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3 free sessions

10 minute meditation

Three free guided sessions, each under ten minutes: one for focus, one for rest, one for bed. Pick the one that fits the moment.

NSDR9 min

Voice: Steve (synthetic)

First time? Pick one, sit back or lie down, and press play. Headphones are optional.

Best for
A full rest when you have ten minutesYou stay awake. If you drift off now and then, that's fine.
When to use it
Lying down or sitting back with your head supported, any time of day you can close your eyes and don't need to be anywhere. It runs just over nine minutes.

What you'll hear

All three are led by a voice and include a body scan. Times are from the recordings and approximate.

Focus Reset9 min

  1. 0:00Arrive: phone face down, sit back or lie down, eyes closed, the work put down for now
  2. 0:43Breath: four deep breaths in through the nose and long, slow breaths out, then the breath on its own
  3. 2:12Body scan: the feet, legs and hips, then the belly and lower back
  4. 3:02Body scan: the chest and shoulders, then down the arms to the hands
  5. 3:50Body scan: the neck and face, the jaw, the eyes and the forehead
  6. 4:38Deep rest: the whole body at once, with longer silences. Thoughts about work can pass by
  7. 6:22Three fuller, quicker breaths
  8. 6:59Return: small movements, sit up tall, open your eyes and look at something far away
  9. 8:12Close: pick the one next task and its first action

NSDR9 min

  1. 0:00Arrive: lie down or sit back with your head supported, then close your eyes
  2. 0:46Breath: four deep breaths in through the nose and long breaths out through the mouth, then the breath on its own
  3. 2:11Body scan: the feet, legs and hips, then the belly and lower back
  4. 3:44Body scan: the chest and shoulders, the arms and hands, then the neck, face and scalp
  5. 5:11Deep rest, with longer silences
  6. 7:24Return: small movements first, then open your eyes when you decide to
  7. 8:33A short close

Wind Down for Bed8 min

  1. 0:00Set the day down: name one thing still on your mind and put it on a shelf by the door
  2. 0:55Three gentle sighs: in through the nose, a small sip on top, then a long breath out
  3. 2:06Quiet breathing through the nose, each breath out a little longer than the breath in
  4. 2:29A slow, warm body scan from the head down to the toes, heavy into the bed
  5. 4:21The whole body held by the bed
  6. 4:58Fewer words: you can let the voice go whenever you like
  7. 6:22About a minute of silence, then a slow fade. Nothing at the end to wake you

How to use these sessions

  1. Pick the one that fits. Focus if you're going back to work afterwards, rest if you just want to stop, bed if you're lying down for the night.
  2. Sit or lie back where your head is supported. A chair with a high back, a sofa, a bed or the floor.
  3. Sort out your phone. Turn on do not disturb, set the volume low and put the screen face down.
  4. Press play and follow the voice. There's nothing to get right. When your mind wanders, come back to whatever the voice is naming.
  5. If you want to fall asleep, pick the bed one. The focus session ends by bringing you back up, so keep it for the daytime.

Is 10 minutes enough?

There is no tested right length for a guided session, and we make no promise about what ten minutes will do for you. Here is what the research says.

In two small trials of healthy, physically active adults, 10 minutes of NSDR lowered self-rated stress more than a control condition (65 people in 2024, 102 in 2026). The effect in the larger trial was small. Neither trial studied people with an anxiety disorder. Sources: Boukhris et al. (2024); Boukhris et al. (2026a)

For focus, the results are mixed. One 10-minute NSDR trial found faster reaction times and better accuracy afterwards, a second found a short-lived gain, and a third found no effect. Sources: Boukhris et al. (2024); Boukhris et al. (2026a); Boukhris et al. (2026b)

For the bed session: For sleep, the evidence is early. Small trials of yoga nidra, the older practice NSDR grew out of, mostly report better sleep measures, but a 2026 meta-analysis rated the certainty of that evidence very low. None of the four NSDR trials tested a bedtime session, and NSDR does not replace sleep. Sources: Dutta et al. (2026), meta-analysis; Singh et al. (2026)

The research is early. Four small trials have tested NSDR itself, with mixed results. A 2026 review of 73 yoga nidra studies found significant benefits for stress and anxiety, but its authors say the low study quality means those effects likely reflect inflated estimates. Source: Ghai et al. (2026), review of 73 yoga nidra studies

None of these trials tested these recordings.

About the rest session

NSDR (non-sleep deep rest) is guided rest. You lie still with your eyes closed, stay awake, and follow a voice that moves your attention through your body and slows your breathing. Most sessions run 10 to 30 minutes.

To play it on its own, see the NSDR session on its own.

For the steps written out, read the NSDR protocol.

Questions

What is a 10-minute guided meditation?

A recording of about ten minutes in which a voice leads you through each step, so there is nothing to keep track of yourself. These three are guided sessions in three shapes: a pause in the working day, a rest, and a wind-down for bed.

Which one should I pick?

Focus Reset if you're going back to work afterwards, NSDR if you just want to rest, and Wind Down for Bed if you're already in bed for the night.

Can I fall asleep during it?

With the NSDR session you may doze now and then, and it ends by bringing you back. The bed session is made for it: it ends in silence. Don't play the focus session in bed, because it ends by bringing you back up.

All sleep sessions

Is it free?

Yes. All three are free to play. Free to use, always a free plan.

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