The solution to stress lies within us. Nature has given us a defense mechanism with which to diminish the harmful effects of stress: breathing!
It’s incredible but we have become so “civilized” that we have to relearn how to breath properly.
There are different types of breathing practices that can be done to diminish agitation, stop thoughts or to just simply induce a feeling of calmness. One of the most effective and easiest breathing practice to induce a relaxation response is through diaphragmatic breathing, also known as belly breathing. It’s how infants breath.
You start by taking a deep breath in through your nose and letting the breath fill your diaphragm so your stomach extends out and letting the breath rise to fill the chest cavity and breath out through your mouth. The inhalations and exhalations are long and slow. It helps to put your hand on your stomach so you can feel your belly extend out. The more relaxed a mind and body are, the more air a person can take in.
Our emotional well being is directly linked to the rhythmic flow of our breathing.
The breathing of a person who is upset is rapid and shallow, and it’s localized in the chest. The breathing of a relaxed person sinks to the abdomen.
Since emotions are directly linked to the breath, a good way to calm ourselves is by regulating our breathing.
If your breath is agitated, your mind becomes restless. To quiet the mind, it’s best to quiet your breathing. We can train ourselves to elongate each breath, which also enables us to absorb more energy. Deep belly breathing can be done while lying down, walking and exercising.
Regularly practicing this type of deep breathing with any mind-body discipline, such as yoga and Tai Chi, can help train us to be more conscious of our breathing and benefit from inner balance. Guided meditative audios are also an excellent way to learn how to breath and deeply relax.
Meditative audios that guide you to breathe deeply with visualization can boost the benefits of breathing. In certain forms of shamanic journeying, for example, the participant benefits from guided breathing and visualization during the meditative practice that help to release physical and emotional pain, prior to the actual “journeying” practice.
The great news is that the benefits can be fast. Scientific studies have shown that just three consecutive days of 25-minute meditative practices can significantly alleviate stress.*
It may seem obvious that we need to breath, but surprisingly most people don’t take in enough air! As we grow older, our breathing becomes constricted, around the chest cavity and we take in less air. That’s why we must continually be conscious of our breathing.
It’s incredible but we need to be reminded regularly to properly breath to support physical and emotional health and total well being. Click here to find out more about a guided meditative audio that guides you on breathing to completely relax the body and mind along with journeