Yoga with Melissa

I was so touched by your stories of using Yoga Nidra to survive long work days, parenting, and high stress.

Many of you said you needed the 'permission slip' to just let go and sleep. 🕊️

www.youtube.com/shorts/IE_CT8...

I’m curious: what is the main reason you come to your mat for Yoga Nidra right now?"

1 day ago | [YT] | 9

Yoga with Melissa

How do you usually feel after a "strength" workout?

3 days ago | [YT] | 8

Yoga with Melissa

“I’m doing fine, I’m just a little tired."


How many times have you said that this week while feeling completely "wired" inside? ✋ High-functioning anxiety often looks like "having it all together" on the outside while your nervous system is stuck in survival mode on the inside.


My newest class is an update of one of our my most popular yoga nidra practices, updated for 2026 with deep NSDR (Non-Sleep Deep Rest) protocols specifically for High Functioning Anxiety and Burnout Recovery.


📺 Watch the new class here: https://youtu.be/doSUGjyNNVg


Question for you: When you’re stressed, do you tend to "push through" or do you find it easy to give yourself permission to stop? Let’s chat in the comments! 👇


P.S. For those ready for a full nervous system reset, our month-long recovery programs are now live in the membership: melissawest.com/membership

1 week ago | [YT] | 33

Yoga with Melissa

I’m so grateful for this community and the space to be authentic with you all. I missed our class this Friday, and I wanted to share why. I’ve been navigating a migraine episode that lasted over a week.

If you’ve been following for a long time, you know I've been suffering with chronic migraines since 2011, sometimes worse, sometimes better.

I’ve practiced yoga for 30 years and taught for 23. Even after decades on this path, the migraines still come. I know my triggers and I have wonderful medical support, but as my very first teacher told me: yoga doesn’t come with guarantees.

It isn’t a magic cure for the human experience. Instead, it’s the tool that allows me to meet the hard days with grace, acceptance, and surrender. Let’s normalize the idea that "success" in yoga doesn’t mean achieving perfect health, it means having the resilience to meet the inevitable ups and downs of life.

If you’re also navigating spring seasonal migraines, I wanted to share two practices that help me through:

Yoga for Migraines - Quick Relief


Gentle Yoga for Headaches & Migraines

https://youtu.be/xtDV8cPGo7Y?si=tKzeF...
https://youtu.be/QSDSkWXqYL8?si=w2GuR...


I’d love to hear from you and normalize the realness of our human journeys.

What is something you navigate, whether physical or emotional, that yoga hasn’t "healed," but has allowed you to be present with more easily?

Sending love and grace, Melissa

p.s. this is a photo of Tim and I on our morning walk this morning, first day I've been out in quite a few days.

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 151

Yoga with Melissa

If strength training leaves you sore, depleted, or needing days to recover, this class is for you.
You can build strength without burning out.
This week’s class is a gentle yoga practice focused on building strength in a way your body can actually take in and recover from.
We’re working with:
strength without overexertion
staying within your energy envelope
building capacity gradually
You’ll leave feeling stronger, without that crash afterward.
👉 Join me here: https://youtu.be/ek5EeN5ox5g
And if you want more support with this approach, including somatic movement education and myofascial release:
💕Join Our Membership Community 💕
bit.ly/ywmmembership

1 month ago | [YT] | 71

Yoga with Melissa

If your body has been feeling tight, sore, or compressed lately, I just released a new class that may really help.


Full Body Yin Yoga Deep Tissue Release for Pain & Tension.
Many of us carry chronic tension in the neck, shoulders, hips, and low back from sitting, stress, and daily life. This class works slowly with the deeper connective tissues so those patterns can begin to soften.


You may notice your body feeling more spacious, your breathing easier, and your nervous system calmer by the end.


If this type of practice helps you, inside our membership we go deeper with myofascial release and somatic movement education, which help address the underlying patterns that create tension in the first place.


Join the membership here
www.melissawest.com/membership


Members can also access:

Myofascial Release
www.members.melissawest.com/connective-tissue-prac…


Somatic Movement Education
www.members.melissawest.com/courses/somatics/
I hope this practice helps your body feel better today.

1 month ago | [YT] | 65

Yoga with Melissa

Spring energy is rising.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Wood element and the Liver and Gallbladder meridians become active during this season. When their energy becomes constrained we often experience stress, headaches, irritability, neck tension, or PMS.
This week’s class is a Spring Yin Yoga practice for the Liver and Gallbladder meridians designed to release those pathways through the inner legs and side body so energy can move more smoothly.
Students often tell me they feel:
• less pressure in the head
• more spaciousness in the hips and side body
• calmer emotionally
• clearer mentally
This class comes directly from my book Five Element Yin Yoga.
Watch the class here on YouTube. https://youtu.be/DiyahKykTUI
If you would like to explore the Wood element more deeply, inside the membership there is a complete 6 week Liver and Gallbladder Yin Yoga course.
🌿 Wood Element Course
www.members.melissawest.com/wood-element-course/
💕 Join the membership
bit.ly/ywmmembership

1 month ago | [YT] | 63

Yoga with Melissa

Feeling tired but unable to rest?
https://youtu.be/0fyqcTC0NtI?si=eOxn8...

When your body is exhausted but your nervous system is still on high alert, it can feel impossible to rest.
https://youtu.be/0fyqcTC0NtI?si=eOxn8...


This week's new Yoga Nidra is designed specifically for a tired and wired nervous system.


This practice supports vagal tone and helps your body shift into parasympathetic regulation.


You will receive:
• A softer breath
• Reduced muscle tension
• A quieter mind
• Deeper rest


Every small shift in your nervous system is important.
The practice is now live. I’d love to hear how it lands for you.
https://youtu.be/0fyqcTC0NtI?si=eOxn8...

1 month ago | [YT] | 46

Yoga with Melissa

I just released a brand new Morning Yoga for Vagus Nerve Regulation practice and I am really excited to share this one with you.


This is a 30 minute morning yoga class designed to help your nervous system move more flexibly between activation and ease. We use breath, gentle hip opening, and grounding strength building poses like Warrior I and Goddess to support steady energy and calm focus throughout your day.


This class is especially supportive if mornings feel rushed, wired, or hard to settle into.


You can practice here:
https://youtu.be/qse2vhDTapA


If you want a deeper guided pathway, inside my membership I offer a full 1 month program called Settle Your Nervous System. It is a step by step journey through stabilizing your body, mind, expression, and daily rhythms using yoga, somatic practices, and meditation.


Members can access the full program here
www.members.melissawest.com/roadmap/nervous-system…


If you would like to join the membership community you can do that here
bit.ly/ywmmembership


Let me know in the comments how your body and nervous system feel after practicing.

2 months ago | [YT] | 72

Yoga with Melissa

New YOGA NIDRA FOR DEEP REST is now live on YouTube.

This practice is for moments when your system feels tired and wired. Your busy mind can rest, your body can let go of bracing, holding, and pushing through the exhaustion.



https://youtu.be/rYV0IgVndd8


If you prefer to listen without ads, the audio is also available in our membership library. (96 yoga nidra audios)


Non-members access the ad free audio here:
melissawest.com/membership



Members Click Here: www.members.melissawest.com/courses/yoga-for-sleep…

2 months ago | [YT] | 33