Yoga Nidra For Sleep & Rest

This deeply relaxing & nourishing mediation is designed to be used as a tool for those who feel they are not getting enough rest or sleep in life.

Transcript

Welcome to the practice of yoga nidra.

This particular meditation is designed to be used as a tool for those who feel that they're not getting enough sleep or rest in their lives.

And as such I won't be guiding you back to wakefulness or using a timer to signal the end of practice.

So if you're using this meditation during the day and you need to continue on then perhaps set a timer with some gentle music to help you slowly resurface.

Let's begin by lying down and finding the pose of rest.

In yoga nidra we want to encourage the body to be able to let go and relax completely so take your time to get really comfortable.

Covering the eyes,

Placing pillows under the knees and head.

I also recommend covering yourself with a blanket or something warm as your body temperature will drop as you relax.

Let the legs separate now.

The feet soften and roll out.

If it feels available let the arms gently rest beside you with fingers relaxed,

Palms facing upwards or slightly inwards.

Close the eyes and let yourself completely melt into this pose.

This is your time.

Time you're giving yourself to rest,

To recharge,

To nourish yourself.

So really let yourself enjoy it.

There's nothing you need to do.

Nowhere to go.

Simply relax.

Set your worries aside and just listen to my voice and instructions.

And if you don't hear everything I say then don't worry.

It's perfectly normal to feel like you drift in and out of sleep.

There's no way to do this practice wrong.

Simply allow the journey to unfold just as it is and accept with open arms whatever comes up for you moment to moment.

Now let yourself nestle even deeper into your resting pose making any final wriggles and adjustments to the body.

Then try to remain perfectly still for the remainder of this meditation.

Telling yourself I will move at the end.

Good.

Now bring your awareness to your breath and start to take some long,

Slow,

Full deep breaths.

Breathing right down into the belly,

Up into the chest,

Pausing for a moment or two.

Then letting out a long,

Slow exhalation through the mouth.

As you do feel yourself becoming more relaxed,

Letting go completely.

Taking another full breath in,

Holding it for a moment or two.

And as you let it go release any residual remaining tightness in the body.

One more breath like that.

Breathing in a sense of calm and relaxation.

Breathing out your day,

Your worries and concerns.

Feeling the forehead and the brow begin to smooth.

The eyes getting heavy in their sockets.

Skin around the corners of the eyes begins to soften.

The jaw relaxes,

The mouth.

Feeling the backs of the shoulders beginning to melt and spread down into the earth beneath you.

Arms are heavy,

Chest and belly are soft.

Relaxing the thighs,

The calves and even the feet.

Now let your awareness drift to your heart center.

The center of your chest.

Allow yourself a few moments here to connect and to breathe in and out of this energy center.

We're now going to set Asan Kaupa or our intention for this practice.

A short positive present tense statement of something we would like to experience more of right now.

As this meditation is about helping you to feel more rested then perhaps set Asan Kaupa that reflects this.

For example you might say something like I sleep easily and deeply each night.

Or I wake feeling rested every day.

So spend a moment now creating Asan Kaupa that suits you.

Good.

Now let your awareness drift back down out of the thinking mind and back into the heart center.

And repeat your Asan Kaupa three times silently to yourself with conviction.

Now I want you to imagine that your Asan Kaupa has already come true in your life.

What would that look like?

Visualize it clearly.

See the detail.

And as you're visualizing this how does it make you feel?

Become aware of the feelings behind your Asan Kaupa and let yourself be filled up with those feelings.

Letting them saturate and permeate every cell of your being.

And gently let that go now.

We're now going to begin a systematic journey of bringing relaxation and awareness to the body.

Say the name of each body part silently to yourself.

Visualize it and sense it from the inside out.

Bring your awareness to the right hand thumb.

Index finger.

Middle finger.

Ring finger.

Pinky finger.

Palm of the hand.

Back of the hand.

Wrist.

Forearm.

Elbow.

Upper arm.

Shoulder.

Arm pit.

Waist.

Right hip.

Thigh.

Knee.

Calf.

Ankle.

Heel.

Soul of the foot.

Top of the foot.

Right big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

Pinky toe.

The whole right arm.

The whole right leg.

The whole right side of the body is deeply relaxed.

Now bring your attention to the left hand thumb.

Index finger.

Middle finger.

Ring finger.

Pinky finger.

Palm of the hand.

Back of the hand.

Wrist.

Forearm.

Elbow.

Upper arm.

Shoulder.

Arm pit.

Waist.

Left hip.

Thigh.

Knee.

Calf.

Ankle.

Heel.

Soul of the foot.

Left big toe.

Second toe.

Third toe.

Fourth toe.

Pinky toe.

The whole of the left arm.

The whole of the left leg.

The whole left side of the body is deeply relaxed.

Now feel your whole right arm and left leg together.

Right arm and left leg together.

Now feel your whole left arm and right leg together.

Left arm and right leg together.

Left arm and right leg together.

Now feel and relax the back of the body.

Right heel.

Left heel.

Right calf.

Left calf.

Right thigh.

Left thigh.

Right buttock.

Left buttock.

Lower back.

Middle back.

Upper back.

Back of the neck.

Back of the head.

Crown of the head.

Forehead.

Right eyebrow.

Left eyebrow.

Eyebrow centre.

Right eye.

Left eye.

Right nostril.

Left nostril.

Right cheek.

Left cheek.

Upper lip.

Lower lip.

Both lips together.

