So welcome to Yoga Nidra for Arthritis,
My name is Julie,
And today our practice will focus around rewriting the body story.
So today we pause to notice the story that your body has been telling,
And the story that you are ready to rewrite.
So,
Begin by feeling the support beneath you,
And let your weight be held.
Allow yourself to soften into the surface that you're resting on.
And you may adjust as needed because this practice moves at the pace that feels safest for you.
Perhaps there's a temperature to the air.
And maybe you can see the light filtering through curtains in a window.
There could be sounds within the space where you are,
Or just outside the space.
And then shift inwardly your attention to the sensations of your body.
Let yourself be held and feel safe.
And we'll begin our practice,
Now that we've settled,
With the option of setting an intention or a sankalpa.
Typically this is a short supportive phrase,
But in keeping with today's theme,
It's a little bit longer.
The one that I'm proposing to you,
You may choose a phrase of your own choosing.
Or if you want to go with what I have to offer,
It is choosing to honour your body and its story while opening a new narrative of ease,
Resilience and presence.
And the intention may go a little bit like this.
I honour my body's story and allow new narratives of ease and resilience.
And if you've chosen another phrase,
Repeating it to yourself inwardly,
Like sowing a seed that will bear fruit.
And shortly,
We'll move on to the rotation of consciousness.
Notice any areas of your body that feel heavy.
And then move on to areas that feel lighter or more open.
And allow yourself to observe both without needing to change them.
And you may sigh as you feel tension releasing,
Or simply feeling tension and sighing.
That could be breathing out audibly through the mouth.
And begin to bring awareness to your feet,
The ankles,
The shins,
The calves,
The knees.
Noticing any tightness or discomfort without needing to fix anything.
And let's continue upward to the thighs,
Back and front,
To the hips,
The hip joints,
And the hip bones that protrude to the front.
Moving on to the lower back,
From the tailbone to the lumbar spine.
Moving frontwards to the belly,
And upwards to the chest.
Moving backwards to the shoulder blades,
And upwards to the shoulders.
Moving down the arms to the elbows,
The forearms,
The wrists,
The hands.
Feeling each finger,
Starting with the thumbs,
The index fingers,
The middle fingers.
The ring fingers,
And the little fingers.
Moving back up to the neck,
Feeling the throat.
Moving from the neck into the cranium,
Feeling the skull.
Moving into the forehead,
And down the nose,
Into the cheek bones,
And into the chin.
And if any sensations feel intense,
Simply observing.
Support is here for you.
And soon we'll move on to the awareness of the breath.
So following your natural breath,
Softening where you can.
Notice the rhythm of the breath.
Perhaps it's deep or shallow.
Feeling the breath in,
And feeling the breath out.
Perhaps the sensation of the breath in is different from the sensation of the breath out.
So simply letting your awareness move between those sensations.
Echoing what you may have felt before,
Moving between areas of tension and of ease.
And as an alternative to the movement of the breath,
You may focus on the sensations in your body.
Any tingling,
Or any resource outside the body,
Like a sound.
And with the next breath out,
Letting the shoulders release.
Maybe a soft sigh.
Maybe some humming.
Or a full out sound,
If that feels right.
Your body knows what it needs.
And just allow yourself to follow its guidance.
And you may choose to stay with the breath,
Or observe its alternative,
Whether that's a sensation in your body,
Or some external resource.
And let that sink in for a few moments in silence.
And soon we'll move on to the awareness of the breath.
And then we'll move on to the visualization part of our practice.
So to visualize today,
Imagining maybe,
If you wish,
That the body,
Or your story,
Your body's story,
Is being rewritten.
Imagine your joints,
Your muscles,
The bones,
As pages in a storybook.
Some pages may feel stiff,
Heavy,
Maybe even hurt.
And instead,
Imagine light,
Warmth,
Or ease,
Rewriting these pages.
You may notice even both the old story and the new story coexisting.
And let's explore the story in different layers.
Let's start with warmth or light.
Visualizing warmth or light flowing into the air.
Transforming tension into a gentle movement or comfort.
And so visualizing warmth or light flowing into these areas.
And transforming into gentle movements or comfort.
You could imagine,
If you wish,
Also gentle movement in all of your joints,
All of your muscles,
All of your bones.
Movement that feels supportive.
Motion that brings relief and release of stiffness.
So gentle movement in all parts of your body.
Movement that feels supportive.
Motion that brings relief.
That releases stiffness.
The next,
Picture your breath writing new sentences of support,
Safety,
And resilience into the story of your body.
So the breath,
Writing new sentences,
Bringing support,
Safety,
And resilience into your body story.
And you may notice areas of stillness and areas of gentle motion.
Each holding its own story.
Stillness and motion coexisting.
Each with their own story.
And know that you are the author.
You can notice that story.
You can honor that story.
And you can rewrite it as you go.
You are the author.
You can notice,
Honor,
And rewrite that story as you go.
And letting that integrate for a few moments in silence before we move on to integration and closing.
And whenever you feel ready,
Starting some gentle motion,
Gentle movement,
Perhaps in the fingers and the toes.
Just small rotations or flexions.
And notice any areas that feel lighter,
Warmer,
Or more supported.
And you may wish at this point also to repeat your intention or sankapa if you chose one.
And I'll repeat the one that I offered in keeping with the theme for this practice.
I honor my body story and allow new narratives of ease and resilience.
And you may remain in stillness or motion.
Keeping your eyes closed or open.
And know that you can return to this sense of ease and your rewritten story whenever you choose.
And I'd like to thank you today for pausing,
Resting,
Noticing,
And rewriting today.
Namaste.
