Nothing much happens: bedtime stories to help you sleep
Can’t sleep? You’re not alone—and there’s help. Nothing Much Happens is a bedtime story podcast beloved by millions. Yoga and meditation teacher Kathryn Nicolai tells soothing, cozy stories where—just as the title says—nothing much happens. That’s the magic. Instead of spiraling thoughts or anxious scrolling, you’ll be gently guided to a calm, comfortable place. Each episode is read twice, with a slower second telling to ease you into rest. Trusted by listeners for over seven years and streamed more than 180 million times, it’s a ritual of safety, comfort, and sleep. Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙 Find our bestselling book Nothing Much Happens in over 20 languages worldwide.
Episodes
July 31, 2025 • 30 mins
Originally presented as Episode 8 of Season 10, July 25, 2022
Our story tonight is called Beach Walk, and it’s a story about meeting the morning light where the water meets the land. It’s also about the first step into the cool water, a dog chasing a stick into the waves, and a beach towel laid out neatly in the sand.
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Mark as Played
July 28, 2025 • 32 mins
Our story tonight is called Sidewalk Chalk, and it’s a story about a journey through the park on a bright day. It’s also about a cold drink from the coffee shop, a frog blinking from a pond, Alice and the Caterpillar, birch trees and drawings on the sidewalk, and paying more attention when small happy moments wash over you.
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We give to a different charity each we...
Mark as Played
July 24, 2025 • 22 mins
Originally Aired: July 14th, 2019 (Season 3 Episode 13)
Our story tonight is called At the Summer Fair, and it’s a story about a yearly tradition, and how it changes in the different summers of your life. It’s also about plums taken from the icebox, a handmade cup wrapped in paper, and strolling along the river as the streetlights blink on above you.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
NM...
Mark as Played
July 21, 2025 • 32 mins
Our story tonight is called Rainy Day Rituals, and it’s a story about small tasks attended to as a storm blows through. It’s also about a fuzzy radio playing in the background, terrycloth and tidily-folded towels. Thunder and lightning, flickering lights and candle flames, and allowing yourself to do less and enjoy more.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
We give to a different charity each week, an...
Mark as Played
July 17, 2025 • 41 mins
Originally presented as Episode 1 of Season 8
Our story tonight is called Back to the Bakery, and it’s a story about the early morning preparations made in the kitchen before the Village of Nothing Much wakes. It’s also about a kitty with a crooked tail, hot donuts set out on a tray, and a summer pick-me-up made with love.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
BIOptimizers’ Probiotic Breakthrough: ...
Mark as Played
July 14, 2025 • 37 mins
Our story tonight is called Street Sweepers, and it’s a story about an early morning tending of the village lanes. It’s also about hoppers and windrows, zinnia heads and locust pods, clearing small floods near blocked up drains, and a simple but important way to care for a place you love.
Subscribe to our Premium Channel. The first month is on us. 💙
AquaTru water purifier: Click here and get 20% OFF with code NOTHINGMUCH.
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Mark as Played
July 10, 2025 • 36 mins
Originally presented as Episode 11 of Season 14
Our story tonight is called When the Streetlights Come On, and it’s a story about a trip to the mailbox through the last lit moments of the day. It’s also about bikes being wheeled into the garage for the night, things learned from the farmer’s almanac, layers of paint peeling away under your hand, and a tender way to shepherded home and sent to dreamland.
BIOptimizers’ Probioti...
Mark as Played
July 7, 2025 • 32 mins
Our story tonight is called The Evening of the 4th, and it’s a story about a day-long event that ends with a picnic and a concert on the grass. It’s also about hand pies and potato salad, a busy kitchen full of aproned volunteers, and the sound of the instruments tuning up on the patio. Thyme and lemon zest, and the satisfaction of sharing good times with your neighbors.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us...
Mark as Played
July 3, 2025 • 32 mins
Originally presented as Episode 6 of Season 12.
Our story tonight is called Heirloom, and it’s a story about a garden in the middle of summer. It’s also about things handed down through generations, making and keeping friends of all ages, and a stack of farmer’s almanacs in the quiet corner of a shed.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
BIOptimizers’ Probiotic Breakthrough: Click here and us...
