Yoga Nidra for Relaxation and Sleep

This Yoga Nidra will allow you to feel deeply relaxed and leave you feeling energised and refreshed, as though you have had some sleep! You will be guided into a comfortable position, lying or seated to settle. You are taken on a rotation of consciousness around your body, before bringing your awareness to the breath. You can stay with the breath or a visualisation countdown to being you into an even deeper place of relaxation before being gently brought back to your day.

Transcript

Welcome to Yoga Nidra.

I'd like you to allow yourself to get as comfortable as you possibly can.

So just take a moment to find a position,

Maybe seated,

Leaning against a wall or in a chair,

Or maybe laying down,

Possibly on your back if that's comfortable.

Remembering we can have our knees bent if that feels better on our backs.

And just take a few moments to ensure that you're comfortable,

That you're warm enough,

Maybe having a blanket or some extra clothing,

And just let in the volume of this recording be good for you.

So in our session we are going to be taking a moment to just settle.

Then we're going to take a tour around the body,

All the different parts of the body with our rotation of consciousness.

After that we'll have a little focus on our breath to allow us to relax a little more.

And then we'll come to a short visualization before slowly returning to our day.

So just allow yourself to make any last adjustments,

To let your body feel as comfortable as you can be right now.

And just take a moment to maybe allow your breath,

Just take a big sigh out,

Let in anything that isn't serving you right now,

Just leave with it.

Maybe that's tension in the body,

Maybe that's something that isn't really useful right now that you're thinking about.

Just take in that exhale and let it go.

Just allow your eyes to close if that's comfortable for you.

If not,

Then just try and take your gaze to nothing in particular.

And just allow your breath to become completely natural,

No effort at all.

Just notice in that gentle inhale and exhale.

And just let in your inhale,

Bring a little space into the body,

Maybe into the mind.

And on the exhale,

Just allow any tension,

Anything that you don't need right now to leave.

Spend a few moments just letting everything settle down.

We're going to begin a rotation of consciousness,

Rotating our awareness by taking a trip through the different parts of the body.

As quickly as possible,

Move in your attention from part to part.

And as I say the part,

Repeat the part of the body and simultaneously become aware of that part of the body.

Keep yourself alert,

But try not to concentrate too intensely.

If you wish,

You may visualize a light moving from part to part of your body as you become aware of the different parts.

Start by taking your awareness to your right hand.

Move that awareness to your right hand thumb.

Now to your second finger,

Third finger,

Fourth finger,

Fifth finger,

Palm of the hand.

Palm of the hand.

Become aware of your palm,

Back of the hand,

The wrist,

The lower arm,

The elbow,

The upper arm,

The shoulder,

The armpit,

The right waist,

The right hip,

The right thigh,

The kneecap,

The calf muscle,

The ankle,

The heel,

The sole of the right foot,

The top of the foot,

The big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe,

Fifth toe.

Now become aware of your left hand thumb.

Shift that awareness to your second finger and then your third finger,

Fourth finger and fifth finger,

The palm of the hand,

The back of the hand,

The wrist,

The lower arm,

The elbow,

The upper arm,

The shoulder,

Armpit,

The left waist,

The left hip,

The left thigh,

The kneecap,

The calf muscle,

The ankle,

The heel,

The sole of the left foot,

The top of the foot,

The big toe,

Second toe,

Third toe,

Fourth toe and fifth toe.

Now to your back.

Become aware of your right shoulder blade and now the left shoulder blade,

The right buttock,

The left buttock,

The spine,

The whole back together.

Now go to the top of the head.

Become aware of now your forehead,

The right side of your head,

The left side of your head.

Now to your right eyebrow,

The left eyebrow,

The space between the eyebrows,

The right eyelid,

The left eyelid,

The right eye,

The left eye,

The right ear,

The left ear,

The right cheek,

The left cheek,

The nose,

The tip of the nose,

The upper lip,

The lower lip,

The chin,

The throat,

The right side of your chest,

The left side of your chest,

The middle of your chest,

The navel,

The abdomen.

Now become aware of the whole of the right leg.

Now the whole of the left leg.

Now both legs together.

Take that awareness to the whole of the right arm,

The whole of the left arm,

Both arms together.

And now become aware of the whole of the back,

The buttock,

Spine and shoulder blades.

Take that awareness to the front of the body,

The abdomen and chest.

And now to the whole of the back and the front together.

The whole of the head,

The whole of the back and the whole of the front together.

The whole body together.

The whole body together.

The whole body together.

And now allow yourself to become aware of your breath.

Feel the flow of your breath in and out of your body.

Don't try to change the rhythm.

