Yoga Nidra - Chronic Pain Release

This deeply therapeutic Yoga Nidra practice is designed specifically for those living with chronic pain. Using gentle breathwork, compassionate body awareness, and healing visualization, this session guides you in shifting your relationship with pain and accessing your body's innate capacity for comfort and ease.

Rather than fighting against pain, we'll practice "softening"—a gentle, allowing approach that reduces the tension-pain cycle. You'll learn to shift attention from areas of pain to areas of relative comfort, expanding sensations of ease throughout your body.

Transcript

Hello and welcome to this guided yoga nidra practice designed specifically for chronic pain relief.

If you're living with chronic pain,

You're not alone.

You know that living with chronic pain is extremely challenging.

It's a journey that requires not just physical strength but also mental and emotional resilience.

Your body works so hard and today we're going to give it permission to rest and we're going to encourage it to heal.

We're also going to remember and honor our body's natural state of comfort and ease.

Chronic pain can feel overwhelming,

Certainly,

But within you lies an innate capacity for healing and relief.

Today's practice will guide you through gentle breath work,

Body awareness,

And visualization techniques that support your nervous system in shifting away from the pain signals and toward sensations of comfort and ease.

We'll be working with the mind-body connection to help release tension,

Soften resistance to pain,

And create space for your body's natural healing abilities to emerge.

The goal is that by the end of this session you experience even a brief moment of relief and relaxation and a renewed sense of peace.

My name is Wendy and I'm honored to guide you through this healing practice today.

Welcome.

Let's begin by finding your most comfortable position.

This is such an important part of your healing practice,

To be as comfortable as possible.

You might lie down with pillows supporting your head,

Perhaps under your knees.

Or you may choose to sit in a well-supported chair.

And you also might like to have a warm blanket covering you.

Taking your time to settle in and to get comfortable.

There's no perfect position,

Only what feels right for your body right now.

And when you're settled and comfortable,

As comfortable as you can be,

Gently close your eyes if that's available to you,

If that feels right.

Or you may choose to keep them softly open with a gentle gaze.

Do whatever serves you best.

Then let's take a slow deep breath in and exhale fully.

Allowing tension to release and to simply melt away.

And then tuning into and noticing your breath.

Inviting it to flow without any effort.

Let it be just as it is.

There's no need to change it or to control it.

Simply observe the natural rhythm of your breathing and rest into your whole body.

With each exhale,

Imagine you're releasing just a little bit more of tension.

Just a little bit more of whatever you might be holding.

Even the smallest release is a gift to your body.

And now let's establish a sankalpa or a healing intention for your practice today.

This intention is like planting a seed in the fertile soil of your subconscious mind.

You might choose something like,

I am open to comfort and ease.

Or I release pain and welcome peace.

Choose what resonates most deeply with you.

And when you have your intention,

Repeat it silently to yourself three times.

I am open to comfort and ease.

I release pain and welcome peace.

And then let's begin to work with your breath in a way that supports pain relief.

We'll be using a technique called the healing sigh.

This healing sigh activates your parasympathetic nervous system,

Which helps to calm pain signals.

So let's start by taking a comfortable breath in through your nose.

And then exhale slowly through your mouth with a gentle sigh like this.

And as you sigh,

Imagine you're releasing pain with your breath.

Let's do this two more times.

Breathing in through your nose and sighing out.

One more time.

Breathing in and sighing out.

Releasing.

And now allow your breath to return to its natural rhythm.

And notice maybe there's even just a small sense of relief.

Pain often creates tension in the body and tension can amplify pain.

So today we're going to practice the opposite of tension.

We're going to practice softening.

Softening is different from trying to relax.

Softening is gentle and it allows.

Softening makes friends with your body rather than fighting against it.

As we move through the body,

You won't be asked to relax the pain away.

Instead,

We'll bring kind and gentle awareness to each area and we'll invite softening.

Kind of like ice cream softening in the sun.

So let's begin the rotation of consciousness through the body.

Bringing your attention to the crown of your head and simply noticing and observing without judgment.

Breathing into this space at the crown of your head and inviting softness.

Now let's move to your forehead and to the space between your eyebrows.

Your eyes.

So much tension can live here.

Breathing softness into your face.

Into your cheeks.

And softening in your jaw.

Perhaps your jaw can release and drop open just a little more.

Inviting ease into this area.

And then bringing awareness to your neck and to your throat.

This delicate bridge between your head and your body.

And breathing kindness here.

And softening this area.

And then moving to your shoulders.

These strong workers that carry so much.

With each breath,

Imagine your shoulders dropping a tiny bit more and releasing their burden.

And then bringing your attention to your upper back and to your shoulder blades.

We often hold pain here in this area.

So simply notice without trying to change anything.

Breathing into this area and offering compassion.

Next moving to your chest and to your heart space.

Breathing into this area and feeling your chest as it rises and falls.

And honoring your heart with gratitude.

It's been beating for you through all of this journey.

And now bring your focus to your middle back and your lower back.

The entire back area supports you in so many ways.

If there's any pain here,

Acknowledge it.

You might say,

I see you pain.

I'm listening.

And then breathe softness around the pain.

Not trying to push it away.

Rather creating space.

And then bringing awareness to your belly and the area around your abdomen.

