Welcome to Trauma-Informed Tension Release,
Yoga Nidra,
By Planet and Peace of Mind of the Athenaeum Collection,
LLC.
My name's Marlo and I'll be your guide today.
In this Yoga Nidra,
We will progress through a tension release exercise,
A comparison of opposites and a rapid image visualization.
If at any time you feel overly activated,
Triggered,
Or like your window of tolerance is being exceeded,
You're invited to return your awareness to your breath.
You can take a moment to journal through your thoughts or you can end the Yoga Nidra practice.
Please do whatever feels right for you.
It's time for Yoga Nidra.
Please find a supine position on your back.
I invite you to place a bolster or pillow under the knees for added support.
You may also try placing a blanket over yourself or a small eye mask over your eyes for more comfort.
Take a moment to find a position that will be comfortable for the duration of this 60-minute practice.
It's best that you remain still during Yoga Nidra so that your body and your brain have a chance to fully relax.
However,
If you become uncomfortable,
Please feel free to change position,
Journal out any thoughts that might be lingering,
Or take a pause and end the practice.
Please listen to your body.
I invite you to close your eyes and keep them closed until practice has ended.
The practice of Yoga Nidra is a practice of yogic sleep.
It will help guide you to a state of consciousness between wakefulness and sleeping.
Try to remain awake by listening to the sound of my voice.
You will be asked to move your awareness through various bodily sensations and mental images.
Try not to concentrate too intensely,
As this may prevent you from relaxing.
During this meditation,
If any visualization activates a stress response within you,
You might try bringing your awareness back to the breath.
Again,
You could also take a moment to journal through your thoughts,
Or if it feels right for you,
You can choose to end your Yoga Nidra practice.
If your mind becomes overactive with thoughts and worries,
You can also return your focus back to the sound of my voice.
Let's begin our relaxation.
Become aware of any sounds that you can hear in this moment.
Nothing else,
Only what you can hear without strain.
Begin to focus on the most distant sound that you can hear.
Let your sense of hearing radiate outwards.
Searching out these distant sounds and following them for a few moments.
Move your attention from sound to sound,
Without labeling the source.
Gradually bring your attention to closer sounds.
To sounds outside the building.
To sounds inside the building.
To sounds inside the room.
With closed eyes,
I invite you to visualize the four walls of the room.
The ceiling.
The floor.
And your body lying on the floor.
Visualize your body lying on the floor.
The position of your body.
Your hands.
And your feet.
Become acutely aware of the existence of your physical body lying on the floor.
I invite you to become aware of your natural breath.
Become aware of your natural and spontaneous breath that moves in and out of your body without any effort.
The natural breath flows in through both nostrils.
Notice the feeling of the breath as it comes in and out of your nostrils.
There is a sense of coolness as you inhale the breath.
Follow this feeling into your nose.
Your sinuses.
The back of your throat.
And into your lungs.
There is a sense of warmth as you exhale the breath.
Feel this warmth on your upper lip as you breathe out.
The natural breath flows through both nostrils during the inhale and the exhale.
Allow your breath to become longer and slower.
Take a long,
Slow inhalation.
Followed by a longer,
Slower exhalation.
Make each exhale even slower.
Notice the slight pause after the exhale.
Slow inhale.
Even slower exhale.
And pause.
Feel the urge to breathe bubble up inside you.
When you need to inhale,
Do so.
Long,
Slow inhale.
Longer,
Slower exhale.
And pause where the body is neither breathing in nor breathing out between each breath.
Take a moment to continue breathing in this way.
Now,
Return back to the natural,
Easy breath.
Release any control over your inhales and exhales.
Now,
It's time for our sankalpa.
Say to yourself,
I'm practicing yoga nidra.
I am awake and relaxed.
The practice of yoga nidra begins now.
At this moment,
You should make your sankalpa,
Your resolve.
Set your intention.
The sankalpa should be a short,
Positive statement in simple language.
Try to discover one naturally.
Please state your sankalpa clearly in your mind with awareness three times.
The sankalpa you make during yoga nidra plants a seed in the fertile soil of your mind to bring about transformation and healing.
We will now begin a systematic journey of sensory awareness throughout the body.
If it feels right for you,
Move your awareness to different parts of the body as soon as you hear them named.
As you hear the name of the body parts,
Create tension through that body part by tightening the muscles,
Then relaxing the muscles.
We'll begin with the right toes.
Tense through the right toes.
Squeeze the right toes.
Release.
Right foot.
Tense the right foot.
Release.
Tense the right calf.
Release.
The right quad.
Tense the right quad.
Release.
Tense the entire right leg.
Release.
Next,
Tense the left toes.
And release.
Tense the left foot.
And release.
Tense the left calf.
Tense through the left calf.
And release.
The left quad.
Tense the left quad.
Release.
Tense the entire left leg.
Release.
Next,
The abdomen.
Tense through the abdomen.
And release.
Tense through the ribcage and diaphragm.
Release.
Tense the right fingers.
Release.
The right hand.
Tense the entire right hand.
Release.
The right forearm.
Tense the right forearm.
And release.
Tense the right bicep.
Release.
Tense the right shoulder.
Release.
The entire right arm.
Fingertips to shoulder.
Tense the entire right arm.
And release.
Take a moment to reconnect to your breath.
Next,
We will tense the left fingers.
