Healing Sexual Trauma with Yoga Nidra

Sexual trauma leaves imprints not just in the mind, but in the subconscious and in the body. Oten survivors of sexual assault dissociate from their body because it dosn’t feel safe. Sleep can be restless and filled with nightmares. Your emotions can be be overwhelming or you could be completely numb. It makes total sense why you would disconnect from the body AND healing comes from reconnecting back to her, and acknowledging what has been held in the tissues. Yoga Nidra is a gentle and progressive way to reconnect with your body after experiencing a sexual trauma. This practice when done consecutively will help you to gradually heal from within. Rewiring the subconscious mind and regulating the nervous system for wholeness and safety.  

What Is Yoga Nidra?

Yoga Nidra, or “yogic sleep,” is a guided meditation technique that brings the body into a deep state of rest while keeping the mind conscious and alert. Unlike a typical yoga asana practice this is done lying on the floor in deep stillness. In the practice you are guided through a body scan, breathwork, and visualization. 30–40 minutes of a Yoga Nidra practice is the equivalent of 3-4 hours of deep sleep. This is because the practice brings you into a theta or delta brainwave state — the same states associated with deep sleep, dreaming, and healing. Here the subconscious mind opens up and can let go of old stories and programming. This is where new patterns and behaviors can be introduced.

How Yoga Nidra Heals Sexual Trauma

1. Regulates the Nervous System

Sexual trauma dysregulates the nervous system — keeping the body stuck in fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. Over time, this chronic stress response can lead to insomnia, anxiety, muscle tension, and digestive issues.

Yoga Nidra helps bring the body out of survival mode by activating the parasympathetic nervous system — the “rest and digest” state — where true healing begins. It invites the body into deep stillness and safety, without having to revisit the trauma or tell your story out loud.

2. Rewires the Subconscious Mind

In the deeply relaxed state of Yoga Nidra, the subconscious mind becomes highly suggestible. This is a powerful opportunity to plant healing intentions, known as Sankalpa, such as:

  • I am safe in my body.

  • My body belongs to me.

  • I trust myself.

  • I release what no longer serves me.

These seeds are planted in fertile ground. Over time, they take root — replacing old trauma-based beliefs with new pathways of empowerment, sovereignty, and peace.

3. Restores a Sense of Safety in the Body

For many survivors, being in the body feels unsafe. Yoga Nidra offers a gentle way to come home to the body without touch or intense movement. Through breath awareness, body scanning, and spaciousness, the practice rebuilds trust in the body's wisdom — and reawakens a sense of innate wholeness.

How To Practice Yoga Nidra 

It is best to practice Yoga Nidra at the same time everyday. Make sure to have an empty stomach as the body will go into deep rest and will not be digesting. You can find a class in your local area and practice in community or you can play an audio tract and do it in the comfort of your own home. The best part is, you don’t need to do anything. You simply lie down and listen. Try your best not to move during the practice or fall asleep. 

If you are practicing at home find a safe and quiet place where you will not be disturbed. Lay on your back in a comfortable position — a bed, yoga mat, or couch. Place a pillow under your knees or a blanket over your body for support. You may also want an eye mask to darken the space for you. Play your audio tract  (You can find my healing Yoga Nidra tracks here on Insight Timer) and allow yourself to just be. There’s no “right way” to do it. If your mind wanders, that’s okay. If you fall asleep, that’s perfect too. Your subconscious will still receiving the benefits. Over time, this practice gently rewires your nervous system, calms the mind, and invites your body to feel safe again.

Whether you’ve experienced trauma recently or long ago, know that healing is possible — and it doesn’t have to be hard or painful. Sometimes, it begins by simply lying down, closing your eyes, and letting your body remember what it feels like to be safe again.It is time to give yourself deep rest. To feel safe in your body.It is time to come back to wholeness, to heal —gently in your own time, layer by layer. Yoga Nidra offers a gentle entry point back to yourself. You are not broken.You are whole, wise, and worthy of deep peace.

FOUND THIS ARTICLE HELPFUL?

🌙Calm your nervous system and listen to my free Yoga Nidra recordings on Insight Timer. 

🌙Looking for more support navigating childhood sexual trauma? Buy my book, Shattered to Shine: You Heal Yourself, and the Journal to go with it!

🌙Reach out for more support or one on one coaching.

AJM