Yoga Nidra For Sleep

Welcome to this yoga nidra for sleep.

I invite you to find a comfortable position laying on your back,

Perhaps bringing a blanket or bolster to feel more comfortable.

If you are listening to this before you fall asleep,

Then I invite you to lay on your bed,

Still laying on your back,

You can place a light blanket over the body as you start to relax the body temperature and drop a tiny bit.

So just to make sure that you are comfortable throughout,

That's why I would include one.

Those of you who aren't familiar with yoga nidra,

It's a deep relaxation practice.

It's a state between waking and sleeping where your consciousness still has awareness and yet you are ready to drift off.

My voice will be guiding you throughout.

It's okay if you do fall asleep,

The part of you that needs to hear my words still will.

So slowly finding stillness in the body,

Taking any of those last movements that you need.

I invite you to gently close the eyes and bringing your focus to your breath.

Remember with this practice there is no right or wrong,

It's just awareness and observing and noticing.

I invite you on your next exhale to just gently sigh it out through the mouth.

If it feels okay you are welcome to take a second to sigh.

In your own time when you are ready we are just going to gently clench all of your muscles from your hands,

Your feet,

Your arms,

Your legs into your body and scrunching your face really tight.

Just holding here and now relax.

Allow yourself to fully relax.

I invite you to let go of all of your expectations about your practice.

Even though we will have an intention I invite you to simply welcome,

Recognise and witness whatever arises for you.

Simply feel your body in this moment.

See if you can allow yourself to relax 10% more than you are right now.

Letting the body spread,

Root and ground down a little bit deeper.

Trusting that you are fully supported.

Simply notice what you are experiencing in this moment.

Observe the sounds and any sensations.

Perhaps there are sounds outside of your room or perhaps they are in the space.

Notice any emotions or thoughts that have crept in.

There is no right or wrong.

Just notice and be aware and let it go.

If you happen to fall asleep that is ok.

The part of you that I am speaking to is still paying attention regardless of whether or not your conscious mind is alert or asleep.

We will be coming back to the awareness and simply feeling your body,

The sensation.

Feel your head,

Your hands,

Your arms,

Your legs,

Front and back.

Simply observe the body.

There is absolutely nothing to do,

Change or hold.

Simply observing the body.

You are practising awareness that will help to facilitate a deep and peaceful and nourishing sleep.

As you go through deepening layers of observation and awareness I invite you to be curious about how the body naturally becomes more and more relaxed.

There is no forcing it to happen.

Simply watching your body become more and more relaxed.

I want you to choose a positive affirmation that feels good for you with the intention to help you sleep.

I invite you to make sure it is positive and in the present.

If you are struggling to think of one for yourself I suggest a couple for you.

I am restful,

I am calm,

I am peaceful.

Choose what resonates with you.

I invite you to repeat this a few times in your mind.

Letting that seed be planted into your mind,

Your heart and your body.

Looking to create the conditions necessary for this little seed of intention to grow and to bloom.

We are not forcing it to happen.

We will naturally create the conditions for all parts of our being that wishes deep,

Peaceful and nourishing sleep.

Now I invite you to remember a place you love to be.

A place that is your personal sanctuary.

Your private paradise where you can imagine or remember a time when you felt very relaxed.

I invite you to remember and see the scene with your eyes and your awareness.

I am inviting you to see it not as if you were up there on a screen or watching yourself as a character on the TV but actually seeing the scene with your eyes from your perspective.

Perhaps this private paradise is a beautiful beach that you visited or walking through a forest close to your home.

Simply a quiet space in your home.

I invite you to fill the visual of this.

What colours are there?

What is in the space?

What is around you?

Just gently bringing it to life.

Now I invite you to think about what does it smell like here in this space?

If it is outside what are the scents that hit you when you breathe in?

Perhaps it is the smell of the earth or the ocean air depending on where you are.

Take your time.

Really bring your mind's eye back to this beautiful space and the smells.

When you are ready slowly observe and notice the sounds of this relaxing place.

Depending on the space perhaps it is the quietness that you notice.

Perhaps it is the sounds of the trees with the leaves rustling in the wind.

Really hear that.

Be creative for yourself.

Slowly are there any tastes associated with this scene or this place?

Think about what those tastes are,

The subtlety of them.

I invite you to imagine anything that you touch whether it is with your hands or perhaps walking barefoot or with the shoes.

In this place how does this impact the sounds around you or the sensations that your body absorbs from it?

I really invite you to create it as vividly and as strongly as you can.

Perhaps some of the senses are stronger and have more influence than others and that is completely okay.

It is your space,

Your haven.

Choose what resonates with you the most.

Allow yourself a few moments as you enjoy this place.

Run through the senses again.

Feel yourself relaxed here.

Allow it to relax your body,

Mind and spirit in this moment.

Trust you may return to this place whenever you wish.

This is a resource that exists within you that never changes or diminishes and you can always come back here whenever you want to.

I invite you to open up to awareness itself through the sensation of your body.

Simply observing,

Bringing awareness and feeling your body without the need to fix,

Change,

Alter or do anything about it.

I invite you to give yourself permission to relax.

Simply letting your muscles relax a little bit more.

