Yoga Nidra

Yoga Nidra is not about having a 30-minute power-nap, though, nor does it involve some learned art of meditation or difficult-to-master breathing techniques. You don’t need a special environment, nor do you need to be lissom and bendy enough to get into a range of yoga poses. However, guided sessions are a must for beginners – and with the advent of free, accessible YouTube videos, you can even do that from your own living room floor.

Also known as ‘yogic sleep’, yoga Nidra is closer to

meditation than the flow of movements and holds we usually associate with yoga. Think of the ‘lying down bit’ at the end of a yoga practice, where you focus on your breathing and relaxing your body…

During the deepest part of the state, which is different from ordinary waking consciousness, practitioners are supposedly re-aligned with the most spiritual part of their inner nature. Practitioners of yoga Nidra claim that its benefits go far beyond that of relaxation or even meditation – and there’s plenty of evidence to back it up.

Since the 1960s, many scientific studies have been carried out to measure the impact of yoga Nidra on the mind and body. More recently, brain scanning technology has made it possible to assess changes in brain activity during and after yoga Nidra practices.

Many alternative therapies are only anecdotally beneficial – with scientific studies often failing to provide empirical evidence of altered physical or mental performance, or qualitative improvement in health. However, yoga Nidra consistently comes up in scientific studies as universally beneficial.

Clinical studies have showed benefits including increased alertness, reduction in tension headaches, improved ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate), reduction in stress and anxiety after six months of practice, pain relief in lumbar spondylitis, improved performance and reaction time in athletes, reduction in physiological and psychological responses to stress, improving symptoms of menstrual irregularities, improving heart rate and cardiac output, decline in blood glucose level, headaches, palpitations, insomnia, anxiety and emotional distress, improving HRV balance, improving sleep quality, reduced hyperactivity and inattentiveness in young people, improved hormonal balance in the endocrine system.

At least two imaging studies have demonstrated that the conscious states observed during or following yoga Nidra meditation result in measurable changes in brain activity and a 65% increase in dopamine release.

A study that looked at the effect of music and yoga Nidra on perception of pain while patients were undergoing a colonoscopy showed that both music and yoga Nidra resulted in significant reduction in pain.

Diabetes (Type 2) symptoms were reduced in severity after 90 days of yoga Nidra. A combined regimen with hypoglycaemic medication showed a marked reduction in blood sugar fluctuations compared with the control group.

One study showed that yoga Nidra is more beneficial than meditation in reducing anxiety.

Most of these results were based on regular 30 min to one-hour daily yoga Nidra sessions for a period of 3-6 months.

Simon Moyes has been practicing yoga Nidra for three years, starting it in the summer of 2021. He was taught it initially by a yoga instructor and breath works specialist, Charlotte Nicholson, and keeps her downloaded audio file on his phone.  He finds it incredibly helpful when he struggles to sleep. Simon also does ‘box breathing’ for 20 minutes in the morning, which helps him find balance for the day ahead.

The practice of yoga nidra

Yoga Nidra involves a specific set of steps, initially quite deliberate, but becoming more natural and automatic with time and experience.

Preparation

Corpse pose – shavasana. Lying palms up with arms and legs at 45 degrees, eyes closed, breathing deeply and slowly.

Sankalpa

Mentally resolve a personal resolution – such as, ‘I will give up smoking’ – short, clear and positive. Mentally repeat it three times with conviction. This stage is known as ‘passivity’ and it creates a separation of self from the experiences that are normally emotionally arousing. According to practitioners, when we are in this state, resolutions are absorbed more quickly into the subconscious.

Rotation of Consciousness

Mental visualisation is rotated around parts of the body in a systematic and organised manner. Limbs: starts with the right thumb and progresses along the arm, down the side to the leg, right down to the toe. The process is repeated on the left side of the body. Then, the focus moves to the back of the body, progressing from the heels up to the back of the head. Then the front of the body, from the forehead and individual facial features, down the torso to the front of the legs and feet.

Breath Awareness

Visualising the breath flowing in and out of the nostrils, the chest and abdomen, as well as between the navel and the throat, while mentally counting each incoming and outgoing flow of the breath.

Opposite feelings and sensations

Recalling physical or emotional experiences and their associated sensations with an increased vividness. Eg feeling opposite sensations such as hot and cold, heaviness and lightness, pain and pleasure.

Visualisation

Directing awareness to the dark space in front of the closed eyes [Chidakasha] and visualising various scenes.

Sankalpa

Mentally repeating the personal resolution three times with faith, dedication and optimism.

Ending the practice

Slowly bringing awareness back to external sounds, objects and people. Turning onto the right side, and slowly moving and stretching each body part. Sitting up and slowly opening the eyes.