Hello and welcome.
As you begin to prepare yourself for yoga nidra,
Choosing a comfortable position.
You can practice this yoga nidra lying down on your back,
On your bed,
Or on your yoga mat.
Or if you prefer,
You can practice yoga nidra seated in a chair.
So taking a moment here to choose your position and making yourself comfortable.
Taking a moment to notice any sensations through the body,
Notice any areas where perhaps your clothing may be wrinkled.
Just smoothing out any areas that might cause pressure or discomfort.
During this yoga nidra,
You can move if you want to.
But if you do need to move,
I just suggest that you do it gently and slowly.
But here,
In these first few moments as you set up,
I encourage you to make yourself so comfortable that you won't feel any desire to move.
So setting yourself up here,
Settling into comfort,
Taking any movements or wiggles or adjustments that you need to make yourself even 1% more comfortable.
And I'll be guiding you through this practice,
But you don't have to listen to everything I say.
It's perfectly fine if you drift off at times,
And if my voice just becomes a gentle sound in the background of your mind.
As you settle into stillness and comfort here,
Beginning with a deep inhale through your nose,
Allowing your belly to expand,
And exhaling out through your mouth with a sigh,
Relaxing the whole body.
Again,
Inhaling through the nose,
Creating space,
And exhale to soften into the surface beneath you.
You can take that two more times at your own pace.
Each time you let that breath out through your mouth,
Allowing your body to release and relax,
Perhaps just a little bit more.
And now beginning with a body scan.
As I mention a body part,
I invite you to bring your awareness there.
This may mean visualizing the body part in your mind,
Or perhaps just noticing without judgment any sensations that you feel in that body part.
Beginning with the top of your head,
The forehead,
The right eye,
The left eye,
And both eyes together,
The nose,
The mouth,
The right cheek,
The left cheek,
And both cheeks together,
The right ear,
The left ear,
Both ears together,
The back of the head,
The neck,
The throat,
Moving awareness to the right side of the body,
The right shoulder,
Right upper arm,
Right forearm,
And right hand.
Awareness to the whole right arm,
The right armpit,
The right outer side of the ribs,
And the right side of the waist,
The right side of the chest,
The right side of the stomach,
The right hip,
Right thigh,
Right lower leg,
And right foot.
Awareness of the whole right leg,
The right side of the pelvis,
Right lower back,
Right upper back,
The whole right side of the body,
Bringing awareness to the whole right side of the body,
And noticing for a moment any difference between the right and the left side of the body.
And now moving to the left side of the body,
The left shoulder,
Left upper arm,
Left forearm,
And left hand.
Awareness of the whole left arm,
The left armpit,
The left outer side of the ribs,
And the left side of the waist,
The left side of the chest,
The left side of the stomach,
The left hip,
Left thigh,
Left lower leg,
And left foot.
Awareness of the whole left leg,
The left side of the pelvis,
Left lower back,
And left upper back.
Awareness of the whole left side of the body,
The whole left side of the body.
And now bringing awareness to the whole body,
Both sides together.
Awareness of the whole body.
And now exploring if any part of the body feels a little warmer than the rest.
Scanning through the body and looking for any area that feels warmer than the rest.
And if you don't find anything special,
You might choose to focus on your heart,
And imagine a nurturing warmth there at your heart.
And now exploring if any part of the body feels a little cooler than the rest.
Scanning the body and searching for any areas that feel cool.
If you don't find anything special,
Then you might choose to focus on the sensation between your upper lip and nose.
Perhaps noticing that the air is slightly cooler across the skin as you breathe in.
And now bringing your attention back to where it feels warm,
And then back to where it feels cool,
And then back again to where it feels warm,
And imagining that warmth is expanding in the body.
Feeling that warmth expanding in the body until the warmth reaches the cool,
And the two merge.
Warmth meets cool.
Creating the perfect temperature.
Perfect balance.
And then let that go.
And now bringing your awareness to your breath.
Taking a nice,
Full breath in,
And then breathing out completely.
Again,
A slow,
Even,
Full breath in,
And exhaling slowly and fully.
Still again,
A slow,
Steady inhale,
And this time imagining that you are inhaling a magical supply of healing energy with that in-breath.
And then a slow breath out.
Taking another deep inhale and drawing this energy in,
Perhaps noticing that this healing energy has a color.
What color is it?
And then a slow exhale out.
Each inhale,
Drawing this healing energy,
This healing color,
Into your body.
And on the exhale,
Sensing this energy,
This color,
Dispersing through your body.
Another slow,
Deep inhale.
What form does this color take?
Is it translucent?
Opaque?
Shimmering?
Glowing?
And then slowly exhaling as this energy moves through your body.
Again,
Breathing it in,
And then exhale,
Releasing it into your body.
Letting that healing energy move into every corner,
All the way to the tips of your fingers and the very ends of your toes.
Feeling this subtle magic traveling through your body.
Breathing that energy in.
And as you exhale,
Feeling it move toward any place that might seem a little denser,
Or darker,
Or heavier.
Feeling that energy drawn toward any place that might feel blocked,
Or uncomfortable,
Or tight.
And sensing that energy,
That color,
Gently surrounding those places,
Softening them,
Loosening them,
Opening them.
And as you breathe,
Feeling the heavier,
Tighter places begin to shift and move,
Like a log jam beginning to break free.
Slowly at first,
But then faster and easier,
As each new breath helps to move it along.
Gently and easily,
Neither pushing nor pulling.
Just a gentle invitation to float free.
Continuing to breathe.
Each inhale,
Drawing that healing energy,
Your healing color in.
Each exhale,
Dispersing it through your body to wherever it is needed.
Feeling it move through your body,
Healing,
Soothing,
And energizing you from head to toe.
And this may feel so simple,
But so powerful.
Like recharging a battery,
Feeling the difference from the inside.
Subtle,
But resilient and strong.
With your own soft attention,
Continuing to focus your awareness on the sensations of this healing energy moving through your body.
Perhaps for a moment,
Feeling thankful to have this special ability to be able to recharge and renew your body and spirit whenever you wish.
Breathing here for a few moments longer,
Letting this healing energy move to wherever it is needed.
And when you feel ready,
Beginning to initiate your slow and gentle return.
Becoming aware of the sounds in the building around you.
Becoming aware of the room around you.
Feeling the firm surface beneath your body supporting you.
Feeling your breath move your body.
The slow rise and fall of your chest and belly.
Gently beginning to wiggle your fingers and toes.
Small movements in your hands and feet.
Maybe you want to reach and stretch your arms,
Or maybe take a big yawn.
Just taking any movements that feel good for you.
And then drawing your knees up towards your chest,
Maybe gently rocking from side to side.
As you feel ready,
Slowly rolling over onto one side.
And in your own time,
Coming up to sitting.
Taking a few deep breaths here.
And then when you're ready,
Slowly opening up your eyes.
