Yoga Nidra Move Through Stress Physiology

Welcome to this opportunity to discover why building efficient motor patterns isn't only for athletes.

Have you ever noticed that when you are really struggling to open that jar of jam or pickles,

Whatever,

You feel tension not only in your hands and forearms,

But also up into the neck and jaw?

Or when you are driving and really only need to be lightly gripping the steering wheel,

But traffic is bad or someone is driving aggressively or you are late,

And suddenly you feel increased tension into your legs or up into the upper back and neck?

With effort and intensity,

We tend to over-recruit muscles in motor patterns.

Our nervous system kicks into overdrive,

An all-hands-on-deck approach,

Using as many muscles as possible and with maximal force.

It turns out that this is less efficient,

Especially when it becomes more and more the norm as we move through the day each day,

These motor patterns becoming well-worn grooves,

Often unconsciously.

We also know from Yoga Nidra that emotions have their own sensation fingerprint,

And that feeling these emotions can also lead to over-recruitment patterns when we live in a near constant state of stress physiology.

A slight worry can quickly become a panic attack with a host of accompanying sensations,

Like feeling short of breath or jittery,

Feeling tight and constricted.

Irritation can become rage,

Complete with clenched fists and jaw,

Tension headaches.

It's no wonder why this can lead to chronic pain and fatigue.

Yoga Nidra allows us to get beneath the conscious layers of our being,

To let the truth of these experiences bubble up to the surface,

To hear their messages without judgment,

In order to uncouple old patterns and be able to flow through states more efficiently.

If it's helpful,

Take a moment here to form your own intention in this practice,

Perhaps around a cluster of uncomfortable symptoms or a challenging emotion that you suspect may be holding an exceptionally high charge in your system.

For example,

I will recognize when my body feels overly tense,

Or I am aware of certain tension patterns that arise in the context of emotional turbulence.

Or when I am angry,

I will give myself time and space before reacting.

Whatever your intention is for you,

Taking a moment to name that now.

And in order to look objectively at sensations and tension patterns in the body,

It's helpful to start from a baseline of relative calm and ease.

So take the time you need now to find your most comfortable position.

Remember that this can be whatever position suits you the best.

No right or wrong here.

Some prefer to lay down with support at the neck and under the knees,

Taking excessive tension off your spine.

Others may prefer sitting,

Readjusting in the seat,

Feathering your nest,

So to speak,

To make it just right for you.

And if stillness is uncomfortable,

Feel free to stand or walk,

Whatever your body needs,

Not overriding what the body wants to do.

It turns out if we listen,

Our body often tells us what it needs.

Let's watch the breath a moment,

Taking a deep,

Slow breath in,

And then releasing with a comfortable exhale.

Taking another three such conscious breaths now at your own pace.

A signal to the body that we are appreciating the luxury of time and space here.

Attending to the sounds around you.

Allowing sounds to simply come to you without searching.

Sinking deeper into the now of this moment.

Nothing to do here.

Nothing to protect.

Your whole self welcome just as you are.

Each breath like the ebb and flow of waves on a beach.

Supporting a deeper relaxation into gravity.

Letting go.

Everything taken care of for now.

Perhaps supporting your sense of calm and safety with your own image of tranquility,

Security,

And well-being.

Take your time here and fully enter this scene.

Any confines or restrictions melting away such that you and this scene are one and the same.

Feeling yourself here.

The perfect temperature against your skin and your clothes.

Perhaps a texture that massages the soles of your feet.

Or something in the palms of your hands.

It is a gorgeous place.

Take your time looking around here.

Hypnotic sounds.

Intoxicating smells.

Marinating in it.

Where in your body does this beautiful place resonate?

Fully welcoming in the sensation fingerprint associated with this inner resource place of calm.

Noticing its center.

Its edges.

Do you feel a little lighter?

Or heavier?

Warmer?

Cooler?

Or something else?

Being curious how calm shows up in you.

Allowing the inhale and the exhale of each breath.

Support and expanding awareness beyond even the edges of the physical body.

Into this place of rested awareness.

Joining me in counting the breaths slowly backwards from seven to one.

Inhale.

Seven.

Exhale.

Seven.

Inhale.

Six.

Exhale.

Six.

Counting at your own natural rhythm now.

And letting go of counting and being with the breath just as it is.

Remembering that sensations carry valuable information.

Simply rotating your attention now throughout the body.

With a curiosity.

Placing your awareness on each part as I name it.

Starting with any sensations that may be present for you currently at the head.

