If you're tired but still on alert,
Even after getting into bed,
This is your time to put it all down,
It's time to soften the muscles,
Slow the breath and give your nervous system the message it's been waiting for,
That you're safe now.
I'm Chibs Okereke and welcome to tonight's Yoga Nidra.
You may have noticed a low,
Steady sound in the background.
That sound is my voice too,
Recorded as a long,
Low om.
This sound will help the mind settle and signal to the nervous system that it's time to rest.
You don't have to focus on it,
You can simply let it be there,
Steady,
Predictable,
Calming as your body begins to switch off.
Yoga Nidra is so good for sleep because it gives the nervous system a clear signal that it's safe to switch off.
So instead of lying in bed stuck in thoughts,
We're gently guided,
Step by step,
Out of the head and into the body,
Which naturally eases tension and worry.
We'll begin tonight with some gentle awareness of breath,
We'll then set a simple intention,
Planting it like a quiet seed so it can keep working gently through the night.
Then we'll move into a slow body scan,
Allowing us to bring our parasympathetic nervous system online,
The part of our nervous system responsible for rest and recovery.
And towards the end you'll hear some gentle affirmations,
Repeating softly through the night.
And as sleep deepens,
Those affirmations can keep gently speaking to your subconscious,
Like a quiet reminder that you're safe and that it's ok to keep letting go.
There's nothing you have to achieve here,
No right way to do this and no pressure to fall asleep at any particular moment.
Even if sleep doesn't come straight away,
Yoga Nidra can bring the body and mind into a state of deep rest,
Which makes it much easier for sleep to arrive.
Yoga Nidra isn't about effort,
It's more about being gently cradled from the inside out,
Your only task is sinking into it and allowing sleep to come when it's ready.
Let's take a moment to get really comfortable now,
Whatever that looks like for you.
You might be lying on your back or on your side,
You might want to use cushions,
Blankets,
Mats,
Whatever helps the body feel supported,
Cosy and safe,
There's no need to rush,
Taking all the time you need to get settled in.
Now,
You're welcome to drift off at any point during this practice,
There's no need to stay awake until the end and if some of my words get missed because sleep is arriving,
That's perfect.
Once you're settled,
We'll begin slowing down together,
Feeling the body starting to arrive,
There might still be some echoes of the day,
The pace,
The residue,
The things that didn't get done,
Simply noticing what's here,
We're not needing to change any of it,
We're simply noticing,
Gently checking in with the body now,
Noticing any tightness or heaviness,
Noticing any ease or warmth,
How's your energy right now,
Is it steady,
Drained,
Shifting?
And now,
Let's make a quick check in with our emotional weather,
What's here beneath the surface,
Maybe it's something obvious,
Maybe it's harder to tell,
Either way,
Simply checking in,
Thoughts might still be moving,
Fast or slow,
Loud or quiet,
All we're doing is watching them drift by.
And behind it all,
Behind the thoughts,
Behind the emotions,
There's something steady,
There's a part of us that's watching,
So let's see if we can allow that part to hold everything.
Coming back to the breath now,
A rhythm that's always been here,
Softly anchoring us,
Over the next few breaths,
If it's comfortable,
Breathing in through the nose,
And breathing out with a gentle audible exhale,
As if you're softly fogging up a mirror,
Following my pace for a few breaths if you like,
And then moving in your own time,
At your own pace,
We're Breathing in,
And breathing out,
Breathing in,
And breathing out,
Breathing in,
And breathing out,
Taking a few more breaths like this,
At your own pace,
Keeping the breath slow and natural,
Ok good,
And now,
Allowing the breath to settle into its own rhythm,
Allowing the breath to move on its own,
Nothing to manage or control,
Just sensing the gentle rise and fall,
Like a slow tide drifting in and out,
We're going to be still here for a while,
So taking a moment to get truly comfortable,
Maybe one last shift,
One more pull of the blanket,
One more deep exhale,
Allowing the body to feel held.
As we rest here,
If the mind wanders,
That's completely ok,
You can simply return to the bed,
Together we're going to create the conditions for deep rest and sleep,
Physically,
Mentally and emotionally,
This kind of rest isn't lazy,
It's necessary,
Especially for those of us with a lot going on,
It's how the nervous system recalibrates,
It's how the mind clears,
It's how the body repairs.
You're allowed to rest without guilt.
Before moving into the body scan,
We're going to set a simple intention,
Planting it like a quiet seed,
So it can keep working gently through the night.
In yoga nidra they call this a sankalpa,
Just a short line that feels kind and true,
Something like,
I allow myself to sleep deeply tonight,
I'm safe to fall asleep and stay asleep.
I can rest now,
Or a line that feels right for you.
I invite you to repeat that intention,
Silently in your mind,
Three times,
And then allowing it to fade into the background,
So it can do the quiet work as we rest through the night.
Ok,
Good.
And now,
We're going to do a slow rotation of awareness through the body,
A slow body scan,
If the mind drifts or sleep starts arriving,
That's completely fine,
There's no need to catch every word,
And if you notice your mind drifting and you're still awake,
Simply returning to the next part I name.
This slow rotation through the body helps quiet the mind and supports the nervous system moving into rest,
The kind of rest that naturally leads into sleep.
A gentle way of signalling safety and allowing tension to release,
Layer by layer,
And if you'd prefer not to follow the body scan,
That's completely ok.
