Welcome,
My name is Alina and this yoga nidra practice is particularly focused on promoting healing in the head,
Neck and jaw which are areas that can also be connected to issues like headaches and migraines.
You can think of this practice like an internal massage or mental acupuncture,
Relaxing and releasing the muscles as we scan through different regions of the body.
Find a position that feels comfortable and supportive for you,
Perhaps laying down in your bed or taking a reclined position somewhere cozy.
I recommend using some sort of eye covering to block out any light and a blanket to cover the body as the body's temperature will gradually drop as we get deeper into the practice.
As you settle in,
Pay special attention to the head,
Neck and shoulders,
Making sure that each vertebrae from the base of the skull to the base of the neck feels supported.
Find a comfortable angle for the head and neck where the forehead is slightly higher than the chin.
Check that there's no area of the body that feels the need to be doing any unnecessary holding.
Feel that the hips,
Shoulders,
Hands and head have surrendered all of their weight into the support beneath you as you become heavier and heavier with every exhale.
We'll start by taking three deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth.
On your next inhale,
Gently encourage the expansion of the breath in the belly,
Ribs and chest and exhaling through the whole torso evenly.
Two more times.
Inhaling into the belly,
Ribs and chest.
Exhaling,
Becoming even more relaxed.
Last time,
Breathing in through the belly,
Ribs and chest.
Exhaling,
Sinking even deeper into the cozy support beneath you,
Letting go.
Bring your awareness to the space between your eyebrows,
Allowing all the muscles of the forehead to melt and soften.
You might imagine the muscle of the mind like a fist,
Unclenching.
Notice if there's any tension in the jaw that you might be able to release.
Bring the tip of the tongue to the roof of the mouth behind the upper teeth,
Inviting a gentle separation between the upper and lower teeth.
Feel the eyes,
Left eye and right eye,
And all the little micro muscles around the eyes.
Allow the eyes to sink back into the head,
Resting.
Sometimes,
As we begin our rotation of consciousness,
The eyes like to try to follow along.
So I invite you to periodically,
Throughout the practice,
Check in with the eyes,
Reminding them that for now,
It's okay to relax into stillness.
There's nothing you need to do but to rest.
Yoga Nidra is an effortless meditation,
So there's no wrong way to practice.
However your experience unfolds will be exactly what the body needs,
Whether or not you retain conscious memory of the practice.
If you came into the practice with a specific area of pain or discomfort,
I invite you to rest your attention on that area.
Perhaps there's a general region of the body that's been bothering you,
Or perhaps you might be able to zoom in on the exact joint or muscle that the discomfort originates from.
Could you notice in even more detail the shape and location of sensation?
Approaching this area with curiosity,
If possible.
Simply noticing the quality of the sensation without judgment.
If you have a sankalpa you've been working with,
You might call it in now.
While maintaining awareness of the tingling sensation in this region of the body,
I invite you to repeat the following affirmation internally three times.
I am resting deeply within myself,
Allowing my body to heal.
I trust my body's ability to heal.
Could you bring all of your attention to the space between the tongue and the teeth?
The space where the tongue meets the roof of the mouth.
The space where the tongue meets the throat.
Underneath the tongue,
Sensing the taste buds and any residual flavor left in the mouth.
Upper teeth and gums.
Lower teeth and gums.
The jaw.
Left side of the jaw.
Space where the upper left side of the jaw meets the skull.
Forming the hinge that allows the mouth to open.
Left ear.
Muscles between the inner upper edge of the left ear.
And the left temple.
Muscles behind and around the left ear.
Muscles between the lower ear and the hinge of the jaw.
Jawbone connecting to the chin.
Right side of the jaw.
Space where the upper right side of the jaw meets the skull.
Creating a hinge for the mouth.
Right ear.
Muscles between the inner upper edge of the right ear and the right temple.
Muscles behind and around the right ear.
Muscles between the lower ear and the hinge of the jaw.
Base of the right side of the skull.
Connecting to the upper right neck muscles.
Right side of the neck.
Lower right side of the neck.
Connecting to the trapezius muscle that spreads all the way to the shoulder.
And down the upper right side of the upper back.
Base of the neck.
Left trapezius muscle.
From the upper back to the left shoulder to the base of the neck.
Left side of the neck.
Base of the left side of the skull.
The seven vertebrae from the base of the skull to the base of the neck.
Without engaging any muscles,
Could you imagine an invisible hand cradling the base of the skull.
Gently elongating the neck.
Liberating a spacious quality between each neck vertebrae.
Spinal fluid flowing easily from the base of the skull down the neck.
Continuing through the length of the spine.
Uninterrupted flow from the base of the skull to the tailbone.
Sense the brainstem connecting the top of the spine to the base of the brain.
Towards the back of the head.
Frontal lobe spreading across the back of the forehead.
Top half of the brain in the crown of the head.
Left side of the brain.
Left side of the brain and the right side of the neck and jaw simultaneously.
Shifting now to the right side of the brain.
Right side of the brain and the left side of the neck and jaw simultaneously.
The entire head and neck flooded with sensation.
Sensation seeps out of the head,
Down the neck,
Filling the spine and seeping out into every corner of the body.
All ten fingers,
All ten toes.
The whole body with aliveness.
Return awareness to the breath at the throat.
Notice the natural rhythm of your breath without trying to change it in any way.
You might imagine the arc of the breath.
Gentle,
Continuous rise on the inhale.
And gentle,
Continuous fall on the exhale.
The breath rising and falling like waves.
Flowing in and flowing out.
Might you imagine that the breath could flow in through the top of the head and out through the base of the spine and in through the base of the spine.
And out through the crown of the head.
Breath flowing easily up and down the spine.
You could imagine the breath clearing out this channel.
If you're sensing any stuckness in this flow of energy from the crown to the tailbone,
You might breathe there for some time.
Allowing the breath to slowly expand its reach until the channel is clear.
Allowing for effortless flow from the tailbone to the crown of the head.
Return awareness to the center of the head.
Here,
Could you imagine being touched with the elemental quality of Earth?
You might imagine laying on the cool forest floor.
The smell of trees.
The heaviness and density of a mountain.
How grounded,
Earthy energy planted in the middle of the forehead.
I invite you to replant the seed of your sankalpa.
So be it.
Returning awareness to the breath now.
Noticing the flow of air at the tip of the nostrils.
Noticing the ground beneath you and the room around you.
You might invite gentle movements back into the body.
Perhaps an overhead stretch or rolling to one side if that sounds nourishing.
And just noticing the quality of your mind and body and if there have been any shifts since starting the practice.
Welcoming any benefits to linger and resonate within you.
Resting here as long as you'd like before returning to the external world.
Being gentle with this transition.
