Yoga Nidra and Non-Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR) practices reduce fatigue and increase energy
Discover how non-sleep deep rest (NSDR) and yoga nidra practices can reduce fatigue and burnout, while replenishing good energy.
Do you ever wake up from a full night’s rest feeling exhausted?
Do you have trouble falling asleep because you know you only have so much time to rest?
Do you ever get halfway through the day and feel like you just can’t focus on anything else?
All of these experiences are fairly common, and chances are you are experiencing or have experienced at least one of them.
Everyone’s energy becomes depleted with unhealthy levels of stress & negative thought cycles.
Luckily, there is a simple solution anyone can use.
Yoga Nidra, more modernly called Non-Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR), is one of the most effective tools to reduce anxiety and fatigue, while also boosting energy.
What is Yoga Nidra or NSDR?
Yoga nidra, or yogic sleep, is a form of guided meditation used to consciously enter a state of deep, rejuvenating rest. Yoga Nidra comes from ancient yogic traditions and usually involves a structured sequence that facilitates a journey through deeper states of consciousness.
Non-Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR) is an umbrella term used to describe an array of techniques that promote relaxation. It includes guided practices, like Yoga Nidra, but it doesn’t have the same historical depth, and tends to focus on more surface relaxation without the deep journey into the psyche.
While both practices aim to reduce stress, Yoga Nidra’s approach allows for unique therapeutic benefits, such as addressing trauma and enhancing creativity. NSDR focuses more generally on relaxation and stress reduction, which can still significantly benefit mental health, but may not engage with deeper psychological processes.
Personally and professionally, I have found the benefits of yoga nidra to be outstanding on many levels. So let’s dive deeper.
During yoga nidra, participants are invited to direct their thoughts and mental energy to a series of simple, guided tasks designed to help navigate different levels of awareness.
Yoga nidra can take many forms, but it is typically practiced lying down while listening as a teacher guides practitioners through setting an intention, a scan of the physical body, and becoming aware of the breath and energetic body.
What are the benefits of practicing Yoga Nidra?
The benefits of yoga nidra include:
-
Reduction of stress, anxiety, depression and fatigue
-
Improved sleep
-
Increased self awareness
-
Coping skills
-
Emotional intelligence
Yoga nidra is gentle, and can be safely used as additional therapy for the treatment of:
-
Anxiety
-
Depression
-
Trauma
-
Insomnia
-
Burnout
Practicing yoga nidra is free and doesn’t require any special tools or physical ability.
All you have to do is set aside a little time, lie down, close your eyes and listen.
There’s no wrong way to practice! Even if you fall asleep during yoga nidra, the unconscious mind still receives the benefits.
Yoga nidra also promotes physical health. Because if the mind is healthy, the body will be too.
These benefits are backed by science, making yoga nidra one of the holistic forms of therapy embraced by conventional medicine.
How does Yoga Nidra and Non Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR) work?
By directing awareness to different levels of the self, yoga nidra allows you to intentionally activate the parasympathetic nervous system. It is a part of the autonomic nervous system which regulates your body’s ability to relax.
When the body and mind are relaxed, they can heal.
This works by temporarily withdrawing attention from the outer world and responsibilities & redirecting the prana, your life force, in more deliberate and supportive ways.
Consciously slowing down the breath replenishes your vitality and allows yourself to have more energy available to send in a specific direction. The energy backing your thoughts becomes more potent as you allow your body to get soft and heavy.
As you are guided through layers of consciousness, your brain goes through the beta, theta & delta brain-wave states into a deeper level that can’t be reached during conventional sleep.
You enter a dreamless, sleep-like state while maintaining conscious control of the experience.
In this state, you are better able to learn and more open to intentions and affirmations.
This is how yoga nidra provides the benefits of sleep, while allowing you to rewire your mind and change patterns of thought and behavior. You become able to address the causes of mental health issues and let your body heal at the same time.
How can I use Yoga Nidra or NSDR?
Yoga nidra can be used at any time.
It is especially useful if you feel anxious, drained or are having trouble sleeping.
A good night’s sleep is determined by how you prepare for it.
Yoga nidra is an effective method to help you transition from the active mode of attending to daily responsibilities, to the more passive ones that promote quality rest.
The coolest thing is that the more you practice things like yoga nidra and NSDR, the better they work!
If you’re looking for a guided practice, try these:
If you want to sleep like a baby, this one is great to do before bed – Yoga Nidra for Quality Rest
If you are looking for a midday pick-me-up, this one is perfect anytime you need an energy boost – Yoga Nidra to Restore Energy & Vitality
Cheers to rest and rejuvenation!
-Jessi Rose