Full Body Relaxation - Yoga Nidra Meditation

In this yoga nidra meditation, we will be using a technique called Progressive Muscle Relaxation. This requires you to tense and relax different muscle groups of your body. And can be very helpful to sense and feel the body… we feel tension in one part and then we can notice the wave of relaxation that washes over it when it is released…

But if it doesn’t feel right or one part of your body doesn’t want to then simply just lie still and draw your attention to that part of the body without moving it… PMR has been shown to reduce depression, insomnia, pain, panic attacks, and headaches. Tensing and relaxing specific areas of the body allows us to notice and feel the difference between tension and relaxation.

During this practice, you will be invited to: Tighten each muscle group without straining for 5 to 10 seconds… Then fully release for 10-20 seconds to completely relax and be aware of and enjoy the sensation of relaxation.

Transcript

This meditation practice is best done lying down. Lie down on your bed, A mat or on a rug in a place that you will not be disturbed and gently close your eyes. Are there any adjustments or distractions that you could eliminate before you start your practice? And as you settle in, Notice how you are opening the body to receiving messages, Without labelling them good or bad, Just simply beginning to attune to the body's messages. And what can you do now to bring yourself more fully into the present moment, Physically scanning the body to make yourself more comfortable, But also what are you letting go of as you arrive here? There's a mindset shift as you begin your practice, Letting go of the external distractions of the world. You have chosen to be here in this moment. How do you want to use this time? Feel into your response and notice your breath, The breath even, Smooth, The breath flowing continuously, No pauses between the inhales and exhales, The breath flowing deep down into the belly and out into the sides of the ribcage. And begin to notice the space around you, All five senses opening to the space around you, The touch of air on your skin and the surface the body is resting upon, Any smells or fragrances in the air and now sound, The sounds close by and further away, All the sounds travelling through space, The sound of your breath and maybe even the internal sounds of your inner voice, Your mental chatter. Notice any colours or images behind your closed eyelids and now the tongue, Notice any tastes or taste buds alive as I draw your attention to them and notice the space all around you, The space in front of you, Behind you, To the left and to the right. Allow everything that you hear, Think, See or feel be just as it is and notice what's present here, This simple feeling of being open, Mind, Body, Heart, Allow yourself to feel into the body going inwards and feel into the aliveness of the body, Maybe the breath, What sensations in the body let you know that there is an aliveness that is right here, Life is here, Moving through everything, All yourselves, Allow yourself to rest here as this energy, What does that feel like, What words might you use to describe this, Maybe a feeling of wellbeing, Relaxation, The physical awareness of our body is our foundation, The body allows us to feel comfortable, At ease, Peaceful, Like an anchor through the waves of different emotions, We can come back and notice this felt sense of safety, Ease and comfort in the body, Nourish yourself here with this felt sense, You're safe here with yourself, Now let's set an intention for this practice, It could sound something like this, I am attuned to the signals of my body, I know what yes and no feels like in my body, I listen to my inner voice guiding me towards the right path, I'll give you a few moments to do that now and now take a deep inhale while slowly exhaling through your nose, Imagine the tension in your body flowing away, Repeat this breath pattern three times on your own, Inhaling and on the exhale releasing tension, Now open your jaw and mouth as wide as you can, Hold your jaw and mouth open as wide as you can for the next five seconds and gently release your jaw and allow your mouth to close so your lips are gently touching and maybe you could even move your jaw back and forth a few times and welcome a wave of relaxation through your jaw and mouth, With your eyes closed tense all the muscles in your lips, Cheeks, Nose and eyes, Hold it and on your exhale release and sense into the muscles in the face as they relax, Now tense the muscles in your forehead and ears, Raising your eyebrows and furrowing your brow, Hold and exhale, Relaxing completely, Notice the sensations in your forehead, Now tense your shoulders by raising them up towards your ears, Hold and now exhale completely, Release, Allow your shoulders to melt like butter on toast into the surface you're resting upon, Experience the sensation not thinking just sensing, Now tighten your upper arms by bending your elbows and squeezing, Rest of body relaxed, Only the biceps tense, Hold and exhale completely letting go, Now cleanse your fists, Hold them and exhale release, Now tighten your belly, Abdomen, Sides, Back muscles, Hold and completely relax and notice the wave of relaxation that