Welcome,
My name is Alina and the intention of this practice is to relax the muscles and the mind in order to perceive and receive the body's wisdom and intentionally promote the body's innate ability to heal through deep conscious rest.
You might try this after a workout or yoga practice or any time you wish to promote healing in the physical body.
Yoga Nidra has been shown to improve proprioception or body awareness.
You can think of proprioception as the mind's ability to sense where the body is in space non-visually,
Which can be very central to injury prevention.
Developing this internally oriented sensing capability can also help the mind's ability to discern when movement is in service to growth and healing or towards overexertion and injury.
I have a history of pushing my body too hard,
Resulting in repeated injuries and Yoga Nidra has helped me to not only listen to my body,
But to respond to its needs and limitations compassionately and rewire my subconscious mind away from being overly forceful and towards a healthier,
More respectful relationship with my body.
Begin by laying on your back,
In your bed or on any cozy supportive surface where you'll be free from distractions.
You might pause this video to silence any notifications and get yourself situated with pillows beneath the head or under the knees to support the hips and low back,
A blanket to keep you warm and an eye covering to block out any light.
We'll start with three physiological sighs,
Take two sips of air in through the nose and sigh it out through the mouth.
Again two sips in through the nose and out through the mouth.
Last one.
Allow yourself to arrive fully here.
Body relaxed,
Heavy,
Sinking into the support beneath you.
Hips falling open to either side,
Shoulders relaxing down.
Make any adjustments you might need to bring even more comfort and support.
Be sure that any pillows,
Blankets and clothing are positioned comfortably on the body.
What would change if you were to become 5% more comfortable?
Know that it's always worth it to take the extra time here to adjust so that the body might be able to remain still for the duration of this practice.
Of course,
You are welcome to make any adjustments that you may need at any point throughout the practice,
But see if you can listen to the body here to anticipate any needs that might come up.
Observe if there's any momentum residing in the body or the mind.
Allow any thoughts of the day or week to subside,
Knowing that for this time there's nothing that you need to do,
No action you need to take,
But to be open to my guidance and remain present with the wisdom of your internal experience.
There's no wrong way to practice yoga nidra,
However your experience unfolds is exactly what the body needs from this time.
Notice yourself breathing,
The gentle rise and fall of the chest,
Observe the natural rhythm of the breath without trying to change it.
Notice the ears,
Listening,
Open,
Receptive to sound.
Notice sounds in the distance,
Sounds nearby,
The sound of my voice,
Notice the layers of sound,
Allow any leftover expression to drain from the face,
Relax the space between the eyebrows,
The temples,
The jaw.
Observe the complete stillness of the tongue and eyes.
Imagine that you could relax the muscle of the brain,
Like a fist,
Unclenching,
Your awareness to wash over the body from the top of the head down the torso,
Arms,
Hips,
Legs,
Down to the feet.
Are there places where you feel more sensation than others,
Perhaps an area of the body that's suffered injury or a greater focus of your physical practice,
Or somewhere affected by a repeated daily motion or lack of motion.
You might notice parts of the body that hold tension under stress.
If there are any specific areas that might have a greater need for healing or recovery,
I invite you to let your awareness rest here,
Allowing the sensations in this region to build and intensify.
In Yoga Nidra,
We practice Sankalpa,
Setting an intention for each practice.
If you have Sankalpa that you've been working with,
You might call it in now.
Or,
While maintaining this awareness of the tingling sensation,
I invite you to repeat the following affirmation internally three times.
I am resting deeply within myself,
Allowing my body to heal.
Or,
I trust my body's innate ability to heal.
We'll now begin a rotation of consciousness,
Allowing the awareness to flow into different parts of the body as they are named.
Bring all of your awareness to the muscle of the tongue,
Tingling with sensation.
Locate the part of the tongue that senses any residual flavor left in the mouth.
The root of the tongue.
Inside the left cheek.
Inside the right cheek.
Upper gums and teeth.
Lower gums and teeth.
Flow of the air at the tip of the nostrils.
Inside the left nostril.
Inside the right nostril.
Center of the forehead.
Left eyebrow.
Right eyebrow.
Left temple.
Left eye.
Resting back into the head.
Completely still.
Right eye.
Resting back into the head.
Completely still.
Notice the left ear.
Listening.
Receiving sound vibrations deep within the ear canal.
Right ear.
Listening.
Receiving sound vibrations deep within the ear canal.
Space between the ears.
Crown of the head.
Base of the head.
Base of the neck.
Trapezius muscle between the base of the neck and the top of the right shoulder.
Space where the right shoulder meets the chest.
Awareness flows down the inner edge of the bicep.
Towards the thumb side of the elbow.
Inner edge of the forearm and wrist.
Space on the palm between the thumb and first finger.
Tip of the right thumb.
Tip of the first finger.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
The entire palm of the hand.
Radiating with sensation.
Back of the hand.
Outer edge of the wrist and forearm.
Connecting to the pinky edge of the elbow.
Pinky edge of the upper arm and bicep.
Surface area of the entire shoulder and rotator cuff.
Space where the shoulder meets the chest.
Front of the right side of the chest and pectoral muscles.
Front of the left side of the chest and pectoral muscles.
Space where the left shoulder meets the chest.
Inner edge of the upper arm and bicep.
Connecting to the thumb side of the elbow.
Inner edge of the forearm and thumb side of the wrist.
Space on the palm between the first finger and thumb.
Tip of the left thumb.
Tip of the first finger.
Second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger.
Entire palm of the hand.
Radiating with sensation.
Back of the hand.
Pinky edge of the wrist.
Connecting through the forearm to the outer edge of the elbow.
Outer edge of the upper arm and bicep.