Inside of the lips.

Teeth.

Tongue.

Chin.

Jaw.

Throat.

Right side of the chest.

Left side of the chest.

Belly.

Right side of the pelvis.

Left side of the pelvis.

The whole right leg.

The whole left leg.

The whole right arm.

The whole left arm.

The whole face.

The whole head.

The whole torso.

The whole body.

The whole body.

The whole body is deeply relaxed.

Now let your attention drift to your breath.

The soft,

Gentle,

Natural breath.

Let yourself rest in stillness.

And simply observe yourself being breathed.

Become completely absorbed with all aspects of the breath.

Noticing what happens as you inhale.

Noticing the exhale and the spaces between the two.

And we're now going to begin to count the breath backwards from 30.

Inhale 30.

Exhale 30.

Inhale 29.

Exhale 29.

Continue on like that with your soft,

Natural,

Effortless breath.

If you drift away from the count and lose track,

Simply start again.

It allows not to get to zero but to allow your whole awareness to reside with each breath.

Inhale 30.

Exhale 30.

Inhale 29.

Exhale 30.

Inhale 30.

Inhale 30.

Exhale 30.

Inhale 30.

And gently letting go of the count.

We will now begin to experience opposites in the body.

Allow yourself to fully feel and embody each sensation.

Begin by feeling cold in the body.

Experiencing cold in the body.

The whole body is suddenly chilly cold.

Now experience heat in the body.

Heat,

The whole body is toasty warm as if standing in front of a blazing fire.

Now feel heaviness in the body.

Heaviness as if the body is made of lead.

Feel yourself dropping further and further into the floor beneath you.

Now experience lightness in the body.

Experience lightness as if you are made of cotton wool.

Let yourself get so light that you feel yourself drifting away from the floor knowing you are safe to do so.

Now experience fatigue in the body.

The whole body is tired as if you have run a massive race.

Now feel rest in the body.

The whole body is deeply at peace and well rested.

And gently letting go of that.

Allow your awareness to come to rest in the space behind your closed eyes.

And try to bring to mind the following images.

Visualize them on the level of feeling and awareness.

And let each image appear like a slide on your mental screen.

Please bring to mind a candle flame.

Candle flame.

Flickering flames of a fire.

Flickering flames of a fire.

The sun.

The sun.

A white dove.

A white dove.

A butterfly.

A butterfly.

The earth.

The earth.

Still deep water.

Still deep water.

A newborn baby.

A newborn baby.

And letting go of that.

Now I want you to imagine that you are standing at the top of a staircase.

See the stairs clearly in your mind's eye.

In a moment we will start to count backwards again from ten.

With every count you take a step down the staircase.

Which leads you into a place where you experience more rest and relaxation than you've ever felt before.

This is your place.

This is your special space where you feel safe to come and completely let go.

Ten.

Standing at the top of the stairs.

Seeing them clearly.

Nine.

Taking a step down.

Eight.

Relax even more.

Eight.

Everything is softening.

Seven.

Letting go of all tension.

Six.

Very relaxed.

Five.

Deeply at rest.

Four.

Three.

Totally at peace.

Two.

One.

Body and mind completely relaxed.

You are content to rest here.

You know you are safe.

Let yourself drift.

Observing the mind and anything that appears.

But not getting involved in the stories.

The body is heavy.

The mind is slow.

Everything totally relaxed.

Nine.

Taking a step down.

Eight.

Relax even more.

Ten.

Relax even more.

Reviews

I’ve been meditating with this for many years. I have seldom made it to the end without falling asleep. This is not from boredom, this is from the remarkable ability to rest both of your body and your mind. It truly remarkable meditation. Thank you so much.

This was a wonderful practice and helped me fall asleep then I woke up again so I'm trying it again

I listen to this every evening. It is truly amazing. I feel so safe when I do and so relaxed.

Amazing how the energy flow would just release in pulses through my body

I have never got to the end of the meditation! Always fall asleep! So effective!

Lovely ❤️ my sankalpa from last night came true. Trying again tonight 🙏 thank you for this lovely and calm guidance

Truly amazing. I've been struggling with insomnia and this meditation has helped allow me drift back into sleep! Thank you 🙏

I felt like she knew what I was thinking during the practice (especially at the beginning). Reassuring, professional, and respectful.

I enjoyed Your reassuring, safe calmed voice which help my body relax .I an struggling however with aching body. it won't allow me to sleep. Thank you though.

Love love love the Australian accent. So soothing. Thankyou.

This puts me to sleep almost every night. I forward through the beginning bc it doesn’t start immediately - there’s a little talking for newbies.

Excellent way to get to sleep. I'd love double length version please!

Feel a lot better after doing this yoga Nidra. Had a good sleep. Also, I like the pace in which she does the body scan. Some Yoga nidras can be a bit rushed. This was perfect.

Wonderful! Already practiced this for a few times and it’s deeply relaxing.

This is the best yoga nidra I have ever experienced.

That was deeply restful. Thank you.
I rest deeply all night and wake up feeling refreshed each morning. 🌞

Perfect. I woke up at 3.30am and tossed and turned. This beautiful practice enabled me to calm down and go back to sleep. Thank you 😊 🙏 💓

I am intrigued with how I can feel my body from the inside out. Saving for future use! Thank you.

Beautiful practice- helped me still my mind and I was able to fall asleep again in the night. Many thanks and blessings. 🦋🩵✨

Very calming practice to unwind a give myself permission to turn off