Anxiety & Stress Relief: Yoga Nidra

Welcome to this calming yoga nidra for anxiety and stress relief.

Please take a moment to find a quiet place,

Turning off your phone and making sure that you will not be disturbed.

Begin by finding a comfortable position,

Whatever that means to you.

Feel free to lie down with your knees slightly bent and supported,

Palms up beside your body,

Or even simply sitting in a chair,

Hands resting in your lap.

The choice is yours.

Allow your eyes to close if that's comfortable for you.

If not,

Simply soften your eyes as you gaze down towards your lap.

Check in with the temperature of your body,

Making sure you feel warm and at ease.

During this practice,

Do your best to remain in stillness,

But know you can move at any point in time.

Allowing your body to be at rest and your mind alert and able to follow the sound of your voice will allow your body and brain to soften into relaxation.

I will guide you to notice sensations in different parts of your body.

Try not to concentrate too hard.

This may cause you to tense up,

Slipping back into the thinking mind where stress and tension can take over once more.

No thinking,

Just awareness.

Remember that it is normal for the mind to become active with thoughts.

When that happens,

Simply come back to the sound of my voice,

Allowing it to be that of a trusted friend and guide,

Leading you into deep relaxation,

Rest,

And ease.

We will make no attempt to stop the flow of thoughts.

Simply notice when they rise up to your awareness,

Then invite them to float away on the breeze as you shift your attention back to the rise and fall of your breath.

That is awareness.

The fact that you notice the thought means that you are doing this right.

Please let go of judgment of yourself and this practice.

There are no expectations of you here.

Simply become aware of your body resting in perfect stillness now,

Welcoming a sense of serenity and a sense of softening into the support beneath you.

How often have you found yourself ruminating on a problem,

Working it from every angle,

Losing sleep,

As your mind gets trapped in anxiety and doubt,

Only for that situation to never come to pass.

Worrying robs us of our peace and most of the time it wasn't even necessary.

As Mark Twain said,

Worrying is like paying a debt you don't owe.

So allow this time to be free from worry.

The simple intention to relax will help us cope with our overwhelming stress.

This gift of our focused awareness will help us to feel more peaceful,

More productive,

More creative,

And to feel more effective and in control.

We don't have to change the outer world in order to feel better.

Our power is in changing our own perspective,

Changing the way we see the challenges of our life so that we can cope better with our stress and reduce or possibly even eliminate our anxiety altogether.

There seems to be a deep well of strength,

Peace,

And calm hidden within each one of us.

Like a calm lake,

Its surface smooth as glass on a bright and sunny summer day,

And the water reflecting the mountains and puffy white clouds above perfectly.

This place of tranquility has been buried beneath all of the layers of stress from everyday life.

This meditation will assist you in uncovering your peace and calm within.

Your very own special place that you can create however you wish.

Some call this our inner resource or our inner sanctuary.

I invite you to begin to simply notice your breath as it moves in and out of your nose,

Your awareness settling on your natural rhythm of breathing.

There is no need to force a change in the breath.

Simply feel your breath just naturally beginning to slow down.

Feel your heart rate also slowing down.

Allow your mind to grow quiet.

Notice the sensation of the belly rising as you inhale slowly,

And as you exhale,

The belly sinks down towards the support beneath you.

Inhaling relaxation into your mind and body.

Exhaling feel stress leaving.

Inhaling calm into the mind and body.

Exhaling out tension leaving.

Inhaling tranquility into every cell of your body.

And exhaling letting go.

Inhale what you want more of.

And exhale everything that no longer serves you.

Now,

Please think of a short positive statement.

Yogis call this a sankalpa.

It's our intention for practicing.

It could be as simple as I am calm and relaxed.

I am happy and healthy.

I am confident and at ease.

Or any other short statement that describes what you desire.

Stating it in the present tense as if it is already true.

Once you form the words of your personal intention,

Repeat it three times.

The intention you make in Yoga Nidra plants the seed of transformation in your life.

And our practice waters that seed until it blossoms into our reality.

Allow your breath to begin to simply fall in and fall out,

Finding its own rhythm and pace.

And trusting the body to continue the slow natural rhythm as we shift our attention to the body.

I will guide you to notice sensations in different parts of your body.

When I say a body part,

Simply notice the area,

Feel it and ask it to relax.

No need to move the body.

Simply remain in comfortable stillness as you rotate your attention from one part to the next.

Quickly and with ease.

Take your awareness to the right hand.

Feel the right hand thumb.

Index finger.

Middle finger.

Ring finger.

Little finger.

Palm of the right hand.

Back of the hand growing heavy.

Feel the wrist.

