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Whether you are thinking about being more present in the moment or refill your energy levels, this topic is for you. Non-Sleep Deep Rest and meditation could be seen as two separate topics, but still they are tied together closely.

NSDR Meditation, also known as Non-Sleep Deep Rest Meditation, is a cutting-edge relaxation and meditation technique that is gaining popularity in the world of biohacking and wellness. Developed by Dr. Andrew Huberman, a neuroscientist and professor at Stanford University, NSDR Meditation is a powerful tool that can help increase energy, decrease stress, and improve sleep.

Those benefits sound intriguing, right? Especially in our fast-paced environment we are looking for ways to regain focus, achieve deep relaxation or just improve our sleep quality. Constant information flow makes it hard to calm down for a moment. That is why we want to give you practical and understandable advice how to start on Non-Sleep Deep Rest meditation. Let’s jump right into our NSDR protocol for a balanced mind.

Meditation for Non-Sleep Deep Rest

We don’t want to argue about terminology. What is important is that meditation and Non-Sleep Deep Rest are aiming for the same goal. That is to help you feel more energized, stay present and reduce your stress-intake. Imagine NSDR meditation as some sort of separate room in your head that you can enter whenever you want. You can close the door and leave all the noise and tension outside.

You like that picture in your head right now? Well, good then, because our mission is to transfer that room into a place of peace and harmony for you that is accessible all the time.

You have to see NSDR meditation as the ultimate starting point. Your meditation sessions are going to be little islands of relaxation within your everyday life. The more familiar you get with it, you will sense the impact of meditation as not just ten to fifteen minutes of sitting still, but more and more in every aspect of your life. So here are some practical steps and guidelines to start off with the NSDR meditation.

1. The right duration to begin your NSDR meditation

Deep Relaxation won’t come overnight. Starting with a daily 1-hour meditation sitting won’t do the trick. Clearly, it would be quite an accomplishment to start with a one-hour meditation session per day, but this won’t get you where you want to be. You will almost immediately lose your focus and motivation. Meditation needs practice and consistency. You can increase the duration of your sessions the more you get familiar with your meditation habit.

This is why our first practical tip would be to start small and realistic. Set yourself a daily meditation time goal that could range between 5 and 20 minutes. We would suggest by starting between 5 and 10 minutes and then increase as you get more familiar with the habit of daily meditation.

2. The right environment for meditating

As we want to put ourselves in a deep mental state of relaxation, it is clear that we don’t want to fall asleep. Even if this might happen to you in the beginning, it’s just a signal that you’re on the right track, as your body is anticipating the rest.

But we want to train our focus and overall presence. That is why it is important to find your right meditation spot. Here are some key points to identify the best position for you.

While you don’t want to fall asleep during the meditation, we can promise that a better sleep quality is one of the benefits that you will achieve through continuous meditation.

3. The right meditation

As there are plenty of methods and ways out there to start with meditation, we suggest going with guided meditation. Headspace is offering a wide range of different courses with different focus areas. Here are just some examples on which you can find the right meditation in Headspace.

You could easily add plenty more examples to that list. Headspace also guides you on different breathing techniques. It offers some sort of emergency courses. These are helpful if you experience any kind of extraordinary situation, like stress, anxiety or restlessness.

Headspace has a very simple and beautiful illustrated user experience. Besides different courses, you have the possibility of monthly check-ins to monitor your stress-level. Headspace uses the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) to measure the perception of stress. The PSS is a widely used psychological method.

Try to explore it by yourself. Headspace for students is available with an 85% discount at €8.99 EUR/yr.

4. Incorporate meditation into your daily routine

Continuity is key. Regaining focus and meditating as a habit gets easier over-time. You could compare this to a muscle that you want to stretch because it’s tightened up. A one-time stretch won’t make that muscle flexible or loose. But continuous stretching will improve the ability of the muscle to stay in a flexible state.

With meditation, it’s quite similar, as the brain is our most important muscle. We have to relearn how to be present in the moment. We try to let go of thoughts concerning the past or the future, and therefore creating numerous scenarios in our head that are not real. As you accomplish a daily meditation routine to achieve your ability of staying present in everything that we are doing and not drifting off.

Say this statement out loud:

“I will make time for my meditation. Every day for 15 minutes. I do that for myself.”

We think this statement is especially strong because it puts emphasis on the ease of what we want to do. And this is to dedicate fifteen (or even 10) minutes per day for your meditation. That is not even as long as one episode of the Office.

5. Set your personal intention for your NSDR meditation

Your intention is the reason why you want to put yourself into a non-sleep deep rest meditation. This is very personal and individual. Do you want to be more focused doing your job? Do you want to increase your energy levels? You want to be more in tune with yourself? Or do you just want to be more present in social situations?

Your intention sets the tone for your non-sleep deep rest journey. Be aware of that intention during each and every session. Your intention is your most powerful tool (besides your mind) to stay present and continue. That’s why we recommend thinking about why you are starting this journey. Why do you want to create a habit of daily meditating?

Try to keep your intention in a simple and short statement. This could be something like:

I want to be more focused when I work

This is easy to remember and repeat. By focusing on your intention, you will hold on to your habit more easily and never forget why you started.

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