Relaxation through Breathing

Stress is a part of life.  It gets us up in the morning.  It gets us to the airport on time before a flight.  It gets dinner on the table when everyone is hungry.  That's normal stress.  Then there is the super stress that makes every move difficult, full of tension, frustration, impatience and maybe anger.

One of the best ways to dial down the super stress is through breathing deeply in through the nose and out through the nose.  By doing this, we engage the parasympathetic nervous system that calms us down.  We can lower the blood pressure through relaxation breathing.  We can become more efficient breathers by practicing intentional breath.  We can use this technique anywhere and everywhere that we need to slow down, calm down, take a pause and relieve super stress.

Most of us inhale 18,000-20,000 breaths per day.  Most of us only inhale half of our potential lung capacity.   By practicing this self soothing technique (the most basic form of meditation) we are improving our relaxation response and health.

One of the easiest ways to do this is to think about something positive like the word "calm"--and inhale deeply thinking of "calm" and take a pause--then exhale deeply with a word like "chaos."  Whenever you inhale, you bring towards you what you want to attract.  Whenever you exhale, you release what is no longer serving you.   At first it can feel hard to focus.  At first it feels like you're "not really doing anything."  However, if practice for a few minutes every day, you may find that it actually is helping. You can self soothe.  You can become more aware of what is going on.  You can become more conscious of stress factors and more capable of dealing with them.

This is a win/win.  No equipment is needed.  No gym membership.  No special place.  As long as you have a breath in your body, you can release tension.

Life is full of its ups and downs, joys and disappointments, pleasures and pains.  We don't need to look for stress, it will find us no matter what.  How we choose to respond to stress is what we can control. So, start breathing more deeply.   Start watching your belly puff up on the inhale and sink in on the exhale.   Breathe in three or four counts and pause; then breathe out three or four counts.  Let go of expectations, and let the breath do its work.

It's worth the time and the effort, because YOU are worth it.