Awareness Behind the Wheel

Awake Space · Drive Awake Lab

Take a moment.

You can ask, share or simply listen.

Awake Space is the experimental space of the Drive Awake Lab for welcome, listening and exchange. Here we explore sleep, staying alert and safer roads, through research and everyday experience. Come as you are: no expertise is needed, and there is no obligation to speak.

Awake Space is part of the Drive Awake Lab →

Go straight to the conversation ↓

Your path, if you like

Every step is optional. Take them in any order, or go straight to the conversation.

  1. Listen to the welcome · about 20 seconds
  2. A pause · 30 seconds
  3. A minute of sky · about 60 seconds
  4. Listen longer · 15 or 30 minutes
  5. The conversation · on Telegram, in English

Listen to the welcome

Kundalino's synthetic voice, in English, about 20 seconds. It plays only if you start it.

Transcript

Hi, I'm Kundalino. Welcome to the Space.

You can read, listen, or share something of your own - there's no right way to be here. Take your time; I'm around if you'd like a hand finding your way.

A pause, if you like

Thirty seconds, nothing to learn. Breathe naturally, at your own pace, and rest your eyes on the circle or away from the screen. You can stop at any time, or go straight to the conversation.

A minute of sky

An optional guided minute, about 60 seconds, from night to daylight, with Kundalino, the guide of this space. It starts only if you choose, and it ends with your eyes open.

A word: ākāśa, Sanskrit for open space or sky. In Indian philosophy it is the element that carries sound. Here it is simply an image: space to listen.

A minute of sky: from night to daylight, at your own pace.

Join the conversation on Telegram →

Not while driving. You can pause or stop at any time.

Listen longer

Optional audio sessions with Kundalino: a synthetic voice, light ambience, pauses and silence. Not while driving. You can listen, pause or leave at any time; sharing is always a choice.

Fifteen minutes

The base session: arrival, natural breath, space and sound, one simple question, time to listen, and thanks.

Transcript

Welcome to Drive Awake Space. I'm Kundalino, the guide of this space. You are hearing a synthetic voice, reading words written for Drive Awake.

Please don't listen while driving. You can pause, stop or leave at any time. There is nothing to achieve here, and nothing you need to share.

Drive Awake also means finding our way with awareness. For the next fifteen minutes we will move slowly from rest to alertness, from night towards daylight.

Let yourself arrive where you are. Sitting, standing or lying down, whatever is comfortable and safe.

Notice your breath, just as it is. You don't need to change it. If attention to the breath is not comfortable, rest your attention on the sounds instead.

There is a Sanskrit word, ākāśa: open space, sky. In Indian philosophy it is the element that carries sound. Here it is simply an image. Notice the space around you, and the sounds in it, near and far.

Feel where your body meets the chair, the floor, the bed. Notice weight, warmth, contact.

Daylight is one of the signals our inner clock uses to tell day from night. If there is light around you, notice it: where it comes from, how it falls.

If you notice that you are sleepy right now, that is useful information. It may be a sign that you need rest. Never drive with it.

Here is a simple question, only if you like: what helps you find time to rest? And what gets in the way?

In Drive Awake Space, others bring their own questions. You can read them, reply, or simply listen. Every voice is welcome, and no one has to tell their story.

From time to time, the themes that come up return to the site, with their sources. Before quoting anyone by name, we ask first.

Now, slowly, let your eyes open, if they were closed. Look around. Name three things you can see. Three things you can hear.

Move your fingers, your shoulders. Stretch, if you like.

Notice how you feel right now, just as it is. Calmer, more awake, or simply the same: all of it is fine.

If you would like, tell us what brought you here and one question you would like to explore. You can also simply read and listen.

Thank you for listening. And thank you to everyone who reads, listens and shares in this space. I'm Kundalino. Until next time.

Thirty minutes

The same path with longer silences and a second question. Optional.

Transcript

Welcome to Drive Awake Space. I'm Kundalino, the guide of this space. You are hearing a synthetic voice, reading words written for Drive Awake.

Please don't listen while driving. You can pause, stop or leave at any time. There is nothing to achieve here, and nothing you need to share.

Drive Awake also means finding our way with awareness. For the next thirty minutes we will move slowly from rest to alertness, from night towards daylight.

Let yourself arrive where you are. Sitting, standing or lying down, whatever is comfortable and safe.

Notice your breath, just as it is. You don't need to change it. If attention to the breath is not comfortable, rest your attention on the sounds instead.

There is a Sanskrit word, ākāśa: open space, sky. In Indian philosophy it is the element that carries sound. Here it is simply an image. Notice the space around you, and the sounds in it, near and far.

