Yoga Nidra: Natural Rx for Insomnia?
By Barbara Moroney, based on the book "Natural Body, Natural Shape"

Do You Have An Opinion Or An Experience ?

Share it with us on our
message board.

I briefly consider an upcoming meeting scheduled in two days, an online credit card payment due today before 3 p.m., phone calls to return . . . . While these could be the thoughts of an organized mind creating a mental to-do list to start a day, they are not. They are mine and it is 1 a.m. and I am in bed and supposed to be asleep.

Insomnia is characterized by an inability to fall asleep, stay asleep, or waking up tired. I have had all of these symptoms. On some sleepless nights I would not go to bed until the early morning hours. I might sit in a chair with a book and doze, or stare at sleeping pill commercials on TV, or sweep the kitchen floor. All the while feeling like an apparition wandering through the house while everyone else sleeps.

But now, my sleepless nights have become almost nonexistent after more than a year of regular Yoga Nidra practice. Yoga Nidra translates to “yogic sleep.” Proponents describe it as a method to attain deep sleep while remaining awake. While this may be an ultimate goal, I’ve discovered it is a wonderful practice to help fall asleep, which I do before the meditation is done most nights. I sleep through the night, and wake up refreshed—as simulated by the actors in those sleeping pill commercials I used to watch; their arms stretched out in rested joy.

Yoga Nidra uses the most basic tools of yoga—body and breath awareness. To experience how Yoga Nidra meditation works, lay both hands on your desk. Read the following instructions and then close your eyes and try them:

[Observe the flow of your breath through your nostrils for a few moments without trying to alter it.  Next, focus your attention on your right hand. Let your focused awareness linger first on your whole right hand. Slowly and deliberately, shift your focus to different parts of your hand—your right palm, the back of your hand, and on each finger in turn. Finally return your focus to your whole right hand again.]

When you are done, and before opening your eyes, notice if your right hand feels differently than your left one. Often the right hand will feel heavier, indicating a deeper state of relaxation.

During this brief exercise, you rotated your consciousness around your hand. Did you notice if your thoughts wandered elsewhere? With diligent practice your ability to focus on your body in the present moment becomes sharper and you become calmer. Mind chatter that keeps you awake at night is not productive. You can calm an anxious mind by meeting it head on and giving it something else to do. As you train your mind to develop a sharper focus in this practice, you develop an increased ability to relax and stay calm during the day as well.

The practice can also create a restfulness that goes beyond ordinary sleep. We often take our stored tensions to bed with us and do not let them go even as we sleep. This is why we wake up feeling tired instead of refreshed. Yoga Nidra can help release these stored tensions.

To experience Yoga Nidra:

1.  CDs are available on Amazon.com that will guide you through the meditation. They have varying amounts of rotation of body awareness, body sensations, breath awareness, visualizations, and affirmations.

2. On your own, try body awareness, like you did with your hand, focusing on different parts of your body, from top to bottom, before bedtime or when you first get into bed.
 
3. Set a timer during the day to remind you to relax, focus on your breath, focus on your feet, your hands, your shoulders. Try tensing the areas first, then letting go.

With insomnia, you can always find time for this meditation. Start when you get into bed and cannot fall sleep—think of it as a natural sleeping pill. I recommend using a guided CD, however you can try rotating your awareness systematically over your whole body on your own.

My experience is that Yoga Nidra reduces the anxiety that keeps your brain from its natural state at night, when circadian rhythms dictate that it is time to sleep. After a night of natural sleep, you’ll wake up refreshed and energized to start your day.

Check out our Relax and Focus 10 Minute-Meditation

Check back next month for our feature article entitled "Thunder Thighs: How to Love Our Pesky Endomorphic (and Other Flawed) Parts."

Sign up to receive our monthly feature article via e-mail.

Previous Topics

The Thin Point

Emotional Eating

In Search of a Natural Body Weight

‘Put Your Foot in Your Mouth’ – The Value of Good Flexibility and a Strong Spine

Cultivating Your Natural Body Shape Through Yoga

Looking for an article? Check our Archives