30 Minute Yoga Nidra For A Stressful Day With Music

Welcome to Yoga Nidra.

My name is Adam Armstrong and I'll be leading you through this next 30-minute practice for a stressful day.

Whether you're in the middle of your stressful day or it's coming to an end,

Please take the time to find a comfortable space to lie down,

Get comfortable,

And do something good for yourself.

We'll begin our practice as always by finding a very comfortable place to lie down.

This can be on your couch,

On the floor,

On your bed,

Or anywhere you feel comfortable spending the next 30 minutes in relative stillness.

Take a moment to make any small adjustments you need.

Make sure you have all of the pillows and equipment that's necessary for you to relax.

A pillow for under your head,

Perhaps one for under your knees.

Feel free to place your hands and your arms in any position that feels good.

Make sure your feet are slightly spread and falling apart to either side.

From here on in in the practice,

Try your best to remain still.

If you do need to move around a bit,

Please feel free to do so.

Take a moment to understand very deeply that you are in a safe space,

A protected environment,

And you don't need to worry about anything else for the next short period of time.

We'll begin our practice by paying very close attention to any sounds we can hear around us.

Start with the most distant sounds,

Anything you can hear that's far away.

Bring your attention from one sound to the next without lingering too long on any one sound.

Slowly bring your attention to the sounds that are more nearby,

The sounds you can hear right around you,

Going from one sound to the next,

Until finally you find yourself listening to the sound most nearby,

The soft sound of your breath,

In through the nose and out through the nose.

Listen to your breath without controlling your breath.

Allow your breath to be natural and spontaneous without any conscious control.

Notice the way your breath feels as it enters the throat,

Your lungs,

And as it exits the same way.

On your next inhale,

Say to yourself the number nine,

And as you exhale,

Repeat to yourself the number nine.

On your next inhale,

Say to yourself the number eight,

And repeat the number eight as you exhale.

Continue counting down this way from nine to one,

And if you get lost along the way,

Simply begin again at nine.

Now in your mind's eye,

Visualize the room that you're in.

In as much detail as you can,

See the four walls of the room you're in.

Notice any features on the walls,

The windows,

The doors,

Any artwork on the walls,

And then notice the ceiling and see the floor.

See any objects around you,

And then notice your own position within the room.

See yourself relaxing there deeply.

See the clothes on your skin.

See the hair on your head,

And see the soft gentle expression on your face.

Notice the smoothness of your forehead,

Allowing your forehead to relax and calm.

Allow your eyes to sink deeply into their sockets,

Your cheeks to slide down your cheekbones.

Allow your tongue to slide into the back of your mouth,

And your chin to relax down towards your throat.

Feel yourself falling deeper and deeper into relaxation.

It's now time for our sankalpa.

Your sankalpa is a clear vision or a resolution you make for yourself.

Today our sankalpa is as follows.

I am free from worry,

Anxiety,

And fear.

I am relaxed and I am happy.

I am free from worry,

Anxiety,

And fear.

I am relaxed and I am happy.

I am free from worry,

Anxiety,

And fear.

I am relaxed and I am happy.

Please repeat that to yourself another two or three times,

Each time with more clarity,

More faith,

And more focus.

Next we'll go on a systematic journey of awareness throughout the body.

As I name each body part,

I'd like you to bring your full attention to that single part of your body.

Allow any tension in that body part to fall away,

And then move your attention to the next.

We'll begin on the right side.

Bring your full attention to your right hand thumb.

Move your attention to your right index finger,

Your middle finger,

Ring finger,

And your pinky finger,

The palm of your right hand,

The back of your hand,

Your wrist,

Your forearm,

Your right elbow,

The upper arm,

And the right side of your chest,

Your waist,

The top of your right hip,

Your thigh,

Your kneecap,

Your shin,

The top of your right foot,

Your big toe,

The second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And your fifth toe.

Moving to the left side,

Bring your full attention to your left hand thumb,

Your index finger,

The middle finger,

Ring finger,

And your pinky finger,

The palm of your left hand,

The back of your hand,

Your wrist,

The forearm,

Your left elbow,

The upper arm,

Shoulder,

And the left side of your chest,

Your waist,

The top of your left hip,

Your thigh,

The kneecap,

Your shin,

The top of your left foot,

Your big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

And your fifth toe.

