When Deep Rest Feels Impossible
A reflection on the body’s capacity to rest and the healing power of Yoga Nidra
Sometimes we finally slow down — but the body doesn’t.
You lie in bed exhausted, yet your mind keeps turning. You sit down with a cup of tea, but your shoulders stay lifted, your breath shallow.
If you’ve ever felt that way, you’re not alone. For many of us, the nervous system has forgotten how to rest, even when we’ve done everything “right.”
When Slowing Down Doesn’t Feel Restful
After long periods of stress or overextension, the body can get stuck in a low-level state of alert. Even moments meant for rest — reading, sitting quietly, or watching TV — can carry subtle tension: a clenched jaw, a held breath, hands curled into little fists.
We think we’re resting, but the body and mind are telling a different story.
That’s because the nervous system doesn’t simply shut off when life gets quieter; it needs to be guided back toward safety.
The Practice of Deep Rest
Yoga Nidra, sometimes called “yogic sleep”, is a guided practice that allows the body to enter a state of profound relaxation while the mind remains quietly aware. It’s not about falling asleep; it’s about remembering how to let go.
Clinically, Yoga Nidra has been used in trauma-recovery programs — most notably through Richard Miller’s iRest protocol, developed for veterans with PTSD and adopted by the U.S. military. It has also been incorporated into the Ornish Lifestyle Medicine Program, which integrates Nischala Joy Devi’s Yoga Nidra to help reverse heart disease.
Research continues to show that deep relaxation supports healing — reducing blood pressure, boosting immune function, and releasing beneficial neurochemicals that repair the body and calm the mind.
In yoga therapy, we use Yoga Nidra as one of many tools to help clients experience true rest — not just physically, but at every level of being.
When Rest Finally Lands
After guiding a Deep Rest, Deep Relaxation class recently, I watched as students slowly opened their eyes — softer, grounded, almost luminous. One whispered, “That was wonderful. I didn’t realize how much I needed that.”
It struck me how rare that kind of peace is in our everyday lives. For many, it wasn’t about learning something new, but unlearning the constant need to do, fix, or push through.
During Yoga Nidra, we enter the hypnagogic state, the threshold between wakefulness and sleep. In this deeply relaxed awareness, subconscious patterns can begin to unwind. The body feels safe enough for the mind to release old stress loops, allowing new neural pathways and new possibilities to take root.
Deep rest isn’t indulgence; it’s remembrance.
Why Deep Rest Matters
When your body enters a parasympathetic state—the “rest and restore” mode—it releases more than 1,400 biochemicals that promote renewal (as shown by research from the HeartMath Institute).
In this state, healing processes accelerate, the mind grows quieter, and energy begins to replenish.
The practice doesn’t force rest; it teaches rest. It reminds the body what safety and ease feel like, so that over time, those sensations become more accessible in daily life.
A Gentle Reflection
Maybe deep rest feels far away right now — especially if you’re used to running on high alert.
But what if you didn’t have to work for it?
What if rest wasn’t something to achieve, but something to remember?
An Invitation for You
Yoga therapy offers a way back to that remembering — a guided, compassionate process of helping your body and mind reconnect with rest, safety, and ease.
If you’d like to experience this practice for yourself, you can listen to my Yoga Nidra for Deep Rest on YouTube — a 20-minute guided practice designed to help your nervous system soften and your body remember what ease feels like.
Schedule a discovery call or continue exploring the series:
→ When Anxiety Lives in Your Body
→ When Pain Lingers Longer Than It Should (coming soon)