Let the sounds come and go. You don't need to name them.

Feel where your body meets the chair, the floor, the bed. Notice weight, warmth, contact.

Daylight is one of the signals our inner clock uses to tell day from night. If there is light around you, notice it: where it comes from, how it falls.

Here is a simple question, only if you like: what helps you find time to rest? And what gets in the way?

A second question, only if you like: when do you notice that you are getting sleepy? What tells you?

From the Drive Awake page "Tired or sleepy?". We say we are tired when we are sleepy, and also when we are worn out. One word for two things. Being worn out is the weight left after effort: you want to stop, to sit down. Being sleepy is sleep on its way: heavy eyes, a nodding head, moments that slip. In a driving simulator at Loughborough, drivers who had slept little drove for two hours on a monotonous road. None of them fell asleep without first going through a long stretch of rising sleepiness. And those who fell asleep had felt it coming. That study is Reyner and Horne, 1998. Before you drive, there is one question: am I sleepy? If the answer is yes, believe it.

If you notice that you are sleepy right now, that is useful information. It may be a sign that you need rest. Never drive with it.

For the next few minutes, nothing to do. Just listen.

In Drive Awake Space, others bring their own questions. You can read them, reply, or simply listen. Every voice is welcome, and no one has to tell their story.

From time to time, the themes that come up return to the site, with their sources. Before quoting anyone by name, we ask first.

Now, slowly, let your eyes open, if they were closed. Look around. Name three things you can see. Three things you can hear.

Move your fingers, your shoulders. Stretch, if you like.

Notice how you feel right now, just as it is. Calmer, more awake, or simply the same: all of it is fine.

If you would like, tell us what brought you here and one question you would like to explore. You can also simply read and listen.

Thank you for listening. And thank you to everyone who reads, listens and shares in this space. I'm Kundalino. Until next time.

Why we are here

Drive Awake looks at sleep, alertness and safer roads through research and everyday life. The channel Drive Awake Awareness shares selected content from the campaign and the platform. Here, in Awake Space, we talk about it together: questions and experiences help us understand more clearly and improve what we offer.

Awake Space is open to anyone curious about sleep and alertness: people who drive, people with a question, people from research or practice. As a pilot of the Drive Awake Lab, its form is being tested and may change as we learn.

To begin

If you would like, tell us what brought you here and one question you would like to explore.

You can also simply read and listen. Introducing yourself and talking about personal matters are always optional.

Or start from the question in the welcome post: “What helps, or gets in the way of, finding time for rest?”

Open the welcome on Telegram

Under the post, tap Comments: you enter Awake Space, the discussion group of the channel.

You can read the welcome without an account; to write a comment you need a Telegram account.

Follow the channel Drive Awake Awareness →

Conversations on Telegram take place in English: one international channel for every language of the site.

How it works

  1. 01WelcomeEveryone arrives as a guest. Introduce yourself, or don't: reading along is already a way of taking part.
  2. 02Listen and clarifyWhen a facilitator is present, they acknowledge contributions, check they have been understood, may suggest a related question, and leave room for others. Awake Space is an experimental pilot: replies are not guaranteed and may take time. Sources are attributed when useful.
  3. 03DiscussPeople reply to each other and can disagree kindly. Researchers, professionals and the public speak in their own words, and every contribution stays attributed to its author.
  4. 04Give backRecurring themes, questions and doubts help us improve the resources and the platform. From time to time they come back here on driveawake.ch, with sources. Before quoting anyone by name, we ask first.

Who is there

Kundalino is the guide of this space. Drive Awake also means finding our way with awareness: Kundalino welcomes you, helps you find your bearings and leaves you free to listen or speak. On this page, Kundalino is a synthetic voice reading words written for Drive Awake, not a person listening live.

Research on sleep, attention and road safety comes with its sources, and every voice, from research, practice or the public, is attributed.

What is on this page, what is on Telegram

  • On this page (driveawake.ch): the welcome voice, the pause, A minute of sky and the longer listening sessions, with transcripts. Audio plays only if you start it.
  • On Telegram: the channel Drive Awake Awareness shares selected content; the conversation takes place in Awake Space, the discussion group linked to the channel. Telegram is a separate service with its own terms.
  • Awake Space is not a health or support service.

Simple rules

  • Be kind and respect different experiences.
  • Share only what you are comfortable making public: conversations are public.
  • Drive Awake does not give personal medical advice: for health concerns, talk to a doctor.

To read before or after

Back to Drive Awake →