You can simply rest and allow my words to fade into the background,
Drifting deeper into stillness and towards sleep,
Bringing our awareness now to the tip of the tongue.
The roof of the mouth,
The teeth and gums,
Inside of the right cheek,
Inside of the left cheek,
The space between the lips.
The flow of air at the nostrils,
The tip of the nose,
The bridge of the nose,
Both eyebrows.
Cheeks,
Temples,
Eyes softening back into the sockets,
Centre of the forehead,
The whole forehead.
Awareness spreading through the scalp,
Like warmth gently radiating across the head,
Right hemisphere of the brain,
Left hemisphere.
Both sides together now,
Resting,
Recalibrating.
Down to the brain stem,
Bottom of the tongue,
The jaw,
The throat,
The centre of the chest.
The heart centre,
Right side of the chest,
Right shoulder,
Upper arm,
Elbow,
Wrist.
Right palm,
Back of the hand,
Thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger.
Little finger,
Back to the palm,
The wrist,
The forearm,
The right elbow,
The upper arm.
Right shoulder,
Right shoulder blade,
Rib cage,
Right waist,
Right thigh,
Right knee.
Lower leg,
Right heel,
Sole of the foot,
Top of the foot.
Big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Little toe.
Whole of the right foot,
The entire right leg,
The whole right side of the body.
Left side of the chest,
Left shoulder,
Upper arm,
Left elbow,
Forearm,
Wrist.
Left palm,
Back of the hand,
Thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger.
Little finger,
Back to the left palm,
The wrist,
Left elbow,
Upper arm,
Left shoulder.
Left shoulder blade,
Left rib cage,
Left waist,
Left thigh,
The knee,
Lower leg.
Left heel,
Sole of the foot,
Top of the left foot.
Big toe,
Second toe,
Third toe,
Fourth toe,
Little toe.
Whole of the left foot,
The entire left leg,
The whole left side of the body.
Allowing our awareness to expand now,
Feeling the entire body as one connected field,
From the crown of the head to the soles of the feet,
The whole body resting in awareness.
Held,
Supported,
At ease,
There's nothing to do,
There's nowhere to go.
Just this moment.
And now,
A simple practice to ease the mind even further.
Only if it feels easy,
I invite you to begin a soft countdown,
From twenty to one.
Allowing each number to ride the breath.
In our mind,
We're counting twenty on the inhale,
And twenty on the exhale.
And then nineteen on the inhale,
And nineteen on the exhale.
And so on.
If the numbers fade away,
Or if they blur into dreamlike edges,
That's completely fine.
That fading is often a sign of drifting closer to sleep,
And it's part of the process as the conscious,
Unconscious and subconscious begin to speak to each other.
And if the count gets lost,
No problem,
That too can be a sign of moving towards sleep.
If we get lost,
We can start again from any number that feels right,
Or we can drop the counting entirely and simply return to the breath.
There's no right or wrong way to do it.
Trusting that the system knows how to rest and sleep.
I'll give you some quiet time now,
So you can begin your countdown.
Ok,
Good.
I invite you now to bring your awareness back to the breath now.
And as you inhale,
I invite you to imagine the body becoming light,
Spacious,
Weightless.
As if it's floating gently above the earth,
Supported by the breath.
As you exhale,
Allowing the body to soften,
Becoming heavy and grounded,
Sinking into the surface beneath.
Fully supported.
Inhaling lightness.
Exhaling heaviness.
Inhaling lightness.
Exhaling heaviness.
Resting in this rhythm.
Floating on the inhale.
Landing on the exhale.
Allowing the nervous system to get the message that it's safe and able to let go.
And now,
I'm going to guide us through some gentle imagery.
Some simple,
Familiar scenes.
Because the mind often settles more easily when it has something soft and easy to follow.
And that can invite sleep a little closer.
Allowing these images to arise in the mind's eye.
Noticing them softening at the edges.
Almost like the beginning of a dream.
There's no need to force anything.
Just seeing what appears.
And if the image fades,
Shifts or disappears as you drift towards sleep,
That's ok.
Bare feet in soft sand.
The ground warm beneath you.
The hush of pine trees swaying in a gentle breeze.
Golden light spilling through your window at dusk.
The sound of a river moving slowly over smooth stones.
A gentle snowfall outside while you're wrapped in a blanket.
The warmth of the sun on your back on a winter's day.
You might notice these scenes beginning to soften now.
Edges blurring.
Shapes and colours gently fading into the background.
There's nothing you need to hold onto.
No image to get right.
No need to follow every word.
If the mind drifts back to the breath,
That's ok.
If the mind wanders into dreams,
That's ok too.
Allowing my voice to move further away now.
Like a sound in the next room.
Easy to hear it if you want it.
Easy to ignore if you don't.
The body knowing what to do from here.
Knowing how to rest.
How to loosen.
How to let go.
From this point on,
There's nothing to manage.
Nothing to fix.
Nothing to decide.
Just the gentle sounds around us.
Holding us.
As we drift.
And drift.
And drift.
Into sleep.
I am safe right now.
My body can soften.
My breath is steady.
I can let today be done.
I don't have to solve anything tonight.
I am allowed to rest.
I am held by the bed beneath me.
My nervous system can settle.
My mind can quiet.
Sleep can come in its own time.
I can let go a little more.
I am safe to sleep.
