Some of you already know pieces of this. Here's the full picture. Heading into 2026, I was carrying a weight I couldn't quite name. Most mornings, anxiety arrived before I did... sitting in my chest the second I woke, like it had been there all night waiting. I turned to Yoga Nidra the way I first did years ago, during cancer. Back then it was a remedy. This time, I noticed I was using it the same way again... reaching for it in the moment, but not returning to the depth of the practice itself. A couple of months ago, that changed. I went to San Pancho to heal my heart, worked with @Jen Mc , and met @Laura Rose while I was there. I kept going with "the work" after I got home. And slowly, the ache started to loosen its grip. I can officially say I've felt the alchemy. I'm telling you this now because I can finally say I've moved through the morning scaries and the heaviness that lived in my chest. I turned that pain into purpose, the way I always seem to circle back to... And it didn't stop there. I'm about to start another training with @Jen Mc to expand what I can share with all of you — more Nova Nidra recordings, 1:1 work for Members in the Peace in Rest Program, and the Nova Nidra trainings I have coming up now carry a completely different meaning. They keep continuing to open my heart. The Nova Nidra practice I just released came directly out of all of this. LISTEN HERE It's for the nights sleep won't come, the mornings you wake already bracing, the grief that shows up as a weight in your chest you can't quite explain. If any part of this sounds familiar, this practice was made for exactly that.

https://vimeo.com/1204625804?fl=pl&fe=sh I sketched this after a nidra practice yesterday.

If you were there live, thank you for holding that space with me. If you missed it, the replay is now posted and waiting for you. We moved through a guided yoga nidra built for the energy of the Solstice, and we explored the Five States of Rest — the spectrum that runs from depleted and disconnected all the way to radiant and integrated: 🌱 The Rooted One — returning to body, safety, ground 🌊 The Tidal Heart — honoring emotional flow without losing yourself 🔥 The Flamekeeper — finding stillness inside a restless mind 🌙 The Dream Weaver — trusting the vision already in you ☀️ The Radiant One — integrating, embodying, leading from presence The Solstice holds all five. So do you. Two things worth doing while it's fresh: → Not sure where you are right now? Take the free States of Rest quiz: https://www.aylanova.com/peaceinrestprogram/sor→ This Solstice also marks the opening of something bigger — the Peace in Rest | Nova Nidra Teacher Training. Enrollment is open: https://www.aylanova.com/peaceinrestprogram/teach Rest well. Be well. — Ayla Nova

Day 7 - HERE Today, we remember joy. Not gratitude-list joy but that eternal kind... the aliveness that is still in you even on the hard days. Joy is not something you earn when everything is figured out. It is available right NOW. Today's practice shows you where to find it. If today opened something in you and you want to go deeper, the Peace in Rest Program is your next step — deeper community connection, philosophy, nervous system healing, and deep self-inquiry. It's also Level 1 of the Nova Nidra Teacher Training if that path is calling you. Peace in Rest Program → Starts August 2026 | https://www.aylanova.com/peaceinrestprogram SHARE BELOW | What gives you real, actual joy? Name it.

Life handed me an unexpected lesson in my own medicine this week. After yoga class, I fell riding home and broke and twisted my pinky finger. I'm now in a fairly dramatic hand brace, and I've got a specialist visit next week — fingers crossed (the ones that still bend) that we can avoid a full cast. So here's the irony I'm sitting with: I teach rest and restoration for a living, and now my body is asking me to actually practice it. I'm leaning on Yoga Nidra to help my nervous system settle, support the healing, and keep me company through the discomfort. It's humbling and kind of beautiful to be on the receiving end of the work. A practical note: Tidal Hearts Yoga Nidra won't release tonight as planned. The fall caused some technical difficulties on my end, so I'm giving it the time it needs to come out right. Thank you for your patience. If you've got a prayer or a good thought to spare, I'll happily take it. 🙏