Hi there,
And thanks for listening to a Simon Ayes track.
Today I'm going to invite you on a short journey around the body,
Moving our awareness from station to station,
Much as we would in yoga nidra,
To invite relaxation ready for a peaceful night's sleep.
So without further ado,
Please make yourself comfortable,
Either reclining or lying flat,
Feet uncrossed,
Legs slightly apart,
Arms to the sides of your body with your palms facing up.
Become aware now of your breath,
Following the path of the air as it makes its way into your body and back out again.
Noticing any sensations that come along with that,
Be they cooling and drying sensations as the air makes its way in through your nose,
Over your throat,
Or the sensations of body parts moving to accommodate your breath as it enters your body and leaves again.
Are there any sounds that you can hear made by your breath?
What are the qualities of the breath?
Does your breath feel free and expansive,
Or tight and constricted?
And as you maintain that awareness of your breath,
I now invite you to relax your body just a little bit more on each and every subsequent exhale.
Settling into position,
I invite you now to move your awareness into your right foot,
Beginning with your right big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Right fifth toe,
The sole of your right foot,
Right heel,
Top of your right foot,
Your right ankle,
Right lower leg,
Right knee,
Right upper leg,
And your right hip.
Becoming aware now of your whole right leg.
And we'll move that awareness now to the left,
Beginning with your left big toe,
Left second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Fifth toe,
To the sole of your left foot,
Left heel,
Top of your left foot,
Left ankle,
Left lower leg,
Left knee,
Left upper leg,
Left hip.
Becoming aware now of your whole left leg.
Move that awareness up into your right hand,
Beginning with your right thumb,
Right pointer,
Right middle finger,
Right ring finger,
Right pinky,
Your right palm,
Back of your right hand,
Right wrist,
Right forearm,
Elbow,
Upper arm,
Right shoulder.
And become aware now of your whole right arm.
Moving to the left once again,
Become aware of your left thumb,
Left pointer,
Left middle finger,
Ring finger,
Pinky,
Your left palm,
Back of your left hand,
Left wrist,
Left forearm,
Left elbow,
Left upper arm,
Left shoulder.
Becoming aware now of your whole left arm.
Bring your awareness now to your lower back,
Middle back,
Back of your right shoulder,
Space between your shoulder blades,
Back of your left shoulder,
Back of your neck,
Back of your head,
Your scalp,
Over the top.
And become aware now of your forehead,
Eyebrows,
Space between your eyebrows,
Your temples,
Upper eyelids and eyes,
Lower eyelids,
Your ears,
Cheeks,
Become aware of your nose,
The very tip of your nose.
Bring your awareness to your top lip,
To your teeth,
Tongue,
Bottom lip,
To your jaw,
Neck,
And throat.
Becoming aware now of your whole body.
Inviting it to relax even further.
Feeling soft,
Heavy,
Pliable.
Almost as if you're melting into the surface on which you're lying.
And once again,
Bring your awareness into your breath.
How does it feel now?
Has anything shifted?
Are you still relaxing a little more on each exhale?
And as we move towards the end of this session,
I invite you to gradually extend each exhale that you now make.
Without effort,
Without using any extra energy,
Simply relaxing and extending the breath out.
Maintaining that awareness until your awareness drifts.
Becomes fuzzy.
And you move into a lovely,
Deep,
Restorative sleep.
