[Fnoord]

> Isn't this a form of meditation?

Yes, it is a form of mindfulness.

> Stay still and focus your mind on nothingness

"Nothingness" is the most difficult way to meditate. Its often seen as the way one meditates by people who are ignorant about meditation and mindfulness.

Generally, there is one focus point. This could be sounds, it could be breathing, it could be visualisations, it could be focusing on walking. It could even be multiple focus points in one session (shifting the focus point throughout the session). Which is pretty much what a body scan does; it focusses on different body parts throughout the session.

Also, it is far easier to do guided meditation, and the goal of meditation is to relax and become focussed; not necessarily to fall asleep. Though, if you are tired, that might very well be a byproduct.

If you start with meditation, it is normal that you're not very good at it. It takes time, practice, and effort. In that sense it is actually hard work; not 'relaxing'.

> Relax all my facial muscles

Normal procedure to relax your muscles at the start and during meditation (if you have to reset).

> and imagine an empty, black (literally #000) void in my mind's eye.

This is one of the many visualisation techniques. Other examples are included in the article's URL.

[rukuu001]

> It takes time, practice, and effort. In that sense it is actually hard work; not 'relaxing'.

I like this :) I think of it as furious concentration on stillness.

Beginner meditators often think they're not cut out for meditation because their minds are full of noise during meditation. This is normal.

The usual progression is: observing thoughts to gain insight ("hey, I'm thinking lots of angry thoughts", "why do I keep thinking about my boss?"); then focusing on one thing only, an anchor, like breathing; finally, focusing on nothing.

For me, successfully focusing on nothing happens occasionally, and only a moment at a time.

I love the feeling though - it feels like the top of my head has come off and my brain's turned into hamburger meat.

I know this might not sound desirable :) But for me it felt like my mind was a clenched fist that finally relaxed.

[lloeki]

I practiced mindful meditation to overcome sleeping issues. The technique was as follows:

- Lie down on the back, in a way that feels like you can release body tension in limbs, neck, and back.

- Take a couple deep breaths, inhaling and exhaling fully. Then, focus on your natural breath: breathe normally for about a minute; don't try to control its rhythm, rather observe it (is it slow? fast? deep? shallow?) and acknowledge it without judgement, focusing on the flow of air in your lungs or throat, or the area in your chest that goes up and down with each breath (whichever is easier for you).

- Focus on body contact with the bed. Feel the weight of the different parts of your body pushing down against the mattress.

- Focus on your feet, and relax just this part by consciously observing how it feels (is it tense? at ease? hot? cold? restless? it doesn't matter, just notice it) and acknowledging it, not combating it. Then consciously think "ok, I'm turning that part off".

- Move gradually upper (lower legs, thigh, and so on), repeating the "observe, acknowledge, turn it off" process, until you reach your head.

- If you're not asleep at that point, focus on the breath again and take note and acknowledge the difference from when you started. Then proceed with the body again.

- if you mind wanders off at any point from your body, observe and acknowledge the thought you just had, then focus on a couple breaths again as previously described, and simply resume where you left off.

The key is being observing, not judgemental about your state (whatever it currently is), realising that thinking "I shall sleep" or "I shall relax" only makes you more aware of you not sleeping, and more tense, thus isn't going to go anywhere.

[bambataa]

After meditating for a few months this I have started to notice that the increased mental awareness can make it harder to sleep. I’m more aware of myself gradually falling asleep and sometimes that sudden awareness of ‘oh, I’m falling asleep’ is enough to wake me up a bit.