From the Back Cover:
Although modern science has unraveled some of the mysteries of our sleeping, dreaming, and waking states and age-old yoga practices are helping us enjoy better sleep, clearer minds, and healthier bodies, over 65 percent of U.S. adults are still sleep deprived. Sleep deprivation causes and aggravates ailments like stress, heart conditions, high blood pressure, obesity, and depression.
Master yoga teacher, trainer, and best-selling author Mark Stephens provides easy-to-do, effective yoga activities–including postural sequences, breathing exercises, and meditation practices–for better sleep, no matter your age. He integrates the ancient wisdom of yoga with the insights of modern neuroscience and psychology to offer practical age- and condition-specific tools and sequences for improving sleep naturally and without drugs.
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Paperback, 376 pages
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN:Â 9781623173630
Dimension: 5.5 x 8.5
Also available in Kindle format and as an audiobook
AUDIOBOOK VERSION
PRAISE FOR YOGA FOR BETTER SLEEP
Elena Brower
Author of Practice You, host of the Practice You Podcast and yoga teacher at Glo.com
"Natural sleep dissolves deeply held states of tension, empowering us to be our creative best. Mark Stephens’ Yoga for Better Sleep offers a beacon of hope to our exhausted modern world, revealing how the simplest ancient practices of posture, breathing, and meditation can help us to sleep better and live well."
Bernie Clark
Yoga teacher and author, Yin Yoga and Your Body, Your Yoga
Yoga for Better Sleep is a wonderful guide for anyone, not just those suffering sleep issues or teachers helping students. Beyond the fascinating, current science of sleep, it delves into therapies for sleepers of all ages and backgrounds, from babies to seniors, offering in depth yoga prescriptions as well as valuable lifestyle changes. Its breadth is wonderful and its depth is considerable."
Richard Miller
Author, Yoga Nidra, co-founder, International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT).
?With an in-depth presentation of the nature of sleep, Stephens orients the avid reader to what lies behind getting, or not getting, a good night's sleep, offering yoga practices – including yoga nidra – that are an exquisite means of self-enquiry and awakening. I hope this book find its way into the hands of many."
Sally Kempton
Meditation teacher and author, Meditation for the Love of It and Awakening Shakti
"Yoga for Better Sleep is a sleep-resources library in itself. You’ll find a full range of recommendations, from medical advice to meditation practices to asana and pranayama, to lifestyle hacks.  This is a book to keep by your bed, to practice with daily, and to use as a practice guide. I hope Mark’s steady, comforting, wisdom helps you create a sleep protocol you can live with. May it revolutionize your bedtime hours, and help you experience more and more deeply the true rest that we all need and deserve."
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Part I: A Deeper Understanding of Sleep
Chapter 1: The Myths and Nature of Sleep
Introduction: Myth and Science
Waking and the Wake State
Sleeping
Process S: Natural Sleep Pressure
Process C: Circadian Rhythm
Sleep States
NREM Sleep States
REM Sleep State
States of Consciousness in Ancient Yoga
The Purpose of Sleep
Alzheimer’s Disease and Brain Cleansing
Chapter 2: The Nature of Sleep Disorders
Sleep and Wakefulness Disorders
Insomnia
What Causes Insomnia
Stress, Anxiety, PTSD, and Hyperarousal
Depression
Physical Pain and Fatigue
Timing Issues: Age, Hormones, Chronotypes, Television, Travel, and Shift Work
Sleep Apnea
Restless Legs Syndrome
Sidebar: Parasomnias
Narcolepsy
Stimulants
The Yoga View of Sleep Disturbance
Dukkha, Samskaras, and Kleshas
Gunatraya
The Consequences of Poor Sleep
Chapter 3: The Art and Science of Sleeping Well
Appreciative Assessment
Medicated Sleep
Alcohol
Cannabis
Prescription Drugs and Over-the-Counter Sleep Aids
Herbal Sleep Aids
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia
Changing Your Mind
Positively Associating Bed and Sleep
Bedtime
Concerns with Cognitive Behavioral Psychology
Sleep Hygiene
Creating Healthy Daily Rhythms
A Bedroom and Bed for Sleeping Well
Sidebar: Sex in Bed?