This is the center of your body.

Breathing deeply into your belly and imagine healing warmth spreading through this area.

And moving on to your pelvis and your hips.

These powerful areas help you move through life.

So breathing kindness here.

And inviting whatever softening is possible.

And then bring your attention to both of your thighs.

Your thighs support you.

And then bring your attention to your knees.

Breathing awareness and softness into your knees as they also support you.

And then bring your attention to your calves.

Your shins.

Your ankles.

And your feet.

And also the soles of your feet.

And all ten toes.

Breathing all the way down to your toes.

And now let's work specifically with any area or areas of pain.

Without forcing anything,

Bring gentle awareness to an area or areas of your body that holds pain.

Rather than pushing the pain away,

We're going to do something different.

We're going to breathe curiosity into this area.

So notice,

Is the pain sharp or is it dull?

Is the pain hot or is it cold?

Does it pulse or is it constant?

Just observe.

You're the compassionate witness of your own experience.

Now imagine breathing directly into this area or areas of pain.

With each inhale,

Imagine bringing healing oxygen,

Light,

And energy.

And with each exhale,

Imagine the tension,

The pain softening.

Even if it's just a little.

And now imagine the area around your pain beginning to soften.

Like the pain is an island.

And around that island,

The waters are becoming calm.

They're becoming calm and creating space around the pain.

So continue breathing into the space.

And breathing ease.

You might notice the pain doesn't disappear.

And that's okay.

But perhaps the grip of the pain,

Perhaps it loosens just a little.

Perhaps you notice you can observe the pain rather than being consumed by it.

And now let's shift our awareness to an area of your body that feels relatively comfortable.

Even if you're in significant pain,

There's usually somewhere that feels a little bit better.

Maybe it's your pinky finger or your earlobe or one of your ankles.

Find a place of relative comfort.

And then focus all your attention on this comfortable area.

And as you do that,

Notice the absence of pain there.

Breathe into the comfort.

And then expand it.

And allow this sensation of ease to spread like warm honey.

Your brain is truly remarkable.

Where you place your attention,

It grows.

So we're going to spend time building the sensation of comfort and ease.

Breathing into comfort and expanding ease.

Let this comfortable sensation ripple out like gentle waves.

And from this comfortable place,

Send it out to nearby areas.

No forcing.

Rather inviting.

Comfort is spreading.

Ease is expanding.

Beautiful.

Now we're going to take a healing journey with visualization.

Imagine you're in a place of perfect comfort and safety.

This could be a warm beach,

A quiet forest,

Or a cozy room.

Wherever you feel most at peace,

Envision that.

And then in this place,

Imagine you discover a healing pool of warm,

Luminous water.

This water is infused with healing properties.

It knows exactly what your body needs.

The temperature is perfect.

The depth of the water is perfect.

You step into this healing water.

It immediately begins to work its magic.

The warm water surrounds you.

It supports you and holds you.

This healing water has a color.

Notice what color it is.

This is your personal healing color.

As you float in this healing water,

It begins to draw out pain and tension.

You can imagine the pain leaving your body as a different color.

Perhaps it's gray or brown.

Whatever color,

It dissolves harmlessly into the healing water.

Fresh healing water continues to flow around you.

Bringing comfort.

Bringing ease.

Bringing restoration.

Your body absorbs exactly what it needs.

Areas of pain are being bathed in healing energy.

Tight muscles are softening.

Inflamed areas are cooling.

And nerve signals are calming.

You are safe.

You are supported.

You are healing.

Your body remembers its blueprint of wholeness.

And in this moment,

You are reconnecting with that blueprint.

Float here for as long as you need.

Absorbing healing.

Releasing pain.

Your body is wise.

It knows how to restore itself.

And you are giving it permission and space to do that.

Rest here now until you hear the sound of my voice again.

And now,

Whether you're ready for sleep or ready to return to your day,

Know that this healing continues.

The seeds of comfort you've planted will continue to grow.

If you're ready for sleep,

Simply allow yourself to drift off.

If you're returning to your day,

Let's begin the gentle journey back.

Start by deepening your breath slightly.

Bringing more awareness to the sensation of your breath.

Then begin to bring some small movements into your body.

Perhaps wiggling your fingers and toes.

Maybe touching your thumbs to each finger one by one.

Maybe bringing your arms up and over your head for a full body stretch.

But gently moving in whatever ways that feel good to you and your body.

Slowly,

Mindfully,

And with kindness.

And taking a moment to notice how you feel.

Honoring any relief,

Any ease,

Or any shift you've experienced.

Even the smallest change can be significant.

Remember you have the power to access comfort and ease.

Your body holds this innate healing wisdom.

Relief is always possible.

Even if only in small moments.

So may you be gentle with yourself.

And may you find moments of ease throughout your day.

And may you remember that you are so much more than your pain.

Thank you for sharing this practice with me today.

It's truly my honor.

I'm sending you healing energy and so much compassion.

Until we meet again next time,

Namaste.

And if you're still listening,

Please be sure to like and share this video with others who might benefit.

And please share your experience and leave comments if you're comfortable doing so.

I truly enjoy hearing from you and it really does help reach more people who are seeking relief.

Thank you so much and may you find ease and comfort.