I enjoyed this article in the October issue of
Yoga Journal and thought I would share it here:
Sweet Surrender
When you can't sleep, yoga's deeper teachings can help you let go and find rest.
By Hillari Dowdle, sequence by Kelly Golden
If you're thinking about it when you'd rather be dreaming, there's a
good chance you don't. You're suffering from insomnia, and peace of mind
is beyond your grasp—and so, at least for the moment, are all of the
mind-body-spirit benefits that sleep confers.
If you've struggled with sleeplessness, you're in good company. Some
50 to 70 million Americans suffer from insomnia, according to the latest
count by the Centers for Disease Control, and the prevalence of sleep
medication bears them out: Last year, about 60 million prescriptions
were written for sleep aids. These medications can have side effects,
like any drug, and their effectiveness is questionable at best, but
we're willing to stomach them because not sleeping is more harmful than
simply feeling lousy the next day. Regular sleep deficits have been
associated with high blood pressure, type II diabetes, heart disease,
depression, cancer, obesity, and even increased risk of death. It's
enough to keep you up at night! I know because I've been there—for like,
the last 30 years.
Wakefulness has been knocking on my door since my early teens,
usually during times of stress and strain. I always treated it like an
unwanted houseguest, greeting it with anxiety and open hostility. I was
warlike in my efforts to win the battle. I even brought that attitude to
my yoga practice, expecting it to work like a magic weapon to knock me
unconscious. That's hardly the sort of peaceful attitude that promotes
sleep, which is probably why, in spite of all of the medications, herbal
remedies, sleep-hygiene tips, and aromatherapy I tried, I never found a
strategy that really worked.
Recently, after three especially difficult sleepless nights, I
realized that I couldn't overpower my hyperalert and anxious state, or
pound my mind into sleep through force of will. I could push away
sleeplessness all I wanted, but here it still would be. I needed to look
deeper into yoga's teachings, beyond relaxation practices, and find
help facing this crazy insomnia monster instead of running away from it.
And so I reached out to teachers and sleep experts who could offer
insights, tools, and practices to help me get to the source of my
problems, and, hopefully, to find a solution.
Embracing Twilight
My first lesson was about the nature of sleep. Like most Westerners, I
tend to think of "awake" and "asleep" as polar opposites, and that you
can have one only at the expense of the other. Black and white.
Conscious and unconscious. Perhaps this perception explains why so many
of us are willing to reach for a sleeping pill. We think our job at
night is to black out.
But in fact, this is a relatively new way of thinking about sleep.
Prior to the Industrial Revolution, night waking was considered normal,
explains Rubin Naiman, PhD, a clinical psychologist and sleep therapist
who draws on spiritual teachings from yoga and other traditions in his
sleep retreats and audio programs including The Yoga of Sleep. "If you
look at all of the documentation on sleep recorded from 1500 to 1830,
you find that people typically did wake in the middle of the night—they
had a little 'night watch' and used that time to pray, or meditate, or
talk quietly, and then they went back to sleep," Naiman says.
"Conversely, people also regularly napped in the middle of the day. I
think of the yin-yang symbol: There was a little bit of light in the
dark, and dark in the light."
So what happened? "The Industrial Revolution changed everything," he
explains. "Suddenly, people were working 12- or 14-hour days, and
machines were the new model. We started treating our bodies like
machines."
That is, as something you could turn on and off with the flick of a
switch. Add a couple of hundred years, a lot of electricity, artificial
light, and technology, and here we are: overstimulated, overworked, and
vastly underslept.
When you're struggling with insomnia, Naiman says, it's important to
understand something that the spiritual traditions teach—that waking and
sleeping (as well as dreaming) are natural states of consciousness that
coexist in the mind at all times. "Though science has been slow to
acknowledge it, humans are always to some degree both awake and asleep,"
he says. "We have the misconception that if we aren't dead to the
world, we aren't sleeping. We want to go to battle when we realize we're
awake, but it's perfectly normal to have periods of wakefulness at
night."
According to Richard Miller, psychologist and noted teacher of yoga
nidra, a relaxation technique and meditation practice, it's natural to
cycle in and out of sleeping and waking states. Miller explains that the
mind skirts the edge of consciousness during sleep, and likewise skirts
the edge of sleep—at moments when we space out and lose track of our
surroundings—during waking hours. In other words, the states of being
asleep and awake are not as black-and-white as you might think. "Our
consciousness is coming and going all day and night," he says. When you
accept this process, suggests Miller, you're better able to let periods
of nighttime wakefulness arise and fall away without resistance.
