Yoga Nidra For Hypermobility, Anxiety & Chronic Pain- 26mins

This Yoga Nidra practice is designed especially for people with hypermobility, anxiety, and chronic pain, offering deep support for nervous system regulation and rest. As a yoga teacher living with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, with trauma-informed and specialist training in yoga for hypermobility, I understand firsthand how powerful restorative practices can be for our sensitive systems.

Research shows that hypermobile people are more prone to heightened anxiety. Gentle, supportive relaxation like Yoga Nidra can be a hugely supportive resource. In this guided practice, you’re invited to get comfortable, adapt your setup as needed, and simply follow my voice as you settle into deep, supported rest.

If you're practicing this multiple times and want to skip the beginning context setting after listening to it the first time, then you might like to skip straight to 3:30 =)

Transcript

Welcome to your yoga nidra practice,

A guided relaxation.

Start getting set up in a way that feels accessible and supportive for you,

Lying on your back with a pillow or bolster under the knees.

Do what you need to do to get as comfortable as is available to you today and really set up as much support as you need.

We want you to feel able to sink into that support,

So if you need a neck pillow or cushions under your arms,

Just get everything ready now and make sure you're warm too,

So maybe get a blanket.

While you get yourself set up and really take the time to get supported,

I'll introduce this practice.

So yoga practices like yoga nidra can support nervous system regulation for everyone and as a yoga teacher living with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome,

Who has done a lot of trauma-informed training and specialist training into yoga for hypermobility,

I've noticed through my lived experience and through my training that restorative practices like yoga nidra can be especially supportive for hypermobile folk.

So we're often managing things that come alongside hypermobility like anxiety,

Chronic pain,

Injury recovery,

Nausea or gastro symptoms and so much more.

And people with hypermobility can actually have a more sensitized nervous system,

So gentle restorative practices can be especially supportive for us.

As a super quick intro for those who like to contextualize your practice,

I'll really quickly mention that the autonomic nervous system has two main branches,

The sympathetic fight or flight,

Getting us alert,

Mobilized,

Ready to act,

And the parasympathetic,

Also known as rest and digest,

Slows the system down so we can recover,

Digest and restore.

And we need both,

The parasympathetic and the sympathetic,

We need to ebb and flow between the states.

What can cause issue is when one state becomes overactive for too long and we have trouble switching between the two,

So for some that can show as an overactive stress response.

And the challenge for many with hypermobility syndromes like EDS,

HSD,

Is that we may be more prone to sympathetic overdrive,

So hypervigilant,

Wired and tired.

Dr.

Jessica Eccles did research that found hypermobile people are more likely to have heightened anxiety.

And of course part of this can be due to the anxiety of living with a complex health condition.

But her new research also shows distinct neural patterns that offer insights into the brain-body link between hypermobility and anxiety.

So all of that to provide a little bit of context for why we're doing this practice.

And the whole experience of Yoga Nidra is to shift the body into a deeply relaxed state,

Aiding parasympathetic activation.

This can support rest,

It can support pain management,

It can support sensory regulation,

Recovery from fatigue.

So,

Let's get started on our Yoga Nidra practice,

This guided meditation done lying down.

Traditionally it is done lying on your back,

But if lying on your side or in any other way would be more comfortable and supportive for you,

Then do feel free to adapt.

And the main instruction to introduce is to rest back and follow my voice that is guiding you.

So,

If you drift off don't worry,

Trust that your body and mind are taking what they need from this experience.

So to begin with,

I invite you to bring a little bit of awareness to the jaw area.

And that might mean taking a swallow,

Might even be taking a deliberate gentle yawn,

Maybe not opening the mouth too wide.

You might kind of rub the lips together a bit and then soften them.

See if you can bring a soft feeling to this area of the mouth.

Next,

Guide your awareness to the point between the eyebrows,

So really notice that point where you might sometimes frown or furrow the brow.

You can even take a deliberate frown if you like to help your body understand the difference between tension,

So taking a deliberate frown,

Notice that tension across the brow.

And then relax from there,

Let softness spread across the forehead.

If it's comfortable,

The eyes are closed,

And a gentle sense of softness spreads across the whole face.

