by | Mar 12, 2022
The memories of the experiences of unresolved trauma can get locked in the body. This can affect the nervous system and brain, and distract us from seeing our wholeness, our innate goodness. For me, my memories from my traumatic experiences had gotten locked in my nervous system.
A few years ago, I suffered a traumatic depression, and lost 51 pounds, weighing about 80 pounds when I went to the hospital. I was in hospital for three months recovering. A couple of months after I returned home, the pandemic began. I was first introduced to yoga practice at Kripalu Center in the 1980’s, I’ve had a yoga and mindfulness meditation practice for many years. When I returned home from the rehabilitation hospital, I began the journey to re-learn to walk and to recover from severe vertigo.
I began practicing with Jennifer and her online community at that time. And because of the pandemic, I was missing my yoga practice and my yoga community, and also could not yet stand, nor walk easily. I wanted to find a class where I could try standing poses: I felt ready. Jennifer’s website says: ‘Balance and Restore your Whole Being’. That sounded just right! I wrote to Jennifer explaining my physical challenges and quickly received a reply welcoming me to the class.
‘Circle of Hearts’ by Elias Garcia, Guatemala
During the first class, Jennifer said three-four times “and if you are in a chair,” and offered suggestions to adapt the poses. I felt included and comfortable. Jennifer’s yoga nidra practice includes a central element of ‘noticing your heart’s longing’, and then stating it as the truth in an intention.
During my first yoga nidra practice with her, the intention ‘I am whole, just as I am’, came to me. It was a moment of sweet relief. I have been returning to the same intention for the past two years. I sometimes completely forget it, and then it gently whispers, and I return to my whole self.
From spring to fall I participated in 2-3 of Jennifer’s classes each week. I learned new tools for my toolbox, including mudras, and self-massage incorporating marma points, and the energy channel meridians. I also was doing traditional western medicine physical therapy.
My healing deepened as I learned. My mind, heart and body began integrating my learning of Five Element Yoga practice with Jennifer into my physical therapy sessions, for example: independently standing on two legs with feet hip distance apart or wider, and then moving into Mountain pose, softly floating the words of my intention through me, with my hands in Earth Mudra, with slow and full three-part breathing.
This practice filled me from every angle with the confidence and nourishment I needed. Feeling so much better, in the fall of 2020, I joined Divine Sleep ®Yoga Nidra training! It was wonderful to spend that amount of quality time learning about yoga nidra.
I began neuroplasticity exercises in a local pool. I cannot yet drive, so I get to and from the pool with LYFT rides. The experience of meeting new drivers every day, many who are not fluent in English—and I am not fluent in their language— some who are impatient, and my needing to explain the specific details of the assistance I need to remain safe from falls and cars can take a great deal of energy and patience. I definitely rely on both the stability and the calm that my Five Element Yoga and yoga nidra practices have brought me as wonderful resources during this time.
Then Jennifer first offered her Vagus Nerve Yoga series. I had been studying PolyVagal theory for several years and loved attending yoga classes with this focus. Plus, after taking a break to be in the pool, it felt wonderful to return, and to know my place had been kept in Jennifer’s circle, as Jennifer and her husband Michael and the community patiently waited for me to know when I was ready to return.
I love the work – and feel so inspired by it. I have a new awareness of my vagal system functioning now in my yoga and yoga nidra practice. And I’ve also developed a Mindfulness Power Point presentation for classroom teachers incorporating Polyvagal Theory.
Currently I’m attending Nourishing the Joints Series with Jennifer, and also looking forward to her Ayurvedic Massage workshop this weekend: more great opportunities to deepen my practice, my healing and my life.
What’s exciting to me is that I am bringing all of these practices together! In the pool, I practice some of the Joint yoga from Jennifer’s class example: gentle ‘stomping’ to reset the pelvis. Stomping on my mat created too much dizziness, but I realized I can do it in the water! Realizing this, the corners of my lips turned up into a soft smile. I love this because water element lives in the joints, and here I was in water, nourishing my joints.
Now, my nervous system, mind and heart are all repairing in a natural way. The trauma energy that had remained in my nervous system distracted me from feeling safe, and that led me to experience loneliness and at times deep isolation.
