What is Yoga Nidra and what has it got to do with a healthy lifestyle and nutrition?
Firstly the words translate directly to ‘Yogic Sleep’. A powerful meditation practice that promotes the parasympathetic nervous system to activate, encouraging a state of ‘rest and digest’. In our modern world we are mostly stuck in our sympathetic nervous system, or ‘fight or flight’.
In order to heal, we must support our nervous system daily with stress reducing activities such as yoga, meditation, time in nature and breathwork.
Let go of ruminating thoughts, doubts, fears and anxieties and allow your mind the space to change your reactivity levels instead of being driven by your impulses.
Resting, sleep-like in the physical body, but awake in awareness.
Known as Non Sleep Deep Rest, Yoga Nidra is a fully guided, immensely powerful meditative practice where the mind is given exercises to do, that induces a trance-like state.
It is one of the easiest yoga practices to do, as it is done in the Shavasana lying down position, supported where needed.
In Nidra we unknowingly empty the contents of our mind using continual guided awareness and mental imagery.
All done whilst moving down through different levels of brain waves where there are naturally less and less thoughts.
Once in the delta brain wave state your thoughts will be significantly reduced. Here you will reach the state where the body can restore itself and release unwanted stress hormones.
Trained by the incredible masters of Nidra - Uma and Nirlipta Tuli: I am eternally grateful for the knowledge and confidence they have instilled in me to share this beautiful practice. I write and deliver unique scripts that bring together influences from many different schools of Nidra.
Yoga Nidra and Breathwork are a perfect marriage of guided therapies and can create a significant improvement in your mental health and wellbeing.
Read more about the stress releaving benefits of Nidra here: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9033521/
Yoga Nidra can lower blood pressure, heart rate, cortisol and can help to treat pain, anxiety, insomnia, PMS and PTSD when practiced regularly.
It is also said that 45 minutes of Yoga Nidra has the same restorative benefits as 3 hours of sleep!