Hello and welcome.
My name is Rachel Hanrahan and this is a yoga nidra practice.
It's specifically a prenatal practice designed for pregnant women.
So that may or may not be for you this practice.
So if it is for you,
Let's get settled in.
So come into a comfortable position.
You might like to simply recline on your back,
Take support underneath the knees and the head.
It's generally recommended after 20 weeks to minimise the time that you spend lying on your back.
So you might prefer to take a position lying on your left side,
Supporting your head,
Knees,
Hips,
Or of course take any medical advice in relation to the best position for you to come into that's going to be comfortable for the next 20 minutes or so.
So take whatever support,
Blankets,
Cushions,
Pillows that you need to be comfy.
And there's this gift,
This blessing,
Giving yourself a chance to rest and let go.
Letting the body heal and repair and taking an opportunity to connect with yourself and your baby.
Making yourself completely comfortable where you will not be disturbed.
Phones are off and gently close your eyes or have a downward gaze and gently take your awareness to your breathing and follow the sound of your breath.
Feel the breath filling the abdominal cavity,
Gently massaging your baby as the abdomen softens and relaxes.
That wave-like motion of the breath,
Each breath connecting you to your baby,
Exchanging life force and energy,
But also calming and soothing.
Gently rocking your baby as you inhale and exhale.
This is your time,
Your relaxation,
Time to heal,
Time to restore,
Time to let go,
Time to rebalance and have a sense of surrendering your weight,
Letting go,
Releasing the heaviness,
Feel the support of the earth holding you and let every kilo go,
Let it go down,
Down and then let the body feel lighter,
A little lighter,
Let a feeling of lightness flow through the body,
Let that be like the first wave of relaxation and begin to relax your big toes,
Feel them warm and short and soft and still,
The second toes,
Third toes,
Fourth toes,
The little toes,
Relax the top of the feet and follow the curve of the top of your feet and relax,
Take it down into the big flat heels,
Relax,
Relax the backs of the heels,
Feel the ankles with relaxation,
Follow the curve of the calf muscles and relax,
Take the relaxation deep into the calf muscles,
Feel the knees with relaxation and allow a wave of relaxation to move up into the big thigh muscles,
Soothe in the relaxation,
Smooth in the relaxation,
Taking the relaxation deep into the thigh muscles,
Heavy,
Comfortable,
Relaxed,
Hips relax,
Feel them lying heavy and still,
Bring the relaxation into the hips and feel them becoming lighter and lighter and lighter,
As though they could almost float you away somewhere,
They are so light and relaxed,
Buttocks soften and relax,
Letting go,
Take your awareness to the base of the spine and bring the relaxation up the spine,
Vertebra by vertebra,
Disc by disc,
Spine relax until you can take it right up into the base of the scalp,
Spine relax and now it feels so soft,
So relaxed,
As though it's melting into the earth,
Spine relax,
Let the lower back relax,
Above the waist,
Below the waist,
Lower back relax,
Taking the wave of relaxation into the center back,
Center back relax,
Feel it softening,
Expanding,
Releasing,
Letting go,
Relax around the shoulder blades,
Feel them softening,
Releasing,
Letting go,
Relax the back of the neck,
Follow the curve of the back of the neck,
Relax either side,
The back of the neck,
Relax the tops of the shoulders,
Follow the curve of the top of your shoulders,
Soothe it in,
Smooth in the relaxation and feel them becoming bigger,
Broader,
Softer,
As they open out,
As the top of the shoulders relax,
Allow the scalp to soften,
Soften,
Relaxing,
The whole back of the body relax,
The whole back of the body relax and now bring awareness to the front of the body,
Allow a wave of relaxation,
Move down through the front of your body to your belly,
As the relaxation flows into your belly,
Take a moment to focus your awareness and imagine your baby floating in pure relaxation,
Completely protected from stress and tension,
Calm and comfortable,
Paused and peaceful and now allow the relaxation to flow into your pelvic area,
Releasing tension from your pelvic floor,
Pelvic floor relax,
Flowing the relaxation into the chest area,
Relaxing,
Letting go of the tightness,
Give in,
Allow the chest to soften,
To relax,
Relax the front of your neck,
The sides of the neck,
The whole neck and gently take your awareness into your mouth,
Sense all the structures of the mouth,
The floor,
The roof of the mouth,
The walls of the mouth,
The back of the throat in a soft O shape,
The gums and teeth,
The lips,
The tongue resting behind the bottom teeth or maybe the upper teeth or at the palate and the whole tongue is a mass of sensation,
The whole mouth,
The whole mouth and follow the sensation of the mouth that's fluid and velvety and liquid,
Flowing from your mouth into the inside of your ears and out towards the outer structure,
Ripples and folds and valleys of the ears,
Ears relax,
Sensing the nose,
The left nostril,
The right nostril,
Perhaps a feeling of cooler inhalation,
A warmer exhalation,
Feeling the gentle caress of the breath as pure sensation through the nostrils,
Ears,
Cheeks,
Nose relax,
Take your awareness to your eyes as the eyes sink deeper and deeper and deeper into the eye sockets,
Eyelids gently resting on your eyes,
Soft relaxed eyelashes,
Soft relaxed eyebrows,
The whole eyes totally relaxed,
Letting go,
Forehead,
The temples,
The whole face,
The whole face,
Totally relaxed,
Letting go,
The whole front of the body,
The body,
The whole front of the body,
Back of the body,
The back of the body,
Relax,
The legs and feet relax,
Face relax and now take your awareness to your thumbs,
Feel how short and small they are,
Warm and relaxed,
Flow the relaxation into the lower arms,
Elbows,
Upper arms,
Relax from the shoulders to the tips of the fingers,
Fingers,
Totally relaxed,
Letting go,
Arms,
Hands relax,
Legs,
Feet relax,
Front of the body relax,
Back of the body relax,
Face relax,
The whole body relax,
The whole body relax and now you're lying still and every muscle,
Every part of you has been taken into deep relaxation,
This is when the body does its finest healing,
Where it renews,
Rebalances,
Re-energizes,
Recharges and now in this deeply relaxed state,
You are free,
Free of all fear,
Free to see yourself birth your baby easily and comfortably on a wave of relaxation and as you breathe fully and deeply,
Feel your breath travel down to your baby,
Helping your baby on the journey that you will make together on a wave of relaxation and as you continue to breathe deeply and fully,
Feeling the love for your baby,
Feeling the calmness and the peace with which your baby is surrounded on a wave of relaxation,
Soon your baby will be with you,
Soon you will be holding your baby in your loving welcoming arms,
Each breath brings your baby closer to you on a wave of relaxation,
You are one with all of nature riding on a wave of relaxation,
Ever so gently now,
Preparing to awaken,
Feeling refreshed and revived and ready for your day,
Slowly drawing your awareness outward again,
Gently bringing movement to your body,
Wriggling fingers or toes,
Rotating wrists and ankles,
Moving legs and arms a little,
Feeling the energy flowing back into your body,
Slowly opening your eyes,
Taking in the colors and shapes and forms around you,
Blinking your eyes fully open when you're ready,
Thank you for joining me,
This now completes our practice of yoga nidra,
Om shanti shanti shanti