My yoga and mindfulness practices have given me space to repair my unresolved trauma wounds. During this time of post trauma growth, I have been seeking safe spaces and people to nourish my need for the intimacy of authentic friendship.
Jennifer and Michael and the caring circle of members of this community, this circle of hearts, have been a home base for me during these last two and a half years, as I continue to repair and heal. I am grateful for this opportunity via Zoom. I offer my words to you from a repaired heart♡
Esther Brandon
Well-Being Coaching And Consulting
https://www.estherbrandoncoaching.com
[email protected]
by | Feb 4, 2022
Before I began practicing yoga, I was very competitive and achievement-oriented – a classic Type A personality. I worked myself into exhaustion through over-effort in every area of my life. Through my academic training, I had become A linear thinker: analyzing data, reporting results of empirical investigations, and also teaching students to have the same skill set.
I was not totally available or approachable to others because of my orientation to achievement rather than simple presence. My heart longed for more balance. I wanted a deeper connection with my friends and family. I felt like I had little to give to others and needed to nourish my spirit.
A lovely yoga teacher named Terri moved to my small town, and looking to find greater balance in my life, I began my yoga journey. From the first class, I knew I had found my path for living a healthy, heart-centered, and joyous life! Our teachers are precious gifts.
Five years later I became a certified yoga teacher, not with the goal of teaching, but to deepen my own understanding and practice. I fell in love with yoga nidra during the training. There was no yoga nidra teacher in my area, so I made do with books and recordings.
I attended a yoga retreat and met one of my most precious soul sisters, Judith. We have remained close over the years and during the pandemic, Judith hosted a yoga birthday party in which Jennifer taught a class via Zoom. I loved Jennifer’s creative style and yoga nidra journeys, so I began attending her classes online.
My Divine Sleep® Yoga Nidra practice has helped nurture what I call the ‘Hawaiian sunrise’ in my own heart that is always there, even if I don’t always feel like I’m in paradise, I know it’s in me! Now I trust in my calm, peaceful center.
This has been a big support as I have recently returned to in-person college teaching, and all the stresses this era brings. My heart’s desire is for the glow of my ‘inner sunrise’ to be a source of light and refuge to others. I know that when I am in this good space it radiates outward to those with whom I connect.
My yoga and yoga nidra practice feeds my creativity, helps me to cultivate joy, and allows me to be more present and more heart centered. I am grateful to have these practices because they have helped me tap into my true nature. This way of living feels much better!
by | Jan 7, 2022
I received this lovely and inspiring letter from Laura who began studying with me many moons ago, and I wanted to share her light with you! She agreed to post her letter here:
“I want to thank you so much for offering your beautiful and healing yoga nidra sessions online. It has truly been a silver lining of the pandemic for me. I have loved your work and your classes ever since my first trip to Kripalu Center years ago, when I took your Friday evening yoga class, and you introduced me to mudras.
That lead me on a few stepping stones: first I bought your mudra guide, and then the Mudra book by Joseph LePage, and then was inspired to take your Five Element Yoga® Teacher Training!
I had been wanting to study more with you, but it’s so hard for me to travel to you, so I have felt so blessed to be able to continue practicing with you online. I am unfortunately never able to attend the online sessions live, but practice the recordings you so helpfully send out after class.
I love how you talk about how ‘time and space don’t exist’, and that makes me feel connected to the loving community you’ve created.
I have a chronic illness and have been particularly sick since November 2020, after which I started practicing with you online. Yoga nidra classes have provided so much healing and comfort to me. In fact, I always feel a bit lost on Mondays, when I don’t have one of your beautiful yoga nidra sessions to look forward to!
In one of your sessions a few months ago, you had us paint an imagine during the journey, and then suggested we paint it in real life afterwards. I hadn’t picked up paint in probably 25 years, but later that day, with my toddler Bernardo, I painted what I had seen during the session, and now have that sweet painting hanging over my desk!
Thank you so much for what you offer to the world, for the beauty and healing and community of your yoga nidra, for your constant warmth and honesty and vulnerability, and for so many inspiring journeys. I hope you continue to offer your yoga nidra online – and even if it is a rewind on-demand class – I could listen to any and all of them hundreds of times!
