Welcome,
I'm Carly.
And yoga nidra can be a gentle way of supporting nervous system regulation.
Offering moments of deep rest for those living with PTSD or the lingering effects of trauma.
In this practice,
We'll explore the body as an anchor to the present moment.
Allowing a little respite from the physical effort of holding.
So please begin by finding a comfortable position,
Lying down somewhere you can remain undisturbed for a while.
Allow the legs to rest apart.
The feet falling naturally outwards to the sides.
And let the arms rest a little away from the body.
With the palms wherever they feel most comfortable.
You may close your eyes or simply lower your gaze.
And make any small adjustments that might allow you to feel just 5% more comfortable.
Begin to notice the surface beneath you.
And the places where your body makes contact.
Back of the head,
The shoulders,
The pelvis,
And the heels.
The weight of your body travelling down.
Gravity drawing you towards the air.
The surface beneath you holding the weight solid.
Steady.
And throughout this practice you can return to that contact or to the sounds around you whenever you wish There is no need to remain focused on any sensation that feels uncomfortable.
Take a comfortable breath in now through the nose and open the mouth allowing the breath to fall away.
Without controlling its journey out.
Now breathing gently through the nose.
Comfortable breath in and a slow easy breath out.
Allowing the exhale this time to travel a little further.
Again breathing in and a slow,
Easy breath out.
One final breath in and a longer unhurried breath out.
Easy breath out.
Let the breath return to its own natural rhythm now.
Nothing to control,
Nothing to maintain.
And bring your awareness to the crown of the head.
The scalp.
The back of the head resting against the surface beneath.
Awareness moving across the forehead.
And the space between the eyebrows.
The eyebrows.
And both temples.
Awareness to the eyes resting in their socket.
And the Chi.
The hinge of the jaw.
The lower jaw.
And the tongue resting within the mouth.
Moving down through the throat and across to the right collarbone into the right shoulder traveling down the outside of your right upper arm.
Around the outline.
Along the forearm.
Through the rest.
And into the back of the right hand.
Across the knuckles.
And the right thumb.
First finger.
The second finger.
Third finger.
Fourth finger right out to the fingertips.
Awareness moving into the palm.
And the inner wrist.
Alongside the inside of the forearms.
The crease of the elbow.
The inner upper arms.
And into the right armpit.
Across the side of the chest.
The side of the ribcage.
The right side of the waist.
Curve of the hip.
And attention to the right hip bone.
Travelling down the front of the leg.
The White Eye.
Towards the kneecap.
The front of the knee.
Down the shin.
Through the ankle and across the top of the right foot.
The big time.
Second.
Bad.
Four,
Right out to the tips of the toes and now awareness moving beneath those toes.
Across the ball of the phone.
Through the arch.
The soul of the firm.
And into the right heel.
The back of the ankle the Achilles tendon.
Traveling up through the cast.
The hollow behind the knee.
And the back of the thigh.
Hamstrings.
And into the right glute.
Feel the weight here.
The contact with the surface beneath Awareness continuing upwards.
Through the right side of the lower back the muscles beside the spine.
The back of the ribcage.
The white shoulder blade.
Across the upper back.
And into the back of the neck the weight of the upper body and the surface beneath you holding that weight the back of the neck.
Allow your awareness to travel gently around the throat.
The centre of the thigh.
And from the throat,
Awareness moving across the left collarbone.
Into the shoulder.
And down the outside of the left upper arm.
Around the elbow.
Along the forearm.
Through the rinse.
Into the back of the left hand.
Across the knuckles.
The left thumb.
First finger.
Second finger.
Bird finger.
Fourth finger.
And right out to the fingertips.
Awareness moving into the palm the inner voice.
Along the inside of the forearm.
The crease of the elbow.
The inner upper arm.
And into the left armpit across the left side of the chest.
The left ribcage.
The side of the ways.
And the curve of the head.
The left hip bone.
Traveling down the front of the left thigh.
Towards the kneecap.
The front of the knee.
Down the shin.
Through the ankle.
And across the top of the left foot.
The big time.
Second time.
That.
Four.
Staying.
Right out to the tips of the toes.