Tense the left fingers.
Release.
Tense the left hand.
Release.
Tense the left forearm.
Release.
The left bicep.
Tense the left bicep.
Release.
Tense the left shoulder.
And release.
The entire left arm.
Tense the entire left arm from the fingertips to the shoulder.
Release.
Tense both shoulders.
Release.
Next,
Tense the muscles of the neck.
Release.
The jaw.
Tense the jaw.
Release.
Tense the eyebrows.
Drawing the eyebrows together up,
Down.
And release.
On your next inhale,
Tense the entire body from head to toe.
Inhale and tense the whole body.
And as you exhale,
Release all the muscles in the body.
Releasing all tension.
Again,
On your next inhale,
Tense through the whole body from head to toe.
And as you exhale,
Release all tension from the body.
Letting it melt away.
Feeling the body resting into the floor.
Now imagine the whole body becoming light.
As though your body could float away from the floor and toward the ceiling.
The head is light and weightless.
The limbs are light and weightless.
The torso is light and weightless.
The whole body is light and weightless.
You are rising higher and higher away from the floor.
Now imagine your body becoming heavy.
Feel the heaviness in all parts of the body.
Each part is becoming heavier and heavier and heavier.
The head is heavy.
The limbs are heavy.
The torso is heavy.
The whole body is heavy.
So heavy that it feels like it's slowly lowering down into the floor.
I invite you to awaken the experience of cold in the body.
The experience of chilly cold.
Imagine being outside in winter without enough clothing.
You feel this chill permeate through your entire body.
Now allow the sensation of warmth to spread throughout the entire body.
Remember the feeling of heat in the summer when you're out in the sun with no shade.
You feel heat radiating onto your skin.
Heat all around the body.
Now I invite you to recollect the experience of alert awareness and vigilance.
Feel this awareness in your mind and body,
But do not concentrate on its source.
Create the experience of alert awareness as clearly as possible.
Now I invite you to allow the feeling of complete relaxed awareness to envelop you.
Manifest the experience of relaxation in the entire mind,
Body,
And emotions.
You are calmly aware.
You are completely relaxed.
Begin to concentrate on the space in front of your closed eyelids.
You might try to imagine before you a transparent screen as though you were at the movie theater.
The screen is as high and as wide as the eyes can see.
Concentrate on this mind screen and become aware of any phenomena that manifests within it.
Colors,
Patterns,
Or lights.
Whatever you see is the manifesting state of your mind.
Continue your awareness of this space,
But do not become involved.
Practice detached awareness only.
If any subtle images make themselves known,
Simply notice them without directing the images.
If thoughts occur,
Let them come and let them go.
Continue watching the dark space.
Continue this detached awareness.
If at any time you become overwhelmed or activated,
You are invited to return back to the awareness of the breath,
Return back to the sound of my voice.
You can always take a moment to journal through your thoughts,
Or if you need to,
You can end your yoga nidra practice.
Try to continue watching the dark space.
Continue practicing detached awareness.
Now a number of different things will be named.
I invite you to envision them on the level of emotion,
Memory,
And imagination as best you can.
Try to jump from image to image as soon as you hear it.
Sunrise on the beach.
Sunset on the beach.
Icy mountain peaks.
Snow-covered trees.
A good night's rest.
A full moon.
Light from a campfire.
A foggy morning.
A cool breeze.
Bright sunshine overhead.
Tracks in the snow.
Receiving help from others.
Cool,
Clear water.
Chopping firewood.
A relaxing afternoon.
Laughing with friends.
A warm embrace.
A burning candle.
Being alone.
A path in the woods.
Vibrant sunset.
Taking a deep breath.
Big,
Crashing waves.
A lighthouse.
Your favorite song.
The sound of my voice.
Your body lying on the floor.
It's time to repeat your sankalpa.
Please repeat the statement made at the beginning of practice three times mentally now.
I invite you to repeat the same statement you made at the beginning of practice,
Your sankalpa,
Three times in your mind.
Come back to the feeling of your breath flowing in and out of your nostrils.
Maintain your awareness of your breath,
And at the same time,
Develop your awareness of your physical body.
Your body is relaxed and lying on the floor.
Feel the container of your skin and the clothes and the props that you are touching.
Notice the heaviness of your body as it rests on the floor.
Take your awareness into all the points that are touching the floor.
The back of your heels,
The thighs,
The buttocks,
The shoulder blades,
The arms,
Hands,
And head.
Feeling the heaviness of the body as it rests on the floor.
Taking into awareness all the points that are touching the floor.
On your next inhale,
I invite you to tense the entire body.
Exhale and release all tension.
I invite you to keep the eyes closed,
But to begin visualizing the room surrounding you.
Imagine where you are in the room and the other objects that are surrounding you.
Lie quietly until you feel ready to move.
If it feels right for you,
Start by slowly moving your hands and feet,
Wiggling through the fingers,
Possibly wiggling through the toes,
Taking your time,
There is no hurry.
When you are sure that you are fully awake,
You might try to gently open the eyes.
When it feels right for you,
Begin to roll over to the right side.
Remain on the right side for a few moments if you have moved.
You might try using your hands to press yourself up from the floor and allow your head to come up last.
Or you can choose to remain laying here as long as you need.
If you have decided to move to a seated position,
Our practice of yoga nidra is now complete.
Thank you for joining us.