Let your breathing be natural,

Automatic,

Effortless.

Maintain an awareness of your breath.

Continue keeping complete awareness of your breath.

Now concentrate your awareness on the movement of your navel area.

Concentrate on your navel movements.

Your navel is rising and falling slightly with every single breath.

With each and every breath it expands and contracts.

Concentrate on this movement in synchronization with your natural breath.

Keeping that awareness of your breath.

Now I'd like you to start counting your breaths backwards from 27 to 1 in this way.

27 navel rises.

27 navel falls.

26 navel rises.

26 navel falls.

25 navel rises.

25 navel falls.

And so on.

Say the words and numbers silently to yourself as you count your breaths.

With total awareness that you're counting and breathing,

Go on counting from 27 to 1.

Complete awareness of counting and breath.

Breath and counting.

Staying with that breath at the navel area.

At the navel area counting the rise and fall with complete awareness.

And now stop the counting of your navel breath and move your attention to your chest.

Please shift your attention to the chest.

Become aware of your chest rising and falling slightly with each and every breath.

Allow yourself to become fully aware of this gentle movement with your natural breath.

Continue concentrating on the movement of your chest and start counting backwards from 27 to 1 27 to 1.

In the same way as before.

27 chest rises.

27 chest falls.

26 chest rises.

26 chest falls.

25 chest rises.

25 chest falls.

And so on.

Again repeating those words silently to yourself as you count.

Making sure we have a total awareness of counting and breath.

Not allowing yourself to become sleepy.

Awareness of breath and counting.

Please continue counting those breaths at the chest area.

Keep on with the practice.

Continue counting your breaths.

Complete attention.

And now stop counting and move your awareness to your nostrils.

Become aware of the breath moving in and out of your nostrils.

Notice in the sensation of the breath at the nostrils and now focusing on that sensation.

Inhale and the exhale and start counting as before.

You know it well by now.

27 inhaling.

27 exhaling.

26 inhaling.

26 exhaling.

And so on.

Complete awareness.

Continue your count.

Staying with that sensation of breath at the nostrils and you're counting.

Complete awareness.

Continue with the practice.

And now allow yourself to stop your counting and just leave your breathing.

No focus on the breath.

Just letting it become natural and effortless automatic once more.

Now we're going to take a short visualization if you wish.

If it's not easy for you to visualize or if you don't want to that's absolutely fine.

Maybe just listen to my voice.

So I'd like you to imagine before you a board upon which you can write.

Feel in your hand that you have a pen or a stick of chalk with which you can write.

In your mind's eye see your arms slowly raising and see yourself writing the number six on the board.

Follow the flow of your strokes as you write and when you're finished take a moment to look at the number you have drawn.

Notice its shapes.

Allow yourself to feel the number six.

Now see the number fading slowly and till the board is clear once more.

Next let your hand draw the number five.

Slowly or quickly as you choose.

Again see and feel the shapes of the number five for a moment.

The number five fades and the board is blank again.

You begin to make marks on the board in the form of the number four.

Feel the movement of the straight lines and angles as you draw.

Let yourself examine the form and feel of the number four for a moment.

Your number four fades slowly leaving no traces.

As you start to raise your arm and write you find that you are drawing the shapes of the number three.

Let yourself experience the feeling of the shapes in your number.

Sweeping curves or sharp angles.

When you're complete maybe trace the shape again with your gaze.

See the number three fade and once again the board is completely clean.

Your writing hand now spontaneously begins to create the form of the number two before your eyes.

Again feel the motion of the creation of this figure and now as the figure fades once more see the board before you left with no marks.

Now you are writing the number one following the flow of your strokes as you write.

Looking at the number you have drawn notice its shapes.

Notice the feeling of the number.

Now see the number fading slowly until the board is clear once more.

Allow the board to dissolve and maybe the numbers you drew allowed you to feel a little more deeply relaxed.

Just let yourself be here for a moment.

Allow for yourself to become aware of your breathing once more.

Your natural breath and again develop an awareness of the whole body.

An awareness of the whole body and awareness of breathing.

You're breathing quietly and slowly.

Develop an awareness of your body from the top of your head to the tips of your toes and mentally in your mind see if you can allow yourself to relax a little more by saying silently,

I am at ease.

Repeat to yourself twice more allowing for a little more relaxation each time you repeat it.

In your mind's eye visualize the room around you and become aware of your surroundings.

Start letting your breath deepen a little and then allow your body to start moving and stretching if you wish.

Please take your time there's no need to hurry.

Just make in any movements to help to bring you back to the present moment.

The practice of yoga nidra is now complete.