Bring awareness to the back of the head,

In particular noticing where the back of the head is heavy,

Resting back and fully supported.

Maybe take a moment to notice how,

Because you're lying down and the head is supported,

The neck isn't having to work here to hold your head up,

So you can release any effort from the neck.

Next guide your awareness to the back of the right shoulder,

And really notice the back of the right shoulder resting down on the ground.

Feel a sense of softness spread all the way down the upper right arm,

The right forearm,

Into the right palm.

And if the backs of the hands are on the floor,

Perhaps you can feel a sense of heaviness in the back of the right hand,

Maybe even the fingers curling in gently towards the palm.

Bring awareness to the left shoulder,

And where the left shoulder makes contact with your support.

Feel a sense of softness and relaxation spread down the left upper arm,

The left forearm,

And to the left palm.

Again,

If the back of your hands are on the floor,

Out wide by the side,

Can you feel a sense of heaviness in the back of the left hand,

Perhaps the fingers curling in gently towards the palm.

Next,

Guide your awareness to the back of the waist,

And perhaps there is room for the back of the waist to drop a little closer to your support,

Whether that's the bed or the ground,

Wherever you're lying.

Then bring your awareness to the right glute,

Where it makes contact with your support,

The back of the right thigh,

The back of the right knee resting on a cushion or a bolster,

The back of the right lower leg and the right heel.

Feel a sense of softness in the sole of the right foot,

And relax all of the right toes.

Next,

Bring your awareness to the left glute,

Where it makes contact with your support,

Awareness to the back of the left thigh,

The back of the left knee fully supported by the cushion,

And the back of the left lower leg,

The left heel.

Feel a sense of softness in the sole of the left foot,

And relax all of the toes on the left foot.

So now,

From the top of your head all the way down to the tips of your toes,

The body is fully relaxed.

There's a sense of softening spreading through the body.

And the invitation now is to repeat the following words internally three times.

So I'm going to state the words,

And the invitation is for you to repeat these words three times in your own mind.

I am making space to rest.

Effort slips away in this moment as I invite in ease.

I am making space to rest.

Effort slips away in this moment as I invite in ease.

At this point,

Picture or bring to mind somewhere you feel at ease,

Somewhere that elicits feelings of calm and safety.

It might even be where you are now if you feel really good there.

Or maybe it's a natural setting that makes you feel particularly supported and safe connected to nature.

You might be alone there,

Or perhaps with a loved animal companion.

The idea is to explore a felt sense of safety and warmth in your body,

So sometimes thinking of a place can help with that.

See if you can get a sense of the warmth and the safety that the place elicits.

You might feel it really clearly,

Maybe it's more of a tiny sense or an echo.

Any way you experience this is all good,

You can't get it wrong.

Now,

Next begin to draw your focus to the gentle rise and fall of the breath.

So as you inhale the navel rises,

And as you exhale the navel falls.

And I'll invite you here to begin counting down from 32 with the rise and fall of the navel.

So it will sound a little bit like this.

32,

Inhale,

Navel rises.

32,

Exhale,

Navel falls.

31,

Inhale,

Navel rises.

31,

Exhale,

Navel falls.

30,

Inhale,

Navel rises.

30,

Exhale,

Navel falls.

Keep counting down at your rhythm.

Release the counting from your mind's focus if you haven't done so already.

And rest here for a few moments.

If it feels accessible to you,

See if you can really notice the breath coming in and out of the body.

So notice which parts gently expand with the inhale.

And then where do you feel a sense of release on the exhale?

Can you maybe even soften the body closer to the ground with each exhale?

Perhaps behind the waist gets a little heavier in particular on the exhale.

Really let the bones rest without any effort at all.

And really feel a sense of lightness and lift in the front body with the expansion of every inhale.

A sense of heaviness through the back body on the exhale.

And keep noticing the difference in sensation between the two.

So you have the lightness of the front body on the inhale and the sinking down into the ground with a heaviness through the back body on every exhale.

Then these two opposites begin to dissolve into one so you feel both at the same time.

Lightness and lift as well as sinking down and grounding into your support.

This practice of holding two opposite experiences in your body at once can be especially supportive for those of us who deal with chronic pain or bothersome symptoms as it can help us to access a sense of more than one thing being true at the same time.