washes over you and now your buttocks, Squeezing and tensing the muscles of the buttocks, Hold and now your entire right leg, Hold and exhale relax, Now just your right foot and toes, Hold and exhale to release, And now your entire left leg, Hold it and exhale release, And now tense your left foot and toes, Hold and exhale release, And now progressively tighten your entire body, Toes, Feet, Ankles, Legs, Buttocks, Belly, Chest, Lower back, Shoulders, Face, Jaw, Hold whatever is comfortable for you, Hold it and now while exhaling completely release your entire body, Entire body letting go and notice the waves of sensations that wash over your body, Every muscle relaxed and allow your attention to spontaneously wander throughout your entire body, Front of the body, Back of the body, Left side, Right side, Inside, Notice every sensation, Thoughts, Images, Emotions, Be the observer, The witness of everything and sense all that you are aware of and how everything is constantly changing, Coming and going, And begin to notice your breath, The gentle rise and fall of your breath during inhalation and exhalation, The breath rises, The breath falls, The body functions by itself, And draw your attention to your navel, Notice the rise and fall of your belly as you breathe, And now begin to shape the breath, Inhale for four, And exhale for eight, The chest stays still, The belly rising for four, And falling for eight, Continue to do this for the next few minutes, And let go of this counting of the breaths and come back to breathing normally, Sense into the body and notice what's present now, And notice how you can draw your attention to a specific part of the body, The left big toe for example, And how your body can draw your attention somewhere, Notice this difference, This felt sense of being drawn into the body, And consciously drawing your attention to a specific part of the body, And now like a spotlight, Where is your body asking for your attention, Where are you being called to, And if nothing arises that's okay, Just continue to allow your attention to wander throughout the entire body, If you're drawn to a point somewhere in your body, Notice all the sensations of where you're drawn to, Is there tension, Heaviness, Lightness, How would you describe these sensations, And as you shine your spotlight of awareness on this point, Are there any accompanying thoughts, Emotions, Beliefs, Memories, Or images that emerge, Allow them to be here too, No judgment, Simply accepting them one by one, They may seem distant, Like watching a movie, You are aware of them, But detached from them, And if nothing is arising that's fine too, Continue to sense and be open, Be curious to all the sensations in the body, And now I invite you to feel into the body, And the resonance of the following questions, What does yes feel like in the body, Can you locate it, What does yes feel like, Perhaps words such as aliveness, Energized, Excitement, Find your own words, Noticing the sensations in the body, Gut, Heart and mind, And if this is difficult, You can bring to mind an image or a memory of when you felt totally aligned with something, What does yes feel like in the body, What does no feel like in the body, Can you locate it, What does no feel like, Perhaps words such as closed, Dense, Tense, Find your own words to describe it, Noticing the sensations in the body, Gut, Heart, And if this is difficult, You can bring to mind an image or a memory of when something didn't feel right or was not aligned to you, What does no feel like in the body, And now I invite you to bring to mind a question you may have, Perhaps something about your life, A choice or decision you've been working through, And let's use your inner wisdom, The GPS of the body to enlighten us with a different perspective, Moving away from the thinking mind and into the body, Ask yourself something and listen to the body's answer, Does it feel like yes or no or perhaps a different answer, Now give yourself time to be here, Connected, This is your time, A time to be wholly you, Meeting yourself, Just resting here, Allowing the body to soothe itself, Your mind quiet, Peaceful, Just resting, Welcoming everything just as it is, Breath coming and going, Now take a moment as you slowly come back to your body and mind lying on the mat and review the journey you have just taken, Begin to sense the room around you and the feeling of beginning to move back into the world, Begin to take several deeper abdominal breaths and begin to wriggle your fingers and toes, Take a full body stretch or move your body as you need to, Bend your knees and gently roll onto your right side and take a moment there to rest, Now push yourself up into a seated position and begin to scan your body and visualize the rest of your day with this presence, Meeting each activity and relationship with a sense of openness, The ability to respond and not react and set the intention to notice what's happening outside of your meditation practice each day, Look at your life to determine how well your practice is working, Begin to notice if you're less stressed, Have more clarity, More energy, Are more adaptive and less reactive and take several deeper breaths and slowly begin to blink your eyes open, Coming back to your wide awake and alert state.