Enlightened Rest
In fact, says Naiman, sleep is a state of consciousness similar to
what yogis seek through contemplative practices: a profound serenity
that exists underneath the turmoil of the mind. When you're suffering
from insomnia, he says, it helps to know that this state of
consciousness is always available to you. Even when you can't sleep,
there is a deeper part of you that's in a restful state. "The notion of
'going to sleep' doesn't really make sense," Naiman says. "It's a place
of peaceful awareness that we all search for, that's already within us."
As much as we want to let go and access that serene place of rest,
something keeps us alert and tense. And that something, says Naiman, is
ego. The ego is the part of you that notices and judges that you're
awake when you shouldn't be and unleashes all the drama that comes with
unwelcome wakefulness. Sleep becomes available, says Naiman, when you
stop listening to the ego.
That's a tall order, especially when it's 3 a.m. and you're in thrall
to a nattering, chattering brain. This is when, Miller says, it's
helpful to get in touch with one of yoga's most powerful teachings:
Within the mind exists not only the clamoring ego, but also the calm
witness that observes without judgment. That witness part of us remains
conscious as the waves of sleep and wakefulness come and go. The witness
can watch the ego mind-controlling, freaking out, calming down. If you
can stop, take a breath, and step away from your panic about being
awake, you can become the witness.
When the hold of the ego-mind feels like a death grip, yoga nidra,
often translated as "yogic sleep," can help. Yoga nidra is a practice of
gradual relaxation, scanning the body and mind for sensations and
emotions, recognizing and releasing those feelings one by one, and
slowly dropping into a resting state (see sidebar above for a simple
practice). Practiced lying down, it offers a nonthreatening way of
stepping back from the mind's chatter and reconnecting with the witness.
And by creating that space apart from your ego, you may loosen
insomnia's hold.
Wake-up Call
When you can move from worry to witness, suddenly you have a choice.
What will you do with this time? In our always-on culture, moments of
quiet are rare, but they can serve a purpose. You can use this time as
an opportunity to gain some insight into why you can't sleep, suggests
Miller. "If your sleep is being interrupted regularly, it may be trying
to convey a message," he says. "And it could be physical, psychological,
or spiritual in nature. Your body is calling for you to address
something that hasn't been addressed during the day."
The physical messages are perhaps the easiest to interpret. If your
bladder is full, you can get up and pee. If your back is aching, you can
shift positions and make a note to do a back-pain-relieving practice
the next day. Psychological and spiritual issues are thornier,
especially if you're going out of your way to not deal with them during
the day. In that case, insomnia may be a signal that you need to make
time to process your feelings and experiences. "So many of us get so
busy during the day that we can't or won't deal with the real issues in
our lives," says Kelly Golden, a yoga teacher in Northern California who
developed the sequence for this story. "As soon as we settle down and
the unconscious mind can finally begin to deal with it all, there's so
much going on that it rattles the conscious mind awake again."
All this stuff we don't have time, energy, or willingness to grapple
with affects us on every level: physically, mentally, emotionally,
psychologically, and spiritually. Ultimately, Golden says, it all plays
out on an energetic level, and that is where asana can help.
In the yoga tradition, every posture is said to have an effect on the
body's system of energies, known as the vayus, or vital forces
(sometimes called winds). There are five primary vayus. Apana vayu is
the downward-moving force associated with grounding and elimination.
Samana vayu moves in a circular pattern through the belly and is thought
to regulate digestion and assimilation, both physical and metaphorical.
Prana vayu is centered in the chest and heart and is associated with
breath and vitality. Udana vayu moves upward from the throat and is
associated with speech, expression, and spiritual growth. And vyana vayu
circulates around the body, integrating the system.
When working with insomnia, you might be tempted to go straight for
static grounding postures that stimulate apana, such as the relaxing
Legs-up-the-Wall Pose.
But a better approach is to first practice poses that stimulate samana,
Golden says. Gentle movement, such as Cat-Cow Series and Dynamic
Forward-Fold Sequence, leads the way to deeper release. "You need
practices that can help you digest your mental and emotional experiences
so that you can get grounded enough to release them," she explains.
"With asana, you can let your body lead where you desire the mind to
be."
Golden's seven-pose samana-apana series is designed for when you are
really struggling with sleep. It can be done when sleep just won't come
or when you find yourself awake in the middle of the night. In my
experience, it's just enough to begin to digest what's on your mind and
ease toward peaceful sleep.
Knowing that I have choices has taken the edge off sleepless nights.
Rather than getting caught up in the same old stories, I remind myself
that I can choose to engage with anxious thoughts or let them pass. And
while I can't will myself to sleep, I can invite a sense of serenity by
knowing that there is some part of me that is resting peacefully. I've
learned to take a nonviolent approach, both toward sleep and toward my
sleepless self. And so I say to my insomnia, and also to my wakefulness:
I surrender.