Awareness moving beneath the toes.
Across the board of the fan.
Through the arch.
The soul.
And into the left heel.
The back of the ankle.
The Achilles tendon.
Traveling up through the calf.
The hollow behind the knee.
The back of the thigh.
The hamstrings.
And into the left glute.
Feel the weight of the left side of the pelvis.
The surface beneath.
And the quiet contact between them.
Awareness continuing upwards.
Through the lower back.
The muscles beside the spine.
The back of the ribcage.
Left shoulder blade.
Across the upper back.
And into the back of the neck the weight of the upper body and the surface beneath you holding that weight the back of the neck.
Allow your awareness to travel gently around to the throat.
The centre of the thigh.
Bring your awareness towards the center of the pelvis The tailbone.
And just above it,
The sacrum The broad,
Triangular bone at the base of the spine.
Awareness spreading through the pelvic bowl.
The sitting bones.
The hips.
The lower belly.
Notice the weight of the power vest the places where it rests against the surface beneath you.
The support here.
Nothing you need to hold on and now awareness beginning to travel upwards through the front of the body.
The lower abs.
The belly.
The gentle movement here as the breath comes and goes.
The upper abs.
The area beneath the ribs.
Diaphragm.
Awareness moving through the center of the chest.
The breastbone.
And into the heart center.
Invite your attention now to encompass the whole body your head,
Your neck and your shoulders,
The upper body and the lower body at rest.
At ease,
The front of the body and the back of the body anchored to the surface beneath you.
Supported in this time and place.
The right side of the body and the left side of the body as one.
Nothing separate.
Allow your awareness to rest here for a while.
In the center of the chest.
Notice the natural movement of the breath.
The gentle rise and fall.
The ribs widening as the breath arrives.
Softening as it leaves.
The movement of the chest.
And the quiet rhythm of the body.
Nothing to deepen.
Nothing to change.
And as you rest here,
Notice the weight of the body beneath you.
The breath moving through a body that is being held.
There may be places within the body that have grown accustomed to holding the shoulders.
The muscles around the eyes,
The jaw,
The belly,
The lower back and the muscles deep within the pelvis.
Sometimes this holding becomes so familiar that we barely notice the effort involved.
The body remaining ready.
Grace.
Allah For those who have lived through difficult or frightening experiences,
These patterns can continue long after the experience itself has passed.
The nervous system may remain watchful.
The body may still carry traces of another time and if some of these places remain tense.
They can remain exactly as they are Nothing needs to be forced here.
Rest does not require every muscle to soften or every thought to become quiet.
There may simply be a little less effort somewhere.
A little more room for the breath.
A little respite from holding.
Once again become aware of the whole body the crown of the head,
Through the shoulders and arms,
The chest and the belly,
The pelvis and the legs right down to the feet.
The whole living body resting here.
Before beginning to bring movement back into the body or opening your eyes,
You may bring one hand to rest over the heart and the other over the belly.
Feel the warmth of your own hands and their weight against your body.
Beneath one hand the movement of the chest and beneath the other the gentle movement of the belly.
Your own warmth,
Your own touch.
The rhythm of the body beneath your hands.
A moment to rest within your own presence.
The body can rest alongside whatever is present.
Just the warmth of your hands.
And the body beneath them.
And this moment.
Begin to allow your awareness to widen now and feel the surface beneath you once again.
The contact and the weight of the body.
Take one comfortable breath in through your mouth or through your nose and let it leave as audibly as you like.
Begin to start clenching and unclenching your hands and your toes or maybe circling your ankles and wrists.
Rocking your hips perhaps?
Or taking whatever stretch feels natural to you right now.
And bring the palms of the hands together.
Gently rubbing them.
Feeling the warmth building between them.
Then bring those warm palms over the eyes.
Resting them lightly without pressing against the eyes themselves.
And beneath the shelter of your hands allow the eyes to open when you're ready.
And gradually move the hands away.
Letting the light and the room return slowly.
And take a moment to notice how you are here before moving away from the practice.
And please acknowledge the courage it can take to meet yourself in this way.
Thank you for allowing me to guide you today.
With the greatest warmth to you and your ongoing journey.
Kali