Moving to the back of your body,

Bring your attention to the soles of both of your feet,

Your right and left heels,

Your calf muscles,

The backs of your knees,

Your hamstrings,

Your glutes,

The soft curve of your lower back,

Your middle back,

Your upper back,

And the backs of your shoulders,

The back of your neck,

The back of your head,

The top of your head,

Your forehead,

Your eyebrows,

And your eyes,

The tip of your nose,

Your chin,

The front of your throat,

Your collarbones,

Your chest,

Your belly,

And your whole body relaxing deeply,

Relaxing deeply.

For the next part of our practice,

I'd like you to recall a situation or an experience from today that made you feel stressed or anxious or out of control.

I'd like you to replay those events in your head and remember the way that that made you feel.

Remember how your body felt,

The tension,

The rigidity,

Perhaps the dryness of your mouth,

The heat rushing to your head.

Remember how that made you feel and then do your best to let it go.

With every exhale,

Allow your body to become more calm,

More free,

Loose,

Gentle,

And serene.

Now in your mind's eye,

We're going to create an image called an Ishtadvata.

This is something that for you is a source of great comfort,

Calm,

And peace.

It can be a person,

A symbol,

A place,

Anything that for you is a source of great comfort.

A few different options might present themselves.

Make a powerful choice and pick one of them.

Plant that image in your mind and allow it to become more solid,

More clear,

As if it's real right in front of you.

Now imagine that that image is glowing with a beautiful golden light representing all of the safety and peace that that image can provide you.

Now imagine your Ishtadvata sending you this light.

See it wrap around you as if you're in a cocoon of golden light,

A sphere of protection,

Safety,

And calm.

Enjoy the way it feels,

To be surrounded by this light,

Calm and safe.

And then again,

Recall that same experience from earlier today,

Except this time allow those events to play themselves out,

Outside of this golden circle.

Notice how those events no longer have any effect on you.

Within this cocoon of golden light,

Nothing can disturb your peace.

Allow those images to now fade away and enjoy how you feel,

Enjoy being completely free from disturbances,

Free and floating,

Calm and peaceful.

It's now time for us to repeat our sankalpa.

The sankalpa is as follows.

I am free from worry,

Anxiety,

And fear.

I am relaxed and I am happy.

I am free from worry,

Anxiety,

And fear.

I am relaxed and I am happy.

Please repeat that to yourself another two or three times,

Each time making it more real,

Clear,

And more focused.

I'll now call out a number of different things.

I'd like you to visualize each thing in whatever way resonates with you,

Jumping from image to image without lingering too long on any one image.

The first is cool,

Clear water,

A vibrant sunset,

Tall mountains,

Traffic lights,

A good night's rest,

A beautiful garden,

Temple or church bells ringing,

A deep blue sky,

A relaxing afternoon,

A cat stretching,

The doctor's office,

Your own reflection in the mirror,

A meditating Buddha,

Your childhood home,

Laughing with good friends,

And your own body relaxing deeply on the floor,

Your own body relaxing deeply on the floor.

Gradually come back to the sound of your breath,

In through the nose and out through the nose.

Bring your attention from one sound to the next,

Starting this time from the sounds that are most nearby and working your way out one by one without fixating on any one sound for too long.

Now in your mind's eye visualize the room you're in.

See everything in great detail,

The walls,

The windows,

Any artwork on the walls,

And any objects around you.

See the ceiling and see the floor.

Notice your own position in the room and see yourself as if you're hovering right above your body.

Look down on yourself with love and compassion and patience.

See the soft expression on your face,

The gentle rise and fall of your belly,

And then bring your attention into your body,

Into the small muscles in your hands,

Gently flexing those muscles,

Contracting them so that your fingers curl in and out.

Bring your attention to those same muscles in your feet.

Allow your toes to curl and relax,

Curl and relax.

When you're ready to make a bigger movement,

You can gently roll onto your side and push yourself up to a seated position.

Take a moment just to thank yourself for doing something to help you deal with this stressful day,

For calming yourself down and finding some clarity in the midst of chaos.

I hope to see you soon.

Namaste.