Yoga Nidra For Self Acceptance

Hello and welcome to this Yoga Nidra meditation.

My name is Genevieve McKenzie and I will be guiding you throughout this practice.

Yoga Nidra,

Or otherwise known as non-sleep deep rest,

Is a style of meditation where we dance between the lines of unconsciousness and wakefulness.

It is said that one hour of Yoga Nidra is equal to four hours of sleep.

Yoga Nidra allows cortisol levels,

Which is our stress hormones,

To decrease and it allows things like serotonin,

Our feel good chemical,

And dopamine,

The chemical associated with reward and motivation,

To rise.

So together we will begin this meditation.

I encourage you to lie down on the floor in the Shavasana position.

It can feel nice to have a mat or even a blanket over a mat on the floor beneath you to help keep you comfortable.

And begin to settle in.

Play around with the position of your body.

See how close your arms should be to your body based on what feels most comfortable or how wide your legs are.

Rest into a position that allows you to feel fully relaxed and offers the least amount of sensation possible.

Any sensations you're experiencing now will only be intensified as we deepen into the practice.

Once you're settled in,

Take a nice deep breath in through the nose and release out through the mouth.

Again,

Another deep breath in through the nose,

Breathing all the way deep down into the belly,

And releasing out through the mouth.

Again,

Breathing in through the nose,

The deepest breath you've taken all day,

Filling the belly,

And breathing out through the mouth.

Feel your body being supported by the ground beneath you.

You may want to wiggle your shoulder blades down your back.

Make any last adjustments that you need to settle into complete stillness.

Feel the ground beneath you inviting you in as you relax the center of your forehead,

As you relax your jaw,

Relaxing your shoulders,

Relaxing the back,

Relaxing the pelvis,

Relaxing the legs,

Allowing everything to release,

Allowing yourself to be held,

Allowing yourself to feel at home.

Bring your attention to your right pointer finger and see if you can get a sense for what the inside of your pointer finger feels like.

Maybe you feel a pulsing or the flow of blood,

A vibration.

Visualize what the inside of your right pointer finger looks like.

Now allow your mind to let go.

Allow your mind to release and relax as we begin the practice of yoga nidra.

The intention of this yoga nidra is to create a home within ourselves today,

A place that feels warm,

A place that accepts and appreciates every part of who you are,

Flaws,

Talent,

Insecurities,

Strengths,

All of it.

To deepen this intention we are going to set a sankalpa.

A sankalpa is an affirmation that we will use during the practice and we will repeat to ourselves.

The sankalpa we will be using is I welcome and embrace all of me and we will say it together three times.

On the inhale I welcome and embrace,

Exhale all of me.

Inhale I welcome and embrace,

Exhale all of me.

Inhale I welcome and embrace,

Exhale all of me.

Take a moment and notice how you feel as you repeat these nurturing words to yourself.

Take a moment to listen to the mind and the body as we repeat it together once more gently and slowly.

Inhale I welcome and embrace,

Exhale all of me.

Know that you can return to the sankalpa at any point during the practice if you find your mind wandering amongst the silence.

Take three deep smooth breaths in through the nose,

Pausing at the top and releasing through the mouth.

Again breathing in through the nose slowly and smoothly,

Pausing at the top and releasing through the mouth.

One more time in through the nose,

Breathing deeply into the belly,

Pause at the top and release through the mouth.

Now bring your attention to your right thumb.

Invite the thumb to relax and release completely.

Bring your attention to your right pointer finger and allow it to relax and release completely.

The right middle finger,

The right ring finger,

The right pinky finger,

The back of the right hand,

The palm of the right hand,

The whole right hand,

Allowing it to relax and release.

The right forearm,

The right elbow,

The right upper arm,

The right shoulder,

The whole right arm,

Releasing,

Relaxing,

Surrendering.

The left elbow,

The left forearm,

The palm of the left hand,

The back of the left hand,

The left thumb,

The left pointer finger,

The left middle finger,

The left ring finger,

The left pinky finger,

The whole left hand completely relaxes,

The whole left arm completely releases and relaxes.

