I am a thinker, an over-thinker, actually. I am a professional re-analyzer and a master of after-the-fact comebacks. Needless to say, I carry around a lot of unnecessary mental clutter that easily manifests itself into the physical form - stress, headaches, anxiety, lack of focus, etc.
This weekend, the lyrics to Erykah Badu's song Bay Lady kept playing over and over in my head. Theme song to my life, I've got too much stuff, but no more! I made a decision to no longer allow "space for rent" in my head or in my household. I can't afford to let let anyone/anything rent space for free. So I started the eviction process. I got rid of a lot of material possessions this weekend - old clothes, shoes and things that I no longer need and that will be of good use to someone else. I'm a bit of a sentimental hoarder as well and I hold on to things a little longer than I should, but I am SO ready for a lighter load.
Ironically on "eviction weekend" I received an invite to try Yoga Nidra & Singing Bowls: A Meditation Class at Aspire Yoga Center, which couldn't have come at a more perfect time. Along with clearing clutter physically from my home, I would get the opportunity to clear some mental clutter as well. I was told to bring blankets, pillows and anything that would make lying on the floor for an hour, comfortable. I immediately thought, nap-time but it was quite the contrary, well, for some! 
We arrived, laid out our mats, bolsters, blankets and were given eye pillows with a spritz of lavender. In Sanskrit, Yoga means "union" and Nidra means "dream" and I read that 1 hour of Yoga Nidra equates to 3-4 hours of sleep. As the guided meditation began, we were instructed to get comfy, become aware of our entire bodies, sounds both inside and outside of the room, our breathing and to NOT GO TO SLEEP! I am so thankful that the class was guided because I have trouble focusing. No worries kindred-spirit-daydreamers, the instructor calls out the body parts to focus on and become aware of. After a few rotations of awareness, we focused on breathing. We counted several breaths and were told to imagine ourselves on a beach. That's when the singing bowls came into play. By this point I could hear a few snorers but tuned them out as I focused on my own breathing.
The tones from the singing bowls were soothing. It's kind of hard to explain. There were several tones, pitches and vibrations resonating through the room and they just felt good. I read that they reduce stress and anxiety significantly, lower anger and blood pressure, improve circulation and increases blood flow. I can't say for certain that all that happened to me but I do know that the sounds felt good, if that makes sense.
All in all, I would definitely try Yoga Nidra again. I will most certainly need to work on getting out of my own head. Throughout the class I had to remind myself to relax and to concentrate. I could see this as such a beneficial regimen. I felt relaxed and calm and ready for bed after the class.
Namaste and see ya'll next time!
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