Connecting to the shoulder.
Spreading up and around the entire surface area of the shoulder and rotator cuff.
Trapezius muscle.
Connecting the left shoulder to the base of the neck.
Right side of the neck.
Back of the right shoulder and shoulder blade.
Right side of the thoracic spine and upper back.
Right side of the lumbar spine and the lower back.
Right side of the waist.
Right sitz bone.
Top of the right hamstring.
Base of the right hamstring.
Back of the knee.
Calf muscle.
Heel of the foot.
Inner edge of the ankle and foot.
Outer edge of the ankle and foot.
Deep within the ankle.
Entire sole of the foot.
All five toes.
Starting with the big toe.
Five.
Four.
Three.
Two.
One.
Top of the foot.
Front side of the ankle.
Inner edge of the shin.
Outer edge of the shin.
Tendon connecting the shin to the front side of the knee.
Knee cap.
Top of the knee connecting to the thigh.
Quadricep.
Connection between the top of the thigh and the psoas.
Hip flexor.
Space where the inner edge of the thigh meets the torso.
Down the inner thigh to the inner edge of the knee.
Upper edge of the knee connecting to the left thigh.
Quadricep.
Top of the thigh connecting to the psoas and hip flexor.
Hip flexor.
Space where the inner thigh meets the torso.
Inner edge of the thigh.
Connection between the inner edge of the thigh and the knee.
The entire knee cap.
Tendon connecting the knee cap to the shin.
Front of the shin.
Inner edge of the shin.
Outer edge of the shin.
Front of the ankle.
Top of the foot.
All five toes starting with the big toe.
Five.
Four.
Three.
Two.
One.
Pinky edge of the foot.
Inner edge of the foot.
The entire sole of the foot.
Outer side of the ankle and ankle bone.
Inner side of the ankle.
Space between the inner and outer edges of the ankle.
Heel.
Calf.
Back of the knee.
Tendon connecting the back of the knee to the base of the hamstring.
Top of the hamstring.
Left sits bone.
Left side of the waist.
Base of the left side of the low back and lumbar spine.
Left side of the thoracic spine and upper back.
Back of the left shoulder and shoulder blade.
Back of the heart.
Front of the heart.
Left lung.
Breathing.
Right lung.
Breathing.
Heart center.
Notice the beat of your heart.
Base of the throat.
Center of the front of the throat.
Breath at the back of the throat.
Breath at the tip of the nostrils.
Notice the breath at the tip of the nostrils without trying to change it or alter the breath in any way.
Observe the natural rhythm of the breath.
The body knows how to breathe.
Notice the coolness of the inhale.
Warmth of the exhale.
On the inhale,
Oxygen filling the lungs.
On the exhale,
Oxygen flooding out into every cell of the body.
Tingling with aliveness.
Energy circulating from the lungs throughout the entire body.
While maintaining relaxed awareness of the breath,
Can you simultaneously become aware of the line connecting the base of the right side of the skull down the right side of the neck.
Back.
Behind the right knee.
All the way to the right big toe.
One line of sensation.
You might imagine the breath following this line.
Flowing up and down from the base of the right side of the skull down to the right big toe.
The line connecting the base of the right side of the skull down the right side of the neck.
Trapezius muscle.
Shoulder under the wrist.
All the way to the middle finger.
One line of sensation.
Breath flowing from the base of the skull to the tip of the middle finger.
The entire right arm now.
Right arm and the right side of the back and leg.
The entire right side of the body.
Entire right side of the body with the left hemisphere of the brain.
Tingling with sensation.
Notice the body breathing.
Find the lines of sensation connecting the base of the left side of the skull down the left side of the back.
Behind the left knee.
All the way to the left big toe.
One line of sensation.
From the base of the skull to the tip of the toe.
Now find the line connecting the base of the left side of the skull down the left side of the neck.
Trapezius muscle.
Shoulder under the wrist.
All the way to the left middle finger.
One line of sensation.
Breath flowing from the base of the skull to the tip of the middle finger.
The entire left side of the body with the right hemisphere of the brain.
Tingling with sensation.
The whole body now.
Awareness flooding the whole body now.
A tension divided equally between the left and the right.
Front and the back.
Outer edges of the body and deep within the body.
Radiating with sensation and aliveness.
Could you imagine what it would feel like to experience freedom in your body?
What would you do?
How would you move?
If there are specific movements or postures you've been working towards,
Can you identify,
Without any physical engagement,
Which muscles would need to activate in this posture or movement?
Maintain awareness here as you visualize yourself moving through your practice.
Spacious and agility.
That this practice is now completely effortless.
That your joints are stable.
Supported by strong muscles.
Trusting the support of your body.
Or feeling tones that arise as you move.
Fluidity.
Through your full range of motion.
Or perhaps feelings of gratitude.
For the body carrying you.
Simultaneously supple.
And through every fraction of a degree.
That your limbs rotate through.
And its location in space.
As you dance through this movement.
As the movement simply flows through you.
No resistance.
Open to the limitless field.
Abiding in this space of expansive freedom.
I invite you to repeat the following affirmations.
Internally.
After me.
I believe in my body's ability to heal.
I trust my body's ability to heal.
Welcome any emotions that are coming up.
Allowing them to be just as they are.
Notice where these emotions reside in the body.
Notice yourself breathing.
And as you're ready.
Notice the shape of your body.
Take a deep breath in.
And a deep breath out.
One more time.
Deep breath in through the nose.
Deep breath out through the mouth.
Welcome any intuitive movement that feels nourishing.
Notice any benefits from the practice resonating within you.
And take as much time as you need to return to the external world.
Perhaps avoiding anything too stimulating for the next few minutes.