The left side of the chest,

The right side of the chest,

The front of the neck,

The back of the neck,

The right side of the jaw,

The right cheek,

The right side of the nose,

The right eye socket,

The right eyeball,

The right temple,

The right eyebrow,

The right side of the forehead,

The left side of the forehead,

The left eyebrow,

The left temple,

The left eyeball,

The left eye socket,

The left side of the nose,

The left cheek,

The left side of the jaw,

The upper lip,

The lower lip,

The back of the head,

The top of the head,

The whole head,

The whole head relaxing completely.

The right side of the torso,

The right side of the abdomen,

The navel or belly button,

The left side of the abdomen,

The left side of the torso,

The whole upper body surrendering,

Releasing,

Relaxing.

The left hip,

The right hip,

The left glute,

The right glute,

The groin,

The pelvic floor,

The whole pelvis relaxing,

Releasing,

Surrendering.

The right thigh,

The right hamstring,

The right knee,

The back of the knee,

The right calf,

The right shin,

The right ankle,

The top of the right foot,

The bottom of the right foot,

The right big toe,

The right second toe,

The third toe,

The fourth toe,

The right pinky toe,

The whole right leg,

The whole right leg relaxes,

Surrenders.

The left thigh,

The left hamstring,

The left knee,

The back of the left knee,

The left shin,

The left calf,

The left ankle,

The top of the left foot,

The bottom of the left foot,

The left big toe,

The left second toe,

The third toe,

The fourth toe,

The left pinky toe,

The whole left leg,

The whole left leg relaxes,

The whole body,

The whole body surrenders,

Releases,

Relaxes,

The whole body relaxes.

Tune into your breath.

Can you make it a little slower?

A little smoother?

A little deeper?

Notice the natural pause after your inhale before the exhale.

And notice the natural pause after your exhale before the inhale.

Recall the sankalpa we set at the beginning of this practice.

Inhale,

I welcome and embrace.

Exhale,

All of me.

Repeat it to yourself slowly and gently.

Inhale,

I welcome and embrace.

Exhale,

All of me.

Inhale,

I welcome and embrace.

Exhale,

All of me.

Continue repeating it until you get your fill.

Take a moment to check in with yourself.

What does it feel like in your home right now?

The home within you?

How does it feel different from when we began this practice?

Take a few moments to simply observe.

Now begin to visualize the space around you,

The ground beneath you,

The walls around you,

The ceiling above you.

See yourself gently nestled in your space.

Visualize what you look like in this space.

See if you can tune in to any sounds around you.

Try and listen to the furthest sound you can hear.

Then try and listen for the closest sound you can hear.

Begin to bring movement into the toes and fingers,

Gently squeezing them or stretching them.

And slowly invite larger movements,

Maybe shaking the head from side to side,

Reaching the arms above you for a big stretch.

And when you feel ready,

Keeping the eyes closed,

Bring yourself up into a seated cross-legged position.

And again,

Feeling the ground beneath you,

Breathing in through the nose,

Holding at the top,

And releasing through the mouth.

And again,

Breathing in through the nose,

Holding at the top,

And releasing through the mouth.

And again,

Breathing in through the nose,

Holding at the top,

And releasing through the mouth.

Now I want you to tune into the sensation of feeling.

And I want you to take a moment and name four things that you can feel right now.

Maybe it's the weight of your leg against your foot,

Or your glutes being supported by the ground.

Name four sensations that you can feel.

Now begin listening to the room around you.

And see if you can name three sounds that you can hear right now.

Maybe one of them being my voice.

Take a moment to tune in and name three sounds around you.

Now I want you to try and label two things that you can smell.

Taking a deep breath in through the nose,

And trying to get a sense of what scents are present around you.

Now finally,

When you feel prepared,

Gently blink the eyes open.

And I want you to rest your focus on one thing in your space,

And label it without any judgments.

The practice of Yoga Nidra is now complete.

Thank you so much for spending this time with me.

And what a pleasure it's been to spend this time with you.

I hope you find yourself feeling a little bit more relaxed and calm as you move through your day.

And give yourself a nice pat on the back,

Because this was a long practice,

And it was brave of you to dedicate this time to yourself.

So kudos to you.

And I hope you enjoy the rest of your day.

Take care.