iRest Yoga Nidra For Sleep

A good night's sleep can be a challenge these days in which so much is happening on a global scale. This iRest Yoga Nidra I designed for calming and soothing the nervous system. In the beginning of the practice, I integrate some micro-movements which can lead your nervous system into a deep sense of rest and calm. There are no bells at the end, but I do say goodbye and I give words to the end of the guided meditation. Who knows, the calm will take you to sleep at a given point.

Transcript

Hi,

My name is Astrid and I think it's great that you wish to try out this meditation with me.

I designed it especially for people with troubles during night time.

Perhaps you are in this situation right now.

Before we start,

I'd like to begin by sharing that I experienced insomnia years ago.

And sometimes the residues of it still bubble up and challenge me.

And I know what it's like to miss the safe haven of sleep.

How the whirlpool of negative thoughts,

Feelings of impatience,

Emotions like agitation and perhaps even anger can feel and can keep you awake.

I recently found out that my parasympathetic nervous system responds very well to some micro-movements which can be carried out easily in bed.

And I hope they will soothe you too.

And I have integrated them in this meditation.

To prepare you a little bit on forehand,

Let me describe them before we start.

So you have an idea.

So for these movements you place your hands on the lower part of your ribcage,

On the diaphragm area.

Palms face down,

Fingers pointing to each other.

And your arms and elbows as relaxed and comfortable as possible.

Then you roll your hands open so the palms face your chin,

Your face.

And you roll back so the palms face down again.

So this is what we'll do.

So on inhale we will roll on the pinky side of the finger,

The palm is facing the chin.

And on the exhale you roll back so both palms face down.

And the pinky fingers stay in contact with the body all the time.

So it's a very easy movement.

And I do these movements each time when I wake up and when I experience sensations of tension.

And I hope they will guide you to a sense of ease,

Rest and well-being as well.

Okay,

Are you ready?

Let's begin.

Take a bit of time to organize your body and establish your pose.

And it can help to do some bigger movements before you come lying still again.

Maybe a nice,

Generous stretch of the whole body in any way that feels good for you.

Give room to your breath.

And perhaps if you feel that this is already working for you,

This bit of stretching out,

Please pause the recording,

Continue for a bit longer and return once you are ready.

Okay,

Then slowly let your body become quiet and still.

Feel the aliveness of it.

Take a deep breath.

And feel the body print on the surface it is resting upon.

And allowing that body print to become deeper on each exhale.

There are still any sensations of tension,

Agitation,

Restlessness or any other feelings of arousal.

Can you kiss them hello with your breath and let them be?

It's okay.

They apparently need a little bit more time to calm down.

So allow each exhale to release tension.

Giving weight.

Giving the body to the ground.

Letting it lean deeply.

And then sense body in space.

Feel its form,

Its volume,

Its weight.

Sense where the body is located in space.

The location of head,

Tip of nose,

Left pinky finger,

Right knee,

Big toe of the left foot,

Navel,

Sternum.

Sense into surroundings,

All directions.

Left from body,

Right from body,

In front of body,

Behind the body,

Above,

Below,

Inside,

Outside,

All directions.

And then let intention move forward.

And perhaps for this night you may let go of the sleep agenda and welcome in the intention to rest in the experience as it will unfold.

I rest in the experience as it unfolds.

Welcoming all sensations and other visitors that will arise.

Feel if this intention is true for you or if any other intention is present to support you.

And welcome it in with the whole body.

May you then open up to inner resource.

Natural sensations of ease.

Feeling grounded.

And perhaps the following micro movements will nourish sensations of inner resource.

And can you please place your hands on the area of your diaphragm,

On the lower part of the ribcage.

The fingers pointing to each other.

Organize arms and elbows in such way that they feel at ease.

If this position feels uncomfortable for your shoulders,

Your arms,

Please adjust the position.

Maybe placing the hands a bit lower on the belly is already helpful.

The palms soft and facing down.

And let go of any strain in your arms and hands.

So the hands rests on the body in the most soft and relaxed way.

The fingers soft and relaxed.

Sense the arms and feel how the skin on your arms and elbows may relax even a bit more and droop down a little.

Now I invite you to start moving your hands with your natural breath.

On inhale,

As slowly and relaxed as possible,

Roll your hands open so the palms face your chin.

And the outside of the pinky fingers still rest on your body.

And on the exhale you slowly reverse the movement until your hands rest again on your body with the palms facing down.

And repeat this movement.

And each time can you move with less and less effort.

Try to move your hands in the most soft,

Smooth and easy way as possible.

Keeping shoulders,

Arms,

Elbows,

Wrists,

Hands and fingers as soft and relaxed as possible all the time.

And be completely aware of the movement.

Breathing naturally.

Perhaps you sense the fingers flexing a little bit when you roll the hands to one side.

And how does this gentle movement travel through your body?

Where can you sense the impact of it?