Thank you so much for offering your spirit to me in such a healing and profound way! It has changed my life for the better.
Update 2022: I have actually been doing decently well managing with my chronic illness and I am much better now! I feel so much gratitude, and I continue to practice your yoga nidra sessions almost daily! I still have to be very careful and prioritize my health above all else, so it remains a challenge, but I haven’t had a relapse since beginning to practice with you online!
hugs,
Laura”
by | Nov 30, 2021
In the summer of 2012 I made my first trip from my native Greece to Kripalu Center for Integrative Yoga Therapy training. Joseph LePage announced that we would have a special guest teacher to learn about yoga nidra. He spoke very highly of her – her knowledge, experience – and her uniqueness for creating a program with her own signature. She was one of Kripalu’s long time respected teachers. I got very excited, but at the same time I was very exhausted as we were nearing the end of our intensive training program.
Jennifer walked in with a big smile. Those few seconds it took to walk from the entrance door to the stage, where she was going to lead the class, I noticed a woman that was happy, confident and someone that has been taking good care of herself physically, mentally and emotionally. She was glowing.
I remember her as a bright presence among the other teachers, and her talking about yoga nidra, and the practice she’d be leading us in. My eyes were focused on her, and I floated though the yoga nidra with her. She stayed vividly in my mind, and I wanted to learn more about her when I would return back home.
I returned back to the island of Crete where I had my yoga studio, excited and well refreshed with new knowledge ready to share with my students. Back in Greece, I didn’t think I would see Jennifer again! However, they say ‘make a plan, and God laughs’. Due to many factors a few years later, my yoga studio folded and was a memory of the past. I was facing uncertainty in my life and in my work, as well as exhaustion and disappointment.
In my quest for balance and answers, I came back to Kripalu for more training. This time was not for my students but for myself. And yes, I saw Jennifer again. She was teaching in many modules of Integrative Yoga Therapy. I took many of her yoga nidra classes. And also since 2018 I started assisting her programs at Kripalu!
The bright presence of Jennifer Reis, who stayed so vividly in my mind since the Summer of 2012, has became one of my dearest teachers. Jennifer has a depth of knowledge and she is a brilliant educator. Her yoga nidra classes and trainings are unique as she beautifully brings together the ancient wisdom of yoga through the five levels of being (koshas), the five elements, and much more. Every class is unique and fresh. I am so amazed by her intelligence and knowledge.
I have had very deep and profound experiences in Jennifer’s Divine Sleep® Yoga Nidras. I have felt instantly relaxed and rejuvenated in mind and body. I have also had unexpected experiences which seemed to take me to new realms.
Sometimes I have stayed awake and present during the whole yoga nidra, and other times that from moment I hear Jennifer’s voice I drop into a different zone. I love when Jennifer explains the five levels of being, which Divine Sleep® Yoga Nidra is based on. It starts from the physical body, going inward to the bliss body.
One of my favorites is when she explains that anandamaya kosha – the Bliss Body, located at the center of one’s being – how beautifully she explains that “Yoga doesn’t come to fix us, but to remind us Who we Are”. This is something that I personally experience within myself in Jennifer’s classes. I remember who I am as a spiritual being – no thoughts, no ‘should’s’, no expectations – I just feel complete the way I am now.
During her classes I feel my body is light, fluctuations of my mind calm, and my attention shifts to the center of my heart. I feel so rejuvenated and calmed. Over the many years, yoga nidra has helped me manage stress levels, boost my immunity, and better understand my energy levels. Now I take rest when I need to.
There have also been times I had experiences that took me beyond simple relaxation and felt really profound. During the deep stages of a Yoga Nidra there are deep brain waves activated. I have felt like I have progressed into the future, and other times I have regressed to the past, and one time I was visited by my spirit animal. These experiences helped me to feel more grounded, centered and connected within myself.
I remember one spring laying down to practice yoga nidra, and deep into the Stages when I saw a beautiful face of a white wolf coming slowly from a distance to closely stare at me. It was very calming, I was very present and I felt a connection that it is hard to find words to explain.
