First things first, before I start waxing lyrical about why I love this beautiful and easily accessible practice I had better tell you what Yoga Nidra is.
Yoga Nidra (literally translated as ‘yogic sleep’) is a form of meditation practiced lying down. Sounds good already, doesn’t it? It is a guided practice that can be done any time of the day when you are feeling anxious, stressed, tired or simply in need of a quick, effortless recharge. The goal of Yoga Nidra is to reset your mind and body by bringing you into a state of complete relaxation thus leaving you feeling refreshed, energised and rejuvenated.
The main difference between Yoga Nidra and more traditional forms of seated meditation (which I am a big fan of) is that instead of sitting up, being awake and consciously observing thoughts, you lie down and listen to a guided soundtrack that doesn’t require any effort from you. Yoga Nidra lets your mind drift to that liminal place between wakefulness and sleep and it is in this magical place that we can receive the benefits of the practice. Both traditional meditation and Yoga Nidra encourage the body to enter a ‘rest and digest’ state where the nervous system feels soothed enough to stop being on alert. Yoga Nidra takes this a little further by taking the body and brain to an even deeper state of relaxation that is usually only achieved during REM sleep.
When the body and brain are in this state of deep relaxation, Yoga Nidra can have the following effects of…
· Lowering cortisol levels (1)
· Reducing levels of stress and intensity of stress (2)
· Reducing symptoms of anxiety (3)
· Increasing levels of dopamine (4)
· Improving sleep quality, sleep onset and duration (1)
· Helping to ease insomnia (1)
· Enhancing immune function (5)
Not bad for a practice which requires you to lay down and be still for as little as 15 minutes. I hope now you can begin to see why I am such a big fan of this practice. Yoga Nidra can be practiced for as little as 15 minutes – perfect for when you are short on time and feeling overwhelmed or scattered or for a longer duration when you have more time. The funny thing is that we often convince ourselves that we are so busy that we don’t have time to spare. The paradox here is that by spending 20 minutes practicing Yoga Nidra we often gain way more time back because we awaken feeling refreshed and energised with less chatter in the mind we can get on with what we need to in a more efficient and productive manner.
You don’t need to take my word on how Yoga Nidra can make you feel, you can give it a try for yourself – there is a 20 minute practice in the Free Resources section. Like most good things in life, the more you practice the greater and deeper the changes and benefits. The recording I have offered you can be done daily if you so wish. Give it a go at different times of the day and see how it affects you personally – leave a comment in the section below and let me know how you’re getting on.
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