Yoga Practice: Relax and Release
Next time you can't fall asleep, try this sequence by Kelly Golden, a
ParaYoga teacher. It is designed to help balance the vayus, or winds, a
concept in yoga used to describe the different types of energy that
govern physical and mental health. The practice features poses that
nurture samana and apana vayus—which respectively help you digest and
release what's keeping you awake.
If your thoughts are creating tension in the breath and body, repeat the affirmations offered with each pose.
Try to breathe in a 1:2 pattern. Breathe in for 3 counts and out for
6, or whatever feels natural. As you relax, try extending the breath. If
breathing becomes labored, return to an easy pattern. You can stay in
an extended state of deep relaxation at the end of the sequence, moving
into
Savasana and doing yoga nidra. Or get into bed, allowing your breath to return to its natural pattern.
Dynamic Forward-Fold Sequence (Ardha Uttanasana to Uttanasana)
Begin in
Tadasana
(Mountain Pose). Exhale as you fold forward with a long spine, sliding
your hands down and around the backs of your legs. With each inhalation,
rise up to extend your back, sliding your hands up to the backs of the
knees and drawing the chest through the upper arms. On each exhalation,
slide the hands down the backs of your knees as you fold forward. After
six repetitions, remain folded in Uttanasana, keeping the knees slightly
bent to support the lower back. Allow the spine to lengthen and the
head to drop easily to the floor. Rest your hands on the ankles or the
floor. Hold the forward bend for 10 breaths.
Inhale: I accept
Exhale: I allow
Ragdoll (Ardha Utkatasana), variation
From Tadasana, bend the knees and drop the hips, drawing the sitting
bones back and the tailbone slightly down as you fold the upper body
forward over the thighs. Let your abdomen rest on your upper thighs.
Adjust your body so that you feel stable. Interlace the fingers behind
the back, then straighten the elbows and let your head drop toward the
floor. Anchor into your feet and feel completely supported by your upper
thighs. Hold the pose for 10 breaths.
Inhale: I am aware
Exhale: I anchor
Downward-Facing Dog Pose (Adho Mukha Svanasana)
Bring your hands to the floor about shoulder-distance apart, fingers
facing forward; step your feet back into Adho Mukha Svanasana. Keep
lifting your hips, moving your shoulders down the back, and lengthening
your spine. Once you have the actions of the pose in place, release your
efforts. Think of this as a resting pose. Hold the pose for 10 deep
breaths.
Inhale: I lengthen
Exhale: I let go
Cat-Cow Series
From Downward-Facing Dog Pose, lower your knees to come onto all
fours with wrists beneath the shoulders and knees beneath the hips. To
start the series, inhale and extend the spine, gently drawing the chest
through the upper arms and the tailbone back, creating the tiniest of
backbends. Then, begin to exhale as you round the spine. Complete the
exhalation as you lower into an easy
Balasana
(Child's Pose) with the hips on the heels and the belly on the thighs.
Let the exhalation stretch twice as long as the inhalation.
Then repeat: As you inhale, rise back up and again extend the spine,
moving fluidly between the three phases of the pose. Repeat 10 times.
Inhale: I watch
Exhale:I witness
Hypnotic Sphinx (Sphinx Pose), variation
Lie down on your belly with your legs extended. Place the elbows to
the sides of the chest, forearms parallel to one another. Gently lift
the chest, dropping the weight into the elbows. Allow the neck and head
to soften. As you inhale, slowly turn the face and chin toward the right
shoulder, moving as if you were pouring sand from the center of the
brain into the left side of the skull; as you exhale, turn the chin and
face back to center. Repeat this movement on the other side. Allow the
movement to be intentionally slow and soft, taking time to explore the
tender spaces of the neck and base of the skull. Repeat 5 times on each
side.
Inhale: I relax
Exhale:I release
Seated Forward Bend (Paschimottonasana)
Come to a seated position and extend the legs, keeping them
hip-distance apart and parallel to one another. Ground the sitting
bones and sit straight and tall. As you inhale, reach the arms overhead;
as you exhale lengthen the spine and fold forward from the hips. Settle
the arms on the floor by your sides or take hold of the toes. Relax.
With each inhalation invite length into your spine, and with each
exhalation release into the fold. Hold for 10 breaths.
Inhale: I lengthen
Exhale:I let go
Legs-up-the-Wall Pose (Viparita Karani)
Sit with one side of your body next to a wall, with your hips as
close to the wall as possible and a cushion nearby. Roll onto your back
so that your hips come onto the cushion and your legs rotate directly
over the hips and up the wall. The feet can be together or hip-distance
apart, whichever feels more comfortable to you. Keep your arms by your
sides, palms turned up; relax your arms and shoulders. Feel the leg
bones anchoring into the hip sockets as you release effort. Feel the
spine lengthening and resting on the surface beneath you.
