The Body Needs

I have often heard that someone can not meditate because they can not still the mind or they go to sleep. Often this is because the body has needs that have not been met.
If you have tried all of the suggestions and they don't work, I am guessing that you are under a lot of stress and your body is running on empty. Try at bedtime and see if you get into a really good, refreshing sleep. If so, then use the meditation to obtain that good sleep for a few nights and see if you are better rested and can then stay awake while meditating.

The all over exercise is a good one to try to rejuvenate the body. Lie on your back, feet apart, hands across your abdomen and begin by relaxing, then start, with each indrawn breath, to mentally massage your body, beginning at the feet, one then the other. As you breathe in, bring relaxation and healing energy to that part of the body. As the breath goes out, picture illness or fatigue going out of you with it. As you work up your legs and onto the trunk, repeat the directing of relaxation and energy on the in breath, and expel the fatigue or illness on the out breath.
Don't worry if you go to sleep. The sleep will be a healing one. Just repeat the exercise on retiring each night. When you start mentally massaging problem areas, they may begin to feel warm as you direct the relaxation and healing energy to them. You may also find the body's energy centers responding to the meditation. Again, it is normal and will help you balance your body.

Many years ago, I had back surgery to remove the lowest disk in my spine. After the surgery, the area became unstable and I had to wear a back brace, which I put on before I got out of bed, and could not take off until I was in bed again. Morning and night, I would perform this meditation, spending extra time where the spine was damaged. The area often heated up during the meditation and I frequently went to sleep before reaching the top of my head. But even falling asleep, this particular meditation helped my spine to fuse in the damaged area and I was able to get rid of the brace. I still drag one leg a little when I am over tired, but no other problem with the area. I know it fused, as later x-rays showed it fused and the doctor asked me when I had the operation to fuse it. I had to show him there were no scars on my hip, which is where the bone would have been taken to brace the spine.

It is worth the effort to continue a meditation technique for some time before discarding it and taking up another technique. ☺