Mark as Played
June 30, 2025 • 32 mins
Our story tonight is called The Last Train Home, and it's a story about a few moments at the end of a long day. It's also about dogwood flowers and sodium lights, a seat on a bench, the long summer twilight, a yawn that resets your system, and some soft, quiet time settled in with your fellow passengers.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
We give to a different charity each week, and this week we a...
Mark as Played
June 26, 2025 • 30 mins
Originally presented as Episode 3 of Season 12
Our story tonight is called Magic Words, and it’s a story about a trip into town on a summer morning. It’s also about the scent of fresh-cut lumber, a dog biscuit buried in the flower beds, how a moment at the start of the day can alter your path, and something in a shop window that catches your eye.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
NMH merch, a...
Mark as Played
June 22, 2025 • 32 mins
Our story tonight is called The Cabin in Summer, and it’s a story about days spent in the sunny garden and the shaded forest. It’s also about lemon balm and raspberries, the cool water of the creek running over your ankles, mushroom hunting and threshold sweeping, and the wisdom of wild places handed down from one generation to the next.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
We give to a different cha...
Mark as Played
June 19, 2025 • 35 mins
Originally presented as Episode 13 of Season 7
Our story tonight is called From the Hammock, and it’s a story about naps, and where and when, and under what circumstances we take them. It’s also about a slow walk through the garden, jars of pickles put up in the cellar, and knowing that what you seek is seeking you.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
NMH merch, autographed books and more!
Pay it ...
Mark as Played
June 16, 2025 • 35 mins
Our story tonight is called W-A-L-K, and it’s a story about a little brown dog and his favorite outdoor activity. It’s also about the smell of watered lawns in the evening, a frisbee and friends from down the block, porch lights and watermelon, and the moment when you close the door on the day.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
We give to a different charity each week and this week we are giving...
Mark as Played
June 12, 2025 • 38 mins
Originally presented as Episode 12 of Season 7, June 14, 2021
Our story tonight is called The Lake at the Inn, and it’s a story about a misty summer morning on the water. It’s also about a mug of coffee poured by a friend, the sounds you hear when you truly stop to listen and a row boat just waiting to be pushed out away from shore.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
BIOptimizers’ Probiotic Breakt...
Mark as Played
June 9, 2025 • 35 mins
Our story tonight is called Cloud Club, and it’s a story about an afternoon stretched out under the open sky. It’s also about the friends you’ve known since you were young, a polka-dotted blanket, memories of games played, strawberries and wax paper, mint and quiet times, in the soft summer air.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
Jaspr Air Scrubber: Learn more at jaspr.co, and use the code SLEEP to...
Mark as Played
June 5, 2025 • 28 mins
Originally aired June 26, 2023, Season 12, Episode 4
Our story tonight is called Joyride, and it’s a story about a spontaneous trip for two friends on a summer day. It’s also about music coming from the records shop’s door, a new book in a beloved series, and riding off into the sunset with the windows rolled down.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙
NMH merch, autographed books and more!
Listen to...
Mark as Played
June 2, 2025 • 37 mins
Our story tonight is called Wallpaper and Paint, and it’s a story about a room in a cottage by the lake, that is ready for redoing. It’s also about a claw foot tub and an airy kitchen with beams crisscrossing the ceiling, the faded patches of wall behind pictures, ferns and seagrass, binoculars and stir sticks, and the wonderfully satisfying feeling of peeling away the old and laying out the new.
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Mark as Played
May 29, 2025 • 28 mins
Originally Aired May 13, 2024, Season 13, Episode 39
Our story tonight is called A Month of Sundays, and it’s a story about finding a way to make time for rest and enjoyment. It’s also about a tin box of recipe cards, a neatly made bed with the corner folded down, aunts and idioms, porch swings and school buses, and the delight of one of the best days of the week.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us. 💙...
Mark as Played
May 26, 2025 • 37 mins
Our story tonight is called The Fountain on the Square, and it’s a story about a place to make a wish as the season tips to summer. It’s also about local lore and shared customs, cool running water, light falling through leaves, marbles and theatre games, and remembering someone by adding to the world. It is dedicated to the memory of my friend Sarah Kramer.
Subscribe to our Premium channel. The first month is on us.
Cornbr...
Mark as Played
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