I have so much appreciation and gratitude for both Jennifer and the divine gift of the ancient science of yoga and the practice of yoga nidra that helps us unite and remind me who I am.
by | Nov 13, 2021
When I was in my thirties over twenty years ago, I went through intense stress and suffering due to a serious illness of a cherished member of my family. I was a mother of two with a very supportive husband. I lived in a state of fear and terror for several years. I knew that my sympathetic nervous system was in a state of fight or flight for far too long, and I knew it was not okay, but at the time I did not have the tools to repair the damage that my body, mind and nervous system had suffered.
Thank goodness my family member survived and is healthy today! Somehow I bounced back too. I have been in the world of healing for most of my life, as I have had a desire to help people. I have a degree in psychology, and later in life I discover the world of alternative medicine, becoming a Reiki Master, delving into Chinese medicine, and also becoming an Ayurvedic practitioner.
Through Ayurveda I was introduced to meditation, yoga and yoga therapy. Now I have been practicing yoga for many years. These tools and practices have proven to be incredibly helpful for myself as well.
Even though I have worked and studied in the world of healing for most of my life and I have all these wonderful methods in my tool box, I still felt I hadn’t found that one thing that would really resonate deeply with me, that truly reflected “me”. Until I found Jennifer and yoga nidra…
My journey with Jennifer began about 10 years ago when my sister and I needed a well deserved break. We got into the car and drove from our home in Canada to Kripalu Center. It is there that I discovered Jennifer Reis, and Divine Sleep® Yoga Nidra.
My first day there and all I wanted to do was to lie down and rest! I had no idea what yoga nidra was but it sounded good that all I needed to do was lie down. Jennifer explained that this is a guided meditation on the five levels of being, then led us through a beautiful yoga nidra. I had never felt that level of relaxation and healing! I wanted to practice everyday and continue the practice at home to get into that state again. I bought her recordings and continued to practice daily.
Serious illness struck my family again. About six years ago my parents began to decline in health, and I became their caregiver. My Dad passed away not long after. I have been trying my best to be a caregiver for my Mom, who is not doing well. This kind of stress feels familiar and has brought me back to where I was in my thirties once again.
The difference is that now I have yoga and yoga nidra to help me cope! And it has made all the difference, giving me hope that I can ride this current wave to stay strong and empowered through it.
Yoga nidra brings me back to a baseline of calm and repair each time I practice. I feel like I am refueling my tank more with each meditation. I practice yoga nidra daily and it sets the trajectory for my whole day to stay centered and grounded.
Life happens to all of us. We cannot get away from hardship and suffering. But the one thing I know for sure is that tools are necessary, and have helped me along my way. And one of the great things is that yoga comes with a community of people who love and support you.
Then the pandemic began, and I knew I needed to do something to keep myself and my family calm and strong. Stuck at home, I searched for online classes. Like a miracle, Jennifer began to offer Divine Sleep® Yoga Nidra live online! I immediately signed up for her classes and workshops.
Jennifer is not only amazing at leading yoga nidra, but she is also an incredible educator. I took her workshops on Mudras, and Five Element Yoga® and I found the information in all her offerings to be so useful during these stressful times.
Then I signed up for Divine Sleep® Yoga Nidra Teacher Training online, excited to be able to lead others in this incredible practice. The training was wonderful, and I felt I had all the tools I needed to take it out into the world. I became a volunteer for a senior center in my community guiding yoga nidra in their virtual classes. I felt that seniors were very vulnerable during covid isolation and was happy to offer this to them.
My classes were a huge success! My participants were so full of gratitude for this offering, and the registration for my classes kept increasing. Eventually I was offered a permanent teaching position leading yoga Nidra classes twice weekly. My students have told me their physical pain, and anxiety has greatly diminished with yoga nidra. This brings me so much joy.
And now I have just completed Jennifer’s Level II Teacher Training as well as the Vagus Nerve Yoga series. As a result of this second training, I now feel inspired to bring new aspects and a higher level of yoga nidra into my classes. I have over 60 students. They are so appreciative and kind and it is an honour to lead them weekly in this beautiful style of meditation.
For me, personally Yoga Nidra has helped me cope with so many difficult life situation. From taking care of aging and ill parents to coping with day to day pressures. I feel that I have become a stronger person, and I am emerging from this pandemic with a new purpose and feel so proud to be helping the most vulnerable in my community.
JeannetteLitvak.com
