Yoga Nidra For Sleep And Insomnia

Settle in for a deeply restful night with this extended 90 minute bedtime meditation. The first hour is a soothing guided Yoga Nidra practice designed to quieten the mind and relax the body by easing any tension. After the guidance fades, you’ll drift naturally into sleep with the support of soft, continuous meditation music. Whether you struggle with insomnia, a busy mind, or simply want to drift off to sleep in a relaxed state, this practice -accompanied by Meditation Music by Peter B. Helland and calming sounds of birdsong- is designed to carry you gently into sleep and help you stay there peacefully.

Transcript

Hello and welcome, My name is Dee Dam and I will be your guide today. This practice is designed to help you drift off to sleep by relaxing the body, Quieting the mind and allowing you to settle into deep rest. This is an effortless practice where nothing is expected of you but to gently follow the guidance of my voice. Begin by finding a comfortable position, Perhaps in your bed or elsewhere, Lying down on your back or if you wish on your side, Gathering any pillows or blankets, So you can begin to relax fully. Feeling the weight and warmth of your blanket, The support of the earth beneath you, Now begin to close down the eyes and gently lean into the darkness behind closed eyelids. Now from the crown of the head, Begin to draw a circle of protective energy around your body with soft golden light, Let this circle of light draw a boundary between the realm of thought and your cosy sanctuary of deep sleep. You are welcome to relax here in this space, There is nothing expected of you, You are welcome just as you are. As your body rests and relaxes in this knowing, Come deeper into the earth with a sweet pull of gravity. Now let's take three breaths together, Two sips in through the nose and a long exhale from the mouth, Inhale, Hold, Exhale, Inhale, One last time, Inhale, Hold. Now come back to the natural rhythm of your breath, Let your shoulders drop, Your jaw loosen, Your tongue soften, Let your eyes fall back into their sockets, Resting behind closed eyelids. Feel the weight of your body and allow it to get heavier and heavier as you draw your attention inwards even more. Notice the rise and fall of your belly, Let your body soften with every inhale, Imagine releasing the whole scalp, All the muscles in your face, As gravity invites you to sink deeper into the earth, Effortlessly letting yourself relax, The body already knows how to rest deeply, The body already knows the natural and effortless state of deep sleep. Release the need to control your mind and surrender and allow yourself to listen, Sense and feel, Drop thinking, Let the mind be swallowed up by the heart, Allowing thoughts to fade and dissolve. There is no effort required here, As you come into the depths of stillness, Relaxed and at ease, Let mother earth do what she knows best, Let her carry you as you lay to rest all that you've been carrying, For this is your sanctuary for deep rest. Now imagine breathing into your heart space, In and out through the heart and as you do so, Welcome an intention and whisper mentally three times, I effortlessly drift off to sleep, I effortlessly drift off to sleep. Now let your awareness travel throughout your body, With the guidance of my voice, Land your awareness inside the mouth, Mouth, Root of the tongue, Tip of the tongue, Inside right cheek, Inside left cheek, Ears listening, Air on the skin of the earlobes, Tip of the nose, Sensing the flow of air inside the right nostril, Sensing the flow of air inside the left nostril, As you notice the air going in and out, Notice the ocean of air all around you, Now bring attention between the brows, Tingling aliveness and sensation of both eyes, The center between the brows, A sense of aliveness all around the skull and hair, Landing awareness back and down towards the back of the head, Sensing the weight of the head, Bringing awareness to the crown of the head, Awareness to the front of the throat, The collarbones left and right simultaneously, The shoulder on the right side, Upper arm, Wrist, Landing awareness on the right hand thumb, Second finger, All five fingers, As you sense the space in between the fingers, Noticing if you can sense where the fingers end and the space around the fingers begins, Sensing the flow of energy in and around all the fingers, The fingers, The flow of life, A warm tingling sensation, And the sensations of the fingers themselves, Bringing awareness to the hand from the inside out, The whole right hand, Now sensing the palm of the hand, Right side of