in your mind when you think about these goals. Is there pressure? What if you only exercise three times? What if an unexpected expense comes up? An intention approaches these same areas differently. I intend to move my body in ways that feel good. Or I intend to be mindful with my money.There's no pass or fail here. If you skip the gym, but you take a walk, you haven't blown your intention. If you spend money on something unexpected, but then pause to consider your next purchase, you're still honoring your intention.Goals often make us feel like failures when life gets messy. Intentions give us a gentle way forward. And here's why this matters for your sleep.When your mind is holding rigid goals, it stays in problem-solving mode. It's calculating how many days you have left to hit your target and replaying where you went wrong today. And that mental activity, it's the enemy of sleep.But when you've set gentle intentions, your mind has permission to rest. Tonight, we're going to do something special. We're going to help you fall asleep naturally and peacefully.And we're going to help you set a gentle intention that can guide you tomorrow and beyond. We'll start with a progressive relaxation technique to help you release physical tension, and then move into deep breathing and finish with a soothing visualization. But first, please make sure you're somewhere safe to fall asleep.This episode contains elements of hypnotherapy and relaxation techniques designed to guide you into deep sleep. So it's important that you're listening from your comfortable bed and not anywhere you need to stay alert. And here's a quick favor to ask. Whatever platform you're listening on, there's usually a place where you can rate this podcast with stars. If these episodes are helping you sleep better, please take a moment to return the favor by rating the show. Now, let's prepare your space and your body for deep relaxation. Take a moment to make yourself completely comfortable. Maybe that means adjusting the temperature in your room or switching off that last light. Perhaps you need to silence your phone or move that pet who's decided your legs are the best place to sleep.Maybe it's simply fluffing up your pillows one more time or pulling your favorite blanket up to just the right spot. Whatever comfort means to you right now, take a moment to create it. This is your time, your space, your journey toward rest.When you're settled, we're going to use a method where you briefly tense different muscle groups before releasing them. So please listen to your body throughout this process. Never tense any area that feels uncomfortable and skip any part that doesn't feel right for you.Let's begin with your breath. Take a slow, deep breath in through your nose, letting your belly rise first and then your chest. And then exhale slowly through your mouth, releasing all that air with a gentle sigh.Notice how that single conscious breath already begins to shift something inside you. Your heart rate starts to slow slightly and your nervous system receives the signal that it's safe to begin relaxing. Let's do that two more times.Breathe in deeply, filling your lungs and exhale slowly, releasing any tension from your day. One more time. A deep breath in and a long, slow exhale.And now let's start with your feet. I want you to point your toes and tense those muscles, the muscles in both feet. Hold for three seconds, two, one, and release.Now your calves. Gently tense those calf muscles. Hold and release.Feel them becoming soft and heavy. Now your hands. Make gentle fists, tensing your hands and fingers.Hold and open them, letting your fingers curl naturally as they relax. Now your upper arms, your biceps. Gently tense those muscles. Hold and then let them go. Feel your arms becoming heavy and comfortable at your sides. Raise your shoulders up towards your ears and sing those hard-working shoulder muscles. Hold and then let them drop. Feel them settling away from your ears, releasing all the weight they've been carrying. Finally, tense the muscles in your face, your forehead, around your eyes, your jaw.Hold and then release everything. Feel your forehead becoming smooth and your eyelids growing heavy, your jaw becoming soft and loose. Take a moment now to notice your entire body.Every muscle group you just relaxed is now heavy, warm, and completely at ease. Your breathing has naturally deepened and slowed. Continue breathing slowly and deeply as you rest.In a moment, I'm going to guide you somewhere using the power of your imagination, and I want the sound of my voice to become like a current you can follow safely into deeper and deeper states of rest. Just let my words wash over you, each sentence drawing you deeper into relaxation, each pause allowing you to sink further into comfort. Follow my voice where it leads, knowing that every word is chosen to help you let go a little more, to relax a little deeper, to move closer to the natural restorative sleep your body craves. Now that your body is deeply relaxed and your mind is quiet, I want you to imagine that your mind is like a city, your own personal city, with different neighborhoods and districts where your thoughts like to gather. Picture yourself walking through this mental landscape. Over there might be a busy work district where thoughts about deadlines and meetings cluster together.Here's the family neighborhood where concerns about loved ones lie, and there's the planning quarter always bustling with to-do lists and schedules. And perhaps tucked away somewhere is the worry district where anxious thoughts sometimes gather. Your mind city is uniquely yours.Some areas are well lit and comfortable, and others might feel a little bit chaotic. All of this is perfectly normal. Every mind has its own geography.As you wander through your mental city, you notice a path leading upward toward a hill that rises above all the neighborhoods below. Follow this path now, feeling your feet on the smooth stone steps as you climb higher and higher. With each step, the busy sounds of your mental districts grow quieter, more distant.At the top of this hill, you find yourself on a beautiful bluff overlooking your entire mind city. From here, you can see all the different areas spread out below you, the lights twinkling in various neighborhoods, the whole beautiful landscape of your thoughts and experiences. But you're not here just to admire the view.You're here to build something important, something that will guide you no matter which neighborhood you find yourself wandering through. Look around this hilltop and you'll notice materials waiting for you, strong wooden posts, beautiful letters in various sizes, tools for building everything you need to create your own intention sign, your personal landmark that will be visible from every corner of your mental city. Think now about the intention you want to set, not a rigid goal with deadlines and measurements, but a gentle direction, a way of being that feels true to you.Maybe it's something like treat myself with kindness or stay curious and open or choose peace over perfection. Take your time. When you find the right words, you'll know they'll resonate in your chest, create a sense of lightness.And when you're ready, start building your sign. Feel the weight of each letter in your hands as you position it carefully. These are not flimsy materials.They're substantial, built to last. Each letter clicks into place with a satisfying sound, creating words that feel solid and permanent. Step back and admire your work.There it is, your intention spelled out clearly in beautiful letters against the sky. These words represent not what you must do, but who you choose to be, not pressure, but guidance. As you're admiring your sign, you notice that dusk is beginning to fall over your mind city.The sky deepens from blue to purple to deep violet. Stars begin to appear and then something magical happens. Your intention sign begins to glow.Warm light emanates from each letter, creating a gentle beacon visible from every neighborhood in your mental city. From this moment forward, no matter where you find yourself, whether you're in the busy work district or wandering through the worry neighborhood, you can always look up and see your intention glowing softly on the hill. It doesn't judge where you are or demand that you be somewhere else.It simply reminds you of your chosen direction. Feel how peaceful this makes you, how reassuring it is to have this constant, loving reminder of your intention. Your nervous system recognizes this safety, this gentle structure, and begins to relax even more deeply. Notice how wonderfully heavy your body has become. Each breath comes easily now, slowly and naturally, with no effort required. Your eyelids have grown so pleasantly heavy. Wanting to stay closed, the mental chatter that brought you here tonight is quieted. Your mind no longer needs to plan or calculate or solve problems. Your intention is set.Your direction is clear. All is well. Your breathing continues to slow.Your heart rate has found its perfect resting rhythm. Every system in your body is downshifting into deep rest mode, knowing that sleep is approaching naturally. Inevitably, you are so beautifully tired now, so wonderfully ready for sleep.Tonight, there is only this, this perfect heaviness, this delicious drowsiness washing over you, this complete and total peace. Sleep comes now, like the gentlest tide carrying you into dreams, where your intention continues to glow softly. Feel yourself drifting now, floating on currents of perfect calm.Your intention is set. Your mind is quiet, and your body is completely at peace.