Perhaps now you can find a part of your body that feels comfortable and soft.

Maybe the palm of the hand,

The cheek on the face or maybe for you it's another part of the body.

See if you can scan your awareness over the body and search for a part that feels at least a little bit soft and relaxed.

And then scan your awareness for a part of your body that feels braced or gripping or even sore if you have pain right now.

And very gently explore resting in awareness of both sensations at the same time so you have the softness,

The relaxation in one part of the body at the same time as the other part that might be a little bit more braced or uncomfortable.

You're allowing them both space to exist.

Maybe even conjuring up a sense of warmth towards the more challenging sensation.

A comforting voice that says I'm here with you,

I'm listening.

All the while feeling the ebb and flow of the breath.

And I'll invite you here to take a big sigh out of the mouth to release all of that from your mind's focus.

So inhale fully,

Deep breath in and exhale to sigh out the mouth.

There is space to do that a couple more times.

You could even take an audible sigh out the mouth,

Maybe even a groan if you like.

So inhale,

Deep breath in.

Exhale,

Big sigh out,

Making as much noise as you feel comfortable to right now.

And one more.

Inhale,

Deep breath in.

Exhale,

Sigh out.

So next I'm going to list different images.

If you can see visual representations in your mind's eye,

Picture the images.

If not,

Then repeat the words.

And whichever version you're doing,

You might be able to access a feeling that comes with each image or word.

So let's begin.

A cloudless blue sky.

A yellow daffodil.

A white feather floating through the air.

A starry night sky,

Endless and still.

Soft snow crunching underfoot.

Warm sunlight glistening on a lake.

Maybe here you can come back to the warm feeling of the sky.

A comforting place that you imagined at the beginning.

Or you could bring in some other kind of resource that elicits those feelings of okayness in the body.

So maybe that's thinking about stroking a cat that you really love.

Or some sort of experience,

Place,

Person,

Animal that really makes you feel warm and safe.

And then bring your focus back to the words we said at the start and repeat them once more internally now.

So the words were,

I am making space to rest.

Effort slips away in this moment as I invite in ease.

Rest back here.

Soaking up your relaxation and knowing how important it is to rest.

Trust that your body knows how to rest.

Rest,

Restore and replenish.

Even when anxiety,

Chronic pain and other really challenging experiences get loud,

Know that there is a peaceful quiet within you too.

Sometimes it can be hard to access but practices like this yoga nidra guided relaxation can really help you to get closer to that quiet,

Calm within.

A few final moments of rest here.

Know that you're doing a really good job.

If you have the time to rest a little longer,

You've got the space for that,

Then feel free to stay here.

You can turn the recording off now.

But if you're ready to close the practice,

Then I will invite you to slowly become aware of the support beneath you.

So notice where the back of the head meets its support,

Backs of the shoulders,

Arms,

Back of the waist,

Back of the pelvis,

Backs of the legs and the heels.

And really feel the support beneath your body as though it's pressing up to hold your body.

Take a few deep full breaths and invite really small movements into the body.

So wiggle the fingers and the toes,

Kind of like an animal waking up from the slumber of a deep hibernation.

Can you bring very small gentle movements in?

So you're shifting and stirring awake.

Eventually roll over to one side.

And then you can really slowly and calmly whenever you're ready,

Make your way up to seated.

Blink the eyes open if they're not already.

Take a little look around.

You notice a few things in the room that you're in.

What three colours can you see?

What's the first three colours you see?

You can list them to yourself.

Maybe look out the window if you have one.

And if you like you could use a little bit of touch as well,

Maybe stroking your face or massaging slightly the jaw area or giving yourself like a squeeze,

Hugging muscle to bone in the upper arms or whatever feels interesting to you,

Whether it's a light gentle stroke on your skin or a more firm squeeze.

And then if you're still with me,

You might even want to give yourself a hug here,

Wrapping the arms around you gently and saying thank you to yourself for taking the time to do this practice.

Thank you so much for joining me.

And remember with yoga nidra as well,

You can experience the practice very differently on different days.

So it could be curious and interesting to do this practice multiple times on different days and see how you experience it each time.

And that's the end of the audio today.

Thank you for joining.