the chest, Right waist, Right side of the belly, Right side of the pelvis, The tips of the toes, Now sensing the space in between the toes, Begin to sense or imagine the space in between the toes, Now sensing the warmth in the toes as a tingling sensation and the sensations of the toes themselves, And notice if you can sense where the toes end and where the space around them begins, As you bring awareness to the toes, Let them dissolve and become one with the space around them, From the inside out, Now invite attention to the top of the foot, Right side of the belly, Right waist, Right side of the chest, Whole right side, The whole right hemisphere of the body, Simultaneously the right hemisphere of the body and the left hemisphere of the brain, Could you invite the left hemisphere of the brain and the whole right hemisphere of the body simultaneously, Now bring awareness to the centre of the chest, The whole right side of the body and the left brain, Now bring awareness to the centre of the chest, The shoulder on the left side, Wrist, Now bring awareness to the right side of the body and the left side of the body, Now bring awareness to the right side of the body and the left side of the body, Now bring awareness to the left side of the body and the right side of the body, Now bring awareness to the right side of the body and the left side of the body, Now bring awareness to the right side of the body and the left side of the body, Sensing the flow of energy in and around the fingers and the sensations of the fingers themselves, Bringing awareness to the hand from the inside out, Now sensing the palm of the hand, The wrist, Left side of the chest, Left side of the belly, Left side of the pelvis, Now sensing the space in between the toes, Begin to sense or imagine the space in between the toes, Now sensing the warmth in the toes and the sensations of the toes themselves and notice if you can sense where the toes end and where the space around them begins, As you bring awareness to the left side of the body, To the toes, Let them dissolve and become one with the space around them, And now bring awareness to the foot from the inside out, Now invite attention to the top of the foot, Sole of the foot, Front of the thigh, Left side of the belly, Left side of the chest, Whole left side, Simultaneously the left hemisphere of the body, And the right hemisphere of the brain, Could you invite the right hemisphere of the brain and the whole left hemisphere of the body, Simultaneously, Sensing the whole left side of the body and the right brain, Back to the centre of the chest, And begin to sense the whole body, The whole body as a unified field of sensation, Now sense the body breathing in and out, And the whole body breathing itself, Softening, On the next breath, Might you imagine breathing in through the soles of your feet, And then exhaling from the crown, Inhaling and imagining breath and energy, Flowing up towards the crown of the head, And as you exhale, Imagine a wave of relaxation, A wave of relaxation cascading down from the crown of your head, Out from the soles of the feet, For a few more breaths now, Inhaling up all the way, And exhaling down the spine, And again, Inhaling to surrender, And exhaling to release, Following the energy rising and falling effortlessly, Dropping into deeper stillness, And as you imagine a sense of peace and well-being, Spread into every cell of your body, Now welcoming the heaviness of your physical body, Now sensing your whole body heavy on the earth, Sensing heaviness, As if you could turn up the volume of gravity, And as your whole body becomes heavy, A sense of lightness, The body becoming lighter and lighter, As if you are floating, Floating, Just imagine what it would feel like with zero gravity, A sense of heaviness and lightness simultaneously, Sensing the body as heavy, Simultaneously, Now land your awareness on the space between the brows, Your mind's eye, The darkness behind closed eyelids, Night sky, Blanket of stars, Planets gently orbiting the sun, Orbiting the sun, Distant galaxies swirling slowly in the deep stillness of the universe, And with the next breath, Imagine a sense of lightness, Begin to arise in your body, As if the body is becoming lighter and lighter, As if you are effortlessly floating, Just infinite sky, Light as a feather, You pass through soft, Dreamy clouds, The earth slowly fades into the distance, Becoming smaller and softer, A sense of vast, Open space, As you gently drift through space, Weightless, Galaxies far away moving slowly, Now resting as awareness itself, In a vast, Spacious field, As it draws you in,