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Introduction: When the Light Feels Out of Reach
When you’re sleep-deprived, it’s not just your energy that suffers—your emotional world does too. One of the first things that happens after a night of poor or insufficient sleep is that your brain’s emotion center starts to misfire. It becomes more reactive, more sensitive, and far more likely to highlight the negative. Beauty and joy—though still present in your environment—can become harder to see or feel. The emotional palette narrows, and delight can feel out of reach.
This chapter offers a gentle, but powerful, antidote: the practice of taking delight. Even in the fog of insomnia, moments of pleasure and beauty can be intentionally reclaimed. Not only is this possible—it’s profoundly healing. These moments are not just uplifting—they offer a form of refreshment, helping renew your emotional energy and resilience.
The Science Behind the Struggle
When you’re under slept, the brain’s ability to regulate emotion and respond to positive stimuli is diminished. Research shows that the amygdala—the part of the brain responsible for emotional reactions—becomes hyperactive under sleep deprivation. At the same time, the prefrontal cortex, which usually helps manage and balance emotional responses, becomes sluggish. The result? You’re more sensitive to stress, less responsive to positive cues, and more likely to perceive the world through a negative filter.
Unfortunately, this shift makes it harder to access the very things—pleasure, connection, beauty—that help restore balance. But here’s the good news: while your brain may default to the negative, it’s still possible to intentionally redirect your attention to what is nourishing, delightful, and life-affirming.
This is where the practice of taking delight comes in. It offers a steady source of emotional refreshment, helping to refill your inner well.
What Does It Mean to “Take Delight”?
Taking delight means intentionally pausing to notice and savor joy, pleasure, and beauty in everyday life. It’s not about chasing big moments or forcing happiness—it’s about being present to the goodness that already exists around you, even in small doses.
You might take delight in:
- The warmth of the sun on your skin
- Each sip of your favorite tea
- A bird’s song drifting through an open window
- A smile from a stranger
- The comforting texture of your blanket
These small moments, when savored, can offer much needed refreshment. Delight is available in your sensory world, your relationships, your surroundings, and even in your own small acts of kindness and curiosity. But in times of depletion, like insomnia, delight rarely shouts. It whispers. Taking delight is the practice of listening for that whisper—and letting it land.
The Role of the Nervous System: Glimmers and Safety
Earlier in this book, we explored the Polyvagal Theory, which describes how your nervous system shifts between different states—defense and protection versus safety and connection. When you’re caught in survival mode (as often happens with chronic insomnia), your brain is scanning for danger, not beauty.
Glimmers—a term from Polyvagal-informed practice—are tiny cues of safety that help nudge your nervous system back into a calmer, more connected state. Taking delight is essentially a way of noticing and savoring glimmers. Each time you do, you’re telling your nervous system: “It’s okay now. You’re safe.”
This doesn’t mean that delight erases hardship. But it softens the edges. It opens the window for rest, regulation, and refreshment.
How to Practice: Taking Delight in The Moment
You don’t need special tools or a perfect setting to take delight. You just need a clear intention to be on the lookout for delightful experiences and take them in when they arise.
Step-by-Step Guide:
- Pause and Scan
Take a moment to gently scan your environment or your inner experience. What looks, feels, smells, sounds, or tastes…pleasant? - Notice with Curiosity
Let yourself notice without judgment. It might be something small, like the pattern of light through leaves or the softness of your socks. - Savor
Let the moment last a little longer than usual. Breathe it in. Let your body register it. You can even name it silently: “This is delight.” - Record (Optional)
At the end of the day, jot down one or two moments of delight. A “Delight Journal” can help train your brain to seek out and remember these positive cues. - Repeat Daily
This is a practice, not a performance. Even on hard days, there may be one moment worth noticing. Keep returning to it.
How to Practice: Taking Delight Daily Meditation
While taking delight in spontaneous moments is powerful, you may find that a formal meditation practice can deepen this skill and create a more consistent shift in your emotional landscape. A short daily practice—10 to 20 minutes—can help train your brain and body to recognize and respond to delightful experiences with greater ease.
This practice involves gently guiding your attention toward moments of pleasure, gratitude, and delight through reflection and visualization. Over time, it strengthens neural pathways that support a positive emotional tone and helps shift your nervous system toward safety and openness.
Taking Delight Meditation Script
Before you begin, set a timer for 10 or 20 minutes so you don’t have to be watching the clock during the meditation.
Begin by finding a comfortable seated or lying-down position. Close your eyes or lower your gaze. Take a few slow, deep breaths. Inhale… and exhale… letting your body begin to settle.
1. Grounding the Body
Bring awareness to the sensation of your body being supported. Feel your feet on the floor or your back against the surface. With each breath, allow yourself to arrive more fully in this moment.
2. Remembering Delight
Now, gently bring to mind a small moment of joy or beauty from the past day or week. It might be the sound of laughter, the taste of a favorite food, or the way the light looked through your window. Let the memory arise naturally—there’s no need to force it.
3. Savoring the Feeling
Once you’ve found a moment, allow yourself to linger there. What did you see, hear, feel, or smell? Let your body re-experience the warmth or pleasure of that moment. Let the feeling of delight grow and spread throughout your body.
4. Visualizing Delight
Now bring to mind a scene—real or imagined—that brings you a sense of peace and joy. Perhaps it’s walking through a forest, sitting by the ocean, or being with someone you love. Let yourself be fully immersed in this scene. Notice the details. Let your breath be steady and easy as you rest in this visualization.
5. Closing the Practice
When you feel ready, gently bring your awareness back to the present. Feel your body, notice your breath. Offer yourself a moment of gratitude for this time of refreshment. You might choose to silently say, “I welcome delight.”
Open your eyes when you’re ready.
This meditation can be done daily, or as often as you like. Over time, you may find that it becomes easier to notice and savor delight throughout the day—supporting emotional balance and resilience.
Reflection Questions
- When was the last time you felt a moment of delight, however small?
- What are some sensory experiences that you tend to enjoy?
- Who or what in your life regularly brings a sense of joy or lightness?
- What gets in the way of noticing beauty and pleasure during tough times?
- What might shift if you committed to finding one moment of delight each day?
Encouragement and Anticipatory Guidance
This practice isn’t about forcing positivity. It’s about creating small openings—glimmers of joy—that provide some refreshment when things are hard. Especially when you’re navigating chronic insomnia, these moments of delight can feel like oxygen.
You won’t always feel like taking delight. Some days, everything might feel gray. That’s okay. On those days, simply look in the direction of delight, even if you don’t find it. That act alone keeps the door open.
Quick Summary
- Sleep deprivation biases your brain toward negative emotion.
- Taking delight is a gentle practice of noticing and savoring small moments of pleasure or beauty.
- This practice can help regulate your nervous system, boost resilience, and reconnect you to pleasure of life despite insomnia.
- It’s grounded in science (emotion regulation, Polyvagal Theory) but accessible through everyday awareness.
- You can begin today—with a single moment of noticing.
