I was delighted to see a recent article in the Boston Globe about the growing credibility of Yoga Nidra as both a stress reduction technique and an effective drug-free alternative for pain, and even post-traumatic stress.
You can read the entire article here but since it’s rather long, I’ve pulled out some highlights for your perusal below.
A succinct definition of Yoga nidra…
After a few preliminary stretches, participants are asked to lie completely still on their backs for the next 45 minutes.
This yoga isn’t about exercise.
Yoga nidra is a systematic, multistage set of relaxation techniques that help induce a deep, meditative state. It’s as old as yogis, but has gained both in popularity and credibility in recent years in the West as an effective way to relieve stress and anxiety.
Some interesting PTSD research
Unlike exercise-based yogas, yoga nidra’s health benefits are more closely akin to those of meditation practices and have been researched accordingly. Studies have shown that yoga nidra may help with insomnia, anxiety, depression, addiction, and chronic pain.
In 2006, the Department of Defense conducted research at Walter Reed Army Medical Center on the efficacy of yoga nidra on soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with post-traumatic stress disorder. This led to the incorporation of yoga nidra into weekly treatment programs for soldiers in several VA facilities across the country.
In 2010, the US Army Surgeon General endorsed yoga nidra as an intervention in treating chronic pain. The Department of Defense Centers of Excellence in Washington has recommended continuing and ongoing research in using yoga nidra to treat post-traumatic stress.
One woman’s practical application to relieve claustrophobia
Mary Prada Vaiani of South Easton, who says she suffers from claustrophobia, volunteers that she used yoga nidra to get her through a recent magnetic resonance image (MRI) test without using drugs.
“I just did the breathing and instead of fighting the experience, I welcomed in that awful noise and did not have a second of panic,” she says.
I offer several varieties of Yoga Nidra …as a single class, as a stress reduction series, and coupled with a Restorative. Check my schedule for current offerings.
I look forward to seeing you on the mat soon!