Perhaps in the shoulders,

In the eyes.

Notice how the movement affects the position and sensation of elbows and upper arms.

Micro movements without any strain.

And then let this movement alone and rest.

Feel your body now.

The breath.

Perhaps a tingling.

A heartbeat.

Or a most soft and subtle sense of vibration deep inside.

A sense of being in you being aware of all this.

And can you then sense into the feet?

The ankles.

The calves.

The knees.

Thighs.

Buttocks.

Hips.

Pelvis.

The whole left leg and the left foot as sensation.

The whole right leg and the right foot as sensation.

Both legs and feet at the same time.

Left hip.

Right hip.

Left buttock.

Right buttock.

Hips and buttocks at the same time.

The pelvis.

Perineum.

The feet,

Legs,

Buttocks,

Hips and pelvis as one sensation.

Radiant.

Sense into the lower back,

The mid back,

The upper back,

The spine from tail to back of head,

The belly,

Chest,

Collarbones,

Shoulders,

Armpits,

The whole torso at once.

Outside,

Inside,

Backside,

Frontside,

Left side,

Right side.

Sensing into the arms and the hands.

The left upper arm as sensation.

Left elbow.

Forearm.

Wrist.

Left hand.

Palm.

Fingers.

Right upper arm.

Right elbow.

Forearm.

Wrist.

Right hand.

Palm.

Fingers.

Both hands,

Wrists,

Arms at once.

One sensation.

Sense the feet,

Legs,

Pelvis,

Torso,

Shoulders,

Arms,

Hands all at once.

Sensing into the neck.

Back of head.

Top of head.

Forehead.

Eyes.

Radiant.

Nose.

Lips.

Cheeks.

Whole face.

Ears.

Left ear.

Right ear.

Both ears at the same time.

Whole head.

Head,

Shoulders,

Arms and hands.

Thorso,

Pelvis,

Legs and feet.

Whole body at once.

One field of sensation.

Radiant.

Resting.

Breathing.

Resting in the experience as it unfolds.

No agenda.

There's nothing to change.

There are bodily sensations coming and going.

Then feel the body breathing.

This inhale.

This exhale.

Sense the pauses between breaths.

For a couple of moments,

Rest in sensations of breath in lower belly.

Sensations of breath around the navel.

Sensations of breath in the left side of the belly.

In the right side of the belly.

Sensations of breathing in the lower ribs.

The sternum.

Collar bones.

Left side of chest.

Right side of chest.

Sensations of breathing in top of the shoulders.

Armpits.

The throat.

The inside of the nostrils.

The shoulder blades.

Sensations of the breath in the middle of the back.

In the lower back.

Can you sense the breath in the sacrum?

The pelvic floor.

And the breath as one sensation.

The whole body breathing in and the whole body breathing out.

For some breaths,

Rest in the pause after exhalation.

Waiting there,

Abiding in the quiet.

And then feel the whole body heavy.

Leaning upon the earth.

Then feel the body light,

Weightless.

Light as a beautiful feather.

Sensing the heaviness of the body.

Sensing the body as weightless.

Heaviness and weightless at the same time.

And sense what is here now.

Resting in the experience as it unfolds.

Perhaps the feeling of sleep is being remembered by body and mind.

There is a drifting towards deeper and deeper rest.

Still sensations coming in and out.

Coming and going.

Finding rest in these sensations.

Allowing them to create space.

A sense of expansion.

Effortless timelessness.

Allowing all sensations to merge with their source.

Feet and legs heavy.

Buttocks and pelvis at ease.

Torso resting.

Flowing on breath.

Shoulders soft.

Arms and hands relaxed.

Neck and head at ease.

Whole body being supported.

Allowing yourself to be marinated in this experience.

Exactly as it unfolds.

In presence.

Intimate.

The breath a steady rhythm.

Heartbeat in a steady rhythm.

Each breath as a wave on a big quiet safe stillness.

Sensing the waves.

And sensing the stillness.

The quiet.

Sensing the waves and the quiet at the same time.

Allowing yourself to do nothing.

To just be.

And if any arousal bubbles up now and then.

Know that you can always find support.

In the movements.

If they were of help.

In sensing into your intention.

In resting in the quiet after the next exhale.

Or in bringing forward in a resource in any way that supports you most.

And this meditation has now come to an end.

From here I send you love and I wish you peace.

Reviews

Somewhat different but a very good Yoga Nidra. The beginning, with micro movement, worked extremely well for me.

That was good. An unusual body scan as it skipped about the body parts less predictably than typical. Not sure how it was iRest. I didn’t feel the Richard Miller influence. But I was fully immersed and enjoyed it thoroughly. I must have drifted off because I don’t remember how it ended.
7/3/23

This meditation is one of my favorites . I always anticipate listening to Astrid’s soothing instructions , promoting a sound and restful sleep 😴💤
Thank you 🙏