Specifically any tension around the eyes.

Cheeks.

Mouth.

Jaw.

Sensations at the inner ear canals.

Ears.

Sensing the flow of air in and out of the nostrils.

Sensations that the whole head.

And the neck.

Perhaps sensing the breath at the inner walls of the throat.

Sensations at the shoulders.

Upper arms.

Elbows.

Forearms.

Wrists.

Palms of the hands.

And fingers.

Both arms.

Radiant with sensation.

And where they meet at the upper back.

Chest.

Lower back.

Stomach.

The whole torso animated with the breath.

And the fields and flows of breath as it meets the hips.

Thighs.

Knees.

Forelegs.

Ankles.

Feet.

And toes.

Both legs.

Alive with sensation.

And aware of the whole body now.

The front of the body.

The back of the body.

Even the felt sense of the area out beyond the physical body.

This mysterious yet familiar place of rested awareness.

And from this place.

Watching and listening to anywhere in the body that now feels loose.

Relaxed.

Getting to know this place.

How do you know this part is relaxed.

If you suspend your thinking mind here.

Begin to simply notice this relaxed part as an image.

What does it look like.

And since opposites often exist.

Find any areas in the body now that feel tense.

Possibly even uncomfortable.

And trying to stay with these sensations without judgment.

Even if you notice a preference for it not to be there.

Like the tight grip to open a stubborn jar.

The more brute force that is applied.

The greater the tension builds.

So discovering instead what it feels like.

To not fight the tension you are sensing somewhere in your body.

Instead accepting it just as it is.

And perhaps offering it support in some way that feels appropriate.

And now searching for an area in the body that feels more expansive.

Perhaps lighter.

Being curious about how watching the breath here might even grow this feeling of expansion.

And now allowing the constricted areas to have center stage,

A moment.

Once again aware of a constricted or tense area.

Is this a familiar tension pattern.

How would you describe it.

And recognizing what we resist persists and often grows.

With that in mind,

Simply be with constriction without contracting against it.

Perhaps even making more room for it.

Maybe contacting the expansive area once again.

And holding it in your awareness with constriction.

Noticing how sensations affect thoughts and emotions,

As well as the other way around.

Thoughts and emotions driving sensations.

Allow yourself to consider a challenging emotion,

Thought,

Or belief.

That you now recognize is driving an intense cascade of sensations.

This emotional turbulence that fairly regularly sets off a host of sensations and you.

That may be out of proportion to what the task at hand calls for.

That it may no longer be an efficient use of your physiology.

Perhaps calling to mind a recent worry or irritation.

A thought or belief that you know can quickly escalate.

Slowing it down.

Paying specific attention to where the center of these sensations originate in you.

Are these familiar tension patterns arising.

A clenching of the jaw perhaps.

Does something want to be said here.

Feeling locked down or motionless at the arms.

Instead exploring an impulse to move here.

A pushing away.

A striking out.

A pulling in.

Making your posture big or small.

Allow your body to tell you what it wants here without having to make sense of it.

Feeling trembling.

Making room for it instead of trying to stifle it.

Focusing on your own sensation footprint with this challenge and allowing it to be fully present.

And offering whatever it is that it needs to be heard.

To feel seen.

To be expressed or supported.

And noticing how things might shift,

Soften or change as you contemplate this.

Appreciating the place of awareness that allows you to watch and listen to these sensation messengers.

That with time and repetition.

Feeling comfortable that you always know the perfect response to whatever comes your way.

A rested state of awareness that feels subtle yet undeniable.

A floating place that guides you.

A friend that is trusted over time.

Simply resting here as being.

Noticing the ability to flow out of an activated state into a place of relative calm.

Supporting a sense of well being or contentment.

This resilience to move out of activation and into relative ease.

And perhaps seeing contentment now like an effervescent mist.

That slowly but assuredly moves from your center with each breath.

Out into the arms and legs.

This sense of well being moving up into the neck and head.

The whole body glowing with a sense of well being.

And from this place of awareness.

Taking a moment to notice if your intention was met for this practice.

Or perhaps something new has developed for you to take with you into your daily life.

Appreciating any new knowing that has come to you through this practice.

Seeing yourself moving efficiently through your day each day.

Now gently noticing the support underneath you.

Feeling yourself in the room around you.

Gently wiggling or stretching in any way your body wants to move.

Gently opening and closing your eyes.

And taking all the time you need here to come to the conclusion of your practice.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

Bye bye.