Yoga Nidra: Rest Arrives Next Week

How are you prioritizing rest? True rest? Do you schedule it into your routine? Can you even put it off until next Tuesday?

You don't need to earn your rest.

You don't need to earn a basic human right.

On Tuesday, something new starts here: a free 30-minute yoga nidra practice, released every other week, right inside Destiny Architecture.

If you haven't done yoga nidra before, it's not a traditional, on-the-mat yoga class with asana practice. You don't move. You lie down, you listen, and your nervous system gets to do what it almost never gets permission to do: stop performing rest and actually take it. You find stillness.

Yoga nidra means "yogic sleep." Think of it as the thirty minutes where nothing is required of you. You can relax and find deep rest in a short time.

You can let go.

Yoga nidra is like getting 4 hours of sleep in 30 minutes.

What is Yoga Nidra?

Yoga nidra is a practice that gives you deep rest in a short time centered around your sankalpa, or intention. Think of a sankalpa also as a vow, promise, or even an affirmation. It can be something you set for the duration of your practice or you can set it for your life. Either way, it's said in the affirmative in full faith that it can only come true.

Yoga nidra is not hypnotherapy, but people ask me often if that's what it is. A hypnotherapist drives your experience and you agree to this before you even start. With yoga nidra, YOU are always in control YOU create the experience.

Because YOU are the architect of your own destiny.

Why Yoga Nidra?

Yoga nidra is an evidence-based practice with its roots in yoga, a 5,000-year-old practice. The VA uses it with veterans who have PTSD, only the VA sanitizes it. It takes the Sanskrit and spirituality out of it, using a program called iRest.

I'm a yoga teacher, so I teach yoga nidra in the traditional yogic way. So I use Sanskrit words like sankalpa, or intention. (Every moment is teachable to me, so I teach students what the words mean). I will mention a rest pose, savasana, or "corpse pose" as a pose you can take for your rest. If savasana is appropriate for you, take it. You can also practice yoga nidra in any position you find comfortable.

The key is to ensure you can stay still and comfortable for 30 minutes. A quiet place is best. You may want a blanket to keep warm. You may also want other props to increase your comfort.

I've been sitting on this for a while, building it quietly before bringing it here.

I spent summer teaching trauma-informed yoga and yoga nidra. I've long been a fan of yoga nidra and the rest I've been able to find in practicing it. I love to teach it in person, but giving you a recording will work just as well, maybe even better depending on your situation.

If you find it hard to rest, put in some earbuds and find a spot to rest. This will be your time for yourself. Your self-care. Your rest. Consider it nap time. Snore. Kick back, relax, and enjoy.

You can tell yourself you won't fall asleep if you don't want to fall asleep. But it's not bad if you do! Just as when we fall asleep in meditation, don't freak out. You're not doing it "wrong." You may have just needed the rest.

I also caution that you don't need to have expectations about yoga nidra practice. You may have the best or worst practice. You may be struggling with restlessness. Sitting still can be challenging for many.

Here's what's coming:

• A free ~30-minute episode, every other week. No app, no login. It'll live right here and wherever you already get podcasts. It's free and open to the public.
• A steady rhythm, not a flood. I'd rather you actually look forward to it than feel it's one more thing to keep up with. A weekly cadence seemed too much, once a month seemed too little. A fresh yoga nidra practice twice a month will be just right. It will keep things fresh without the pressure of feeling you "have to" practice often. It's there when you need it.
• More to come after that, but I'm building this one piece at a time, in the order it actually makes sense by starting with the practice that asks the least of you and gives back the most.

You don't need to do anything to get ready except notice how rarely you let yourself stop to rest without earning it first. That noticing is basically the whole practice.

How often do you take breaks or give yourself real rest?

How is your sleep?

How are you engaging in self-care?

How present are you?

How's your breathing?

Merely begin to notice the answers to these questions in the coming week.

First episode: Tuesday. I'll be back here to tell you exactly where to find it.

— Heather

Teaching Soon in Public Again!

I've been teaching privately for nearly 3 years since I got to Arizona. I will soon be teaching at a place opening SOON to the public! These will be athletic, power yoga classes.

As much as I love teaching the calming practices of trauma-informed yoga and yoga nidra, my teaching needs balance. I can't wait to teach classes that are more active, more of a flow.

I'm pretty excited about what's to come. The new spot will be FUN, full of energy, and inclusive to all.

I may be teaching a few other things as well...