Relaxing the arms,

The legs,

The torso,

The hips.

You will slowly bring awareness to your face.

Allow the muscles in your face to relax.

Here we naturally hold a lot of tension from our day.

I invite you to relax the muscles here.

Drawing your attention to around the eyes,

Around your mouth,

Around the nose,

Around your ears.

Just letting the muscles relax and find ease.

Here moving to feel the base of the head that is making contact with the floor.

Feeling the weight of the head and allowing the head to relax.

Allowing here to find that heaviness or perhaps for you you are experiencing lightness.

There is no right or wrong.

There is always the polar opposite.

Just flitting between those.

Perhaps you are experiencing both.

Just observe and let it go.

Allowing yourself to simply relax a little bit more.

Feeling that sensation.

Here we are drawing our awareness,

Our observation around the neck and the throat.

Notice how the breath gently moves your chest,

Horizon,

And full.

The breath is so natural.

Normally we don't think about it at all.

There is nothing to do or change here.

Simply observing that very natural rise and fall of your chest as you breathe.

Shifting the awareness to your belly as it also becomes more relaxed.

There is nothing to hold to,

Nothing to be tense or strong.

Just letting all of those muscles release.

Experiencing your belly with deep nourishing soothing relaxation.

You are shifting your mind's eye to sensation and feeling of the back,

Shoulder blades or spine,

Parts of the body that are in connection to the floor or the surface.

I invite you to move slowly.

Work down from the crown of the head all the way down the back.

Just tailbone letting all of that back feel heavy,

Relaxed,

Rooted,

Grounded a little bit more.

Just imagine the fibres are releasing that 10% more.

Just increasing the mass on the surface.

Just by millimetre by millimetre.

Allow yourself the freedom to go deeper and deeper into relaxation.

It's ok if you find yourself beginning to fall asleep.

There is absolutely nothing to resist.

The part of you that I am speaking to is still paying attention.

You are experiencing yoga nidra as you cultivate the conditions to facilitate a deep and peaceful and nourishing sleep.

The body is becoming more and more relaxed.

Whether your mind is completely alert and awake or whether you have fallen asleep,

You are receiving deep,

Peaceful and nourishing rest.

Creating the space for your body and mind to cultivate the conditions for deep,

Peaceful and nourishing sleep.

Cultivating deep awareness,

Feeling of your body is systematically relaxing.

Now I invite you to feel your entire body as if there is a wave of relaxation that starts at your head,

Slowly starts to move down your body,

Making your body more and more relaxed.

I'd like to visualise a wave that is just slowly washing over the body from the head to the toes in a slow and rhythmic way.

As you imagine this wave just washing over,

Just imagine each part that it touches becomes more relaxed.

It washes over the head,

Slowly moves down the face,

Across the neck,

The collar bones becoming more relaxed,

Through the chest,

The back,

The belly,

The arms,

Through the hips,

The legs,

All the way down to the feet and your toes.

It's a gentle,

Rhythmic wave,

Slowly relaxing,

Allowing yourself awareness to let it go a little bit deeper,

Letting the muscles relax and release a little bit more.

Here we're cultivating a deep,

Peaceful,

Nourishing rest,

Creating the conditions for a deep,

Peaceful,

Nourishing sleep.

In this moment your body is even more relaxed,

Just allow yourself to be without a care in the world.

Give yourself a moment to let go of any thoughts that have creeped in,

Just bring the focus in.

Your mind is soft,

Clear,

Receptive to beautiful dreams and receptive to any information or thoughts that come through to you.

Feel your body at rest,

Naturally moving through the mechanics of automatic breathing.

I invite you to try and hear and feel your heartbeat.

Bring your mind's eye towards your chest.

From the beginning I invite you to repeat your positive affirmation or your sankalpa.

Don't worry if you have forgotten it,

I will remind you the examples I gave.

I am restful,

I am peaceful,

I am calm.

I invite you to repeat your mantra three times.

There is nothing to do or change here,

You're merely experiencing a deep rest.

Give yourself a moment to remember that this place of rest is one where you can always come back to.

Whether you'll find yourself here while sleeping or on your way to sleep or needing a few moments in your day to feel restored.

It's a valuable tool to create the conditions to help facilitate a deep,

Peaceful and nourishing sleep.

Be a regular visitor to this place.

Start with coming back into your waking consciousness.

I slowly want to bring your attention back to the physical sensation of the body.

Notice or observe how it's become relaxed.

Notice any groundedness in your legs or perhaps it's in your chest,

Hands,

Throat.

I invite you to be aware of your body.

Notice where you feel the most relaxed or perhaps it's across all of the body.

I invite you just to observe that there's no judgement,

Nothing to change.

Now for a moment,

Gently bring your mind and all your senses that experience that beautiful personal paradise.

Fill in the details of that restful place,

The scenes with the colours,

The smells,

The tastes,

The sounds,

The textures,

The feeling of being at peace,

Calm and at ease.

In a moment we'll be finishing our yoga nidra.

Slowly start the countdown from five.

In the meantime,

I just want to remind you at any time you can recreate your haven,

Your safe place.

Bring your focus there and let the waves of relaxation roll over the body.

I'll begin counting down from five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

This concludes our yoga nidra practice.