Forearm.

Elbow.

Arm and shoulder.

Armpit.

Right side of the waist.

Hip.

Thigh.

Top of the right foot.

Sole of the foot.

Right big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

End.

Feel the thumb.

Index finger.

Middle finger.

Ring finger.

Little finger.

Palm of the left hand.

Back of the hand growing heavy.

Feel the wrist.

Forearm.

Elbow.

Upper arm and shoulder.

Armpit.

Left side of the waist.

Hip.

Thigh.

Top of the left foot.

Sole of the foot.

Left big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

End.

Little toe.

Take the awareness to the back of the head growing heavy.

Back of the neck.

Right shoulder blade.

Left shoulder blade.

The entire length of the spine.

Right buttock.

Left buttock.

Right calf.

Left calf.

Right heel.

Left heel.

Now to the awareness of the front of the body.

Feel the top of the head.

Forehead.

Right temple.

Left temple.

Right ear.

Left ear.

Feel both ears hearing.

Right eyebrow.

Left eyebrow.

The space between the eyebrows alive with vibration.

Eye and eyelid.

Left eye and eyelid.

Both eyes growing heavy and resting.

Right nostril.

Left nostril.

Feel the flow of air through both nostrils.

Right cheek.

Left cheek.

Both cheeks together.

Upper lip.

Lower lip.

Both lips touching together.

See if you can discover the space between the lips.

Inside the right cheek.

Inside the left cheek.

Upper teeth and gums.

Lower teeth and gums.

And rest for a moment in the space between the teeth.

Chin.

Jaw.

Throat and neck.

Right collarbone.

Left collarbone.

Right side of the chest.

Left side of the chest.

Heart center.

Upper abdomen.

Navel.

Lower abdomen.

The pelvic floor.

The whole right leg.

The whole left leg.

The whole right arm.

The whole face.

The whole head.

The whole torso.

The whole body.

Totally relaxed.

The whole body free from tension.

Now let's imagine that we can inhale from the sole of our left foot,

Up the left side of the body,

To the crown of the head.

Exhale down the right side and out the sole of the right foot.

Now switch.

Inhaling up the right side of the body and exhaling down the left.

Riding the wave of the breath up one side of the body and down the other.

You may feel your breath as sensation or see it as healing white light traveling up one side of the body and down the other.

However you experience your breath is fine.

Total awareness of the breath flowing through you.

Observe how this breath activates the body's natural relaxation response,

Balancing the nervous system.

Feel it improving your concentration and focus.

As you follow the breath up one side and down the other,

Welcoming a sense of grounding.

Feeling emotional balance and mindfulness.

Each exhale carries away all tension as you inhale a sense of calm into each and every cell.

Each exhale carries away all fear as you inhale a fresh wave of relaxation flowing up the body,

Bringing even more peace and serenity.

Now release the effort of that breath as you notice once more your body resting here.

Become curious and observe how the body feels when it is totally relaxed.

Notice how the body feels when it is free from worry,

Calm,

And at ease.

Gently become aware of your body and the support beneath you.

Notice all points of contact between your body and your bed or chair.

Feeling your feet,

The backs of your legs,

Low back and shoulders.

Feel the back of the arms,

The back of the head,

Becoming totally aware of your body.

Mentally repeat again three times your positive intention.

Feel this positive intention throughout the body and know it to be true.

Cultivating a sense of gratitude for this body.

Gratitude for your practice and the gift of your breath.

Gently now begin to move your fingers and toes.

Slowly roll your head from side to side.

And on an inhalation,

Stretch the body however it wants to move,

Perhaps reaching your hands away from your feet as if you're greeting your day for the first time with a whole new perspective.

Roll to your right side and stay there,

Keeping your eyes closed.

Inviting your breath to expand into the back of your body,

Cultivating a sense of lightness and openness within.

And when you are ready,

Slowly coming to a comfortable seated position.

Still keeping the eyes closed,

In no hurry to join the outside world just yet.

Take a moment here to check back in with your mind and body.

How do you feel after your practice?

Remember you can return to this deep well of peace within at any point throughout your day by simply deepening your breath.

The more you practice this meditation,

The quicker and easier you will be able to return to a state of peace and calm.

When you're ready,

Slowly blink your eyes open with a smile,

Congratulating yourself for taking this time so that you can be more productive,

More calm,

Peaceful,

And happy.

Om shanti shanti shanti.

Meaning peace,

Peace,

Peace.

May we all know peace within.

May we all be surrounded by peace.

May we bring peace to all those we encounter.

Thank you so much for allowing me to guide you through this yoga nidra today.

Please make this day a great one.