Creating a Sleep Paradise
What You Eat—and When
Exercise and Sleeping Well
Better Sleep with Yoga
The Path of the Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali
- Â Yama: Cultivating a Moral Life
- Â Niyama: Caring for Yourself
- Â Asana: Developing Steadiness and Ease
- Â Pranayama: Awakening and Balancing Energy
- Â Pratyahara: Letting Go of Distractions
- Â Dharana: Focusing Your Mind
- Â Dhyana: Opening to a Clear Mind
- Â Samadhi: The Fruits of Yoga
Sidebar: Transforming Tension with Somatics
Koshas: Mapping the Yoga Path to Better Sleep
Part II: Yoga Sequences for Better Sleep
Sthira Sukham Asanam: Steadiness, Ease, and Presence of Mind
- Â Tapas, Abhyasa, and Vairagya: Discipline, Perseverance, and Nonattachment
III. Playing the Edge
- Â Ujjayi Pranayama: Uplifting Breathing
- Â Alignment Principles
- Â Energetic Actions
Chapter 4: The Basic Yoga Sleep Sequence
Sidebar: The Parasympathetic Nervous System
When to Do the Basic Yoga Sleep Sequence
What You Will Need
Doing the Sequence
Step 1: Sitting and Breathing
Step 2: Basic Postural Sequence for Sleep
Sidebar: On Meditation
Step 3: Mindful Breathing Meditation for Settling Your Mind
Chapter 5: Yoga Sleep Sequence for Hyperarousal
Introduction to Settling Down
What You Will Need
Doing the Sequence
Step 1: Breathing into Relaxation
Nadi Shodhana Pranayama: Alternate Nostril Breathing
Visama Vrtti Pranayama: Calming Breath
Step 2: Postural Practice for Hyperarousal
From the Feet to the Legs
The Hips and Pelvis
The Spine and Torso
The Arms and Shoulders
The Hands and Wrists
The Neck
Step 3: Progressive Relaxation through Yoga Nidra
Overview
Doing the Yoga Nidra Sequence
Chapter 6: Yoga Sleep Sequence for Depression or Lethargy
Introduction: Depression, Sleep, and Brightening Your Day
When to Do the Yoga Sleep Sequence for Depression or Lethargy
What You Will Need
Doing the Sequence
Step 1: Dynamic Postural Practice
Step 2: Energizing and Emotionally Balancing Breathing Practice
Kapalabhati Pranayama: Cultivating Light
Bhastrika Pranayama: The Fiery Bellows Breath
Sitali Pranayama: Cooling Breath
Suryabheda Pranayama: Stimulating Vitality
Nadi Shodhana Pranayama: Alternate Nostril Breathing
Step 3: Heart-Centered Meditation
Chapter 7: Better Sleep for Young and Old
Sleeping through the Ages
Children’s Sleep
Infants
Toddlers and Preschoolers
School-Age Children
Adolescents
Yoga for Better Adolescent Sleep
Older Adults
Yoga for Better Sleep in Older Adults
Chapter 8: Yoga Sequence for Sleep Apnea
Sleep Apnea
Yoga Sequence for Sleep Apnea
Step 1: Weight Loss Practices
Step 2: Tongue and Mouth Exercises
Talavya Kriya
Jalandhara Bandha
Simhasana
Step 3: Respiratory Strengthening
KumbhakaÂ
Sama  and Visama Vrtti Pranayama Â
Viloma Pranayama
Nadi Shodhana Pranayama
Chapter 9: Chair Yoga Sleep Sequences
Introduction: Sitting Down to Sit Up
Choosing a Sequence
What You Will Need
Doing the Sequence
Step 1: Sitting and Breathing
Step 2: Postural Sequences in a Chair
Step 3: Chair Yoga Meditation Practices
Epilogue: Daily and Nightly Rituals for Better Sleep
Appendix I: International Classification of Sleep Disorders
Appendix II: Sleep Assessment
Appendix III: Tips for Better Sleep
Appendix IV: Tips for Jet Lag and Shift Work
Appendix V: Additional Sleep Resources
Glossary of Key Terms
Bibliography
Notes
Index
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