Finish With Three-Part Breath (Dirga Pranayama)
Release the 1:2 breath and the affirmation, and instead focus on
Dirga Pranayama (Three-Part Breath): Inhale first into the belly, then
the rib cage, then the collarbones, and then exhale from the
collarbones, then the rib cage, then the belly. Do this for 10 to 20
breaths, then allow all effort to fade way. Feel the core of the body
release as the body and the mind enter into deep relaxation and rest.
Cultivate Consciousness
When insomnia seems insurmountable, yoga nidra is a way to cultivate
much-needed deep rest for the body. "Yoga nidra means 'to sleep on the
cloud of yoga,'" says ParaYoga creator Rod Stryker. "When we practice
yoga nidra we step into the rhythm of deep sleep—a kind of rest that is
even more healing and reparative than ordinary sleep because there is an
element of effortless consciousness abiding there."
Stryker suggests this simple version of yoga nidra, called 61 Points
Yoga Nidra, which can be done in bed or on a yoga mat with a folded
blanket under your head. Use it as a precursor to sleep, as a practice
during the day, or as a practice on nights when sleep won't come.
If your goal is to fall asleep, Stryker recommends beginning with 5
minutes of 1:2 breathing (breathe gently, making your exhale twice as
long as your inhale), then another 5 to 10 minutes writing in a journal.
Then turn out the light, get comfortable, and do the following
practice. Let your awareness rest on each point for 5 to 10 seconds—no
longer—before moving on to the next one. If you have finished the entire
cycle and are still awake, start over from the beginning and do it
again.
Start: Bring your awareness to the center of your forehead, then move it to the center of your throat.
Right Arm: Move awareness to the right shoulder, down to the
elbow, wrist, tip of thumb, tip of index finger, tip of middle finger,
tip of ring finger, tip of little finger, back to wrist, elbow, and
shoulder. Return awareness to the throat.
Left Arm: Now move awareness to the left shoulder, down to the
elbow, wrist, tip of thumb, tip of index finger, tip of middle finger,
tip of ring finger, tip of little finger, back to wrist, elbow, and
shoulder. Return awareness to the throat.
Chest and Torso: Move awareness to the heart center between
the breasts, right breast, space between the breasts, left breast, space
between the breasts, to the navel, and down to the pubic bone.
Right Leg: Now move your awareness to the right hip, knee,
ankle, tip of the big toe, tip of the second toe, tip of the middle toe,
tip of the fourth toe, tip of the little toe, back to ankle, knee, and
hip. Return to the pubic bone.
Left Leg: Move your awareness to the left hip, knee, ankle,
tip of the big toe, tip of the second toe, tip of the middle toe, tip of
the fourth toe, tip of the little toe, back to ankle, knee, and hip.
Return to the pubic bone.
Finish: Bring awareness to the navel, space between the breasts, throat, and to the center of the forehead.
Set Yourself Up for Sleep Success
Practice smart strategies to improve your chances of getting to sleep
and staying asleep, says Woodson Merrell, MD, executive director of the
Continuum Center for Health and Healing
at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City. And if insomnia
persists, be sure to look into physical problems that might impair sleep
quality. Hormone imbalances, restless leg syndrome, and sleep apnea are
common culprits.
Develop a Routine: Choose a relaxing activity and do it every
night. Listening to soothing music, reading a book, taking a bath,
meditating, and doing yoga are all good choices.
Go Easy on Caffeine and Alcohol: Even one morning cup of
coffee can be a problem for some people, Merrell says. Alcohol can cause
nighttime wakefulness, so limit your consumption to one drink a day,
and don't have it after 7 p.m.
Keep a To-Do List: Keep a nighttime journal to write down all
of your concerns about the things you have to take care of tomorrow.
Knowing you don't have to keep everything in your head will help you
relax.
Eat Light: Carbs are easier on the digestion, whereas a dinner
that's heavy on protein can keep the digestion working overtime just
when you're trying to rest.
Power Down at Least an Hour Before Bed: Any device with a
screen (TVs, computers, phones, iPads) emits blue-spectrum light that
can inhibit the brain's production of melatonin, the sleep hormone.
If You Get Up, Don't Get Worked Up: If you're wide awake, get
out of bed and do some restful activity. If you feel sleepy later, and
have time, return to bed. If not, move into your day with a calm
commitment to try again the coming night.
Exercise Early: Vigorous exercise in the morning can help you
sleep well at night. Aim for 30 minutes of cardiovascular activity at
least five days a week.
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