How to Relax When You Can’t Relax | A Somatic Meditation to Settle Your Nervous System

You want to relax… but you can’t. Does that sound familiar?

Maybe you lie down and your body still feels tense. Or you try to slow down, but your mind won’t stop thinking. You want to rest, but something in you stays on.

This is often due to nervous system dysregulation. With so much constant input and overstimulation in our modern world, our nervous systems can lose the natural rhythm of activation and settling. Instead of coming down when it’s time to rest, your body stays “on” leaving you feeling wired, exhausted, and unable to find true calm or relaxation.

In this episode of Somatic Healing Meditations, I’ll gently guide you through a somatic meditation designed to help your body come out of that activated state and begin to relax again.

We’ll use simple, body-based practices like self-havening, orienting, and body scan breathing to send clear signals of safety to your system.

So, if relaxation has felt out of reach, this practice will help your nervous system shift so you can unwind, feel more at ease, and actually rest.

Perfect for nervous system regulation, stress relief, and learning how to relax when you can’t relax

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In this episode:

• Why You Can’t Relax (from a nervous system perspective)
• Somatic Meditation to Settle Your Nervous System
  • Self-Havening and Orienting
  • Body Scan Breathing

Read more about the somatic approach to deep relaxation

Related: More Somatic Regulation Exercises

Learn more about Havening Techniques and the science behind them

Havening Techniques is a registered trademark of Ronald Ruden, 15 East 91st Street, New York. www.havening.org

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Ready to find your center, quiet your mind, and step off the roller coaster of stress and overwhelm?

You’re invited to join me in Somatic Healing Hub!

SHH is a beautiful, deeply supportive online community filled with the structure, support, and somatic practices to help you actually feel better in your body - and create real change in your life.

Inside, you’ll get ad-free access to the Somatic Healing Meditations podcast!

Each week, I guide multiple live somatic healing classes - calming, grounded practices to regulate your nervous system and reconnect with your inner world.

There’s also monthly group coaching with me, heart-centered workshops, and an extensive library of powerful body-based resources to support your healing journey.

Your nervous system. Your emotions. Your healing — lovingly supported.

Learn more and enroll now!

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Connect with Karena:

• @helloinnerlight on Instagram, and YouTube
• Find ALL of the amazing Somatic Healing Meditations here
• Submit a question for the podcast: Your Healing, Your Questions
• Free mini-course: The Feel it to Heal it Mini-Course
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• Get AD-FREE access to this podcast, plus live classes, workshops, and group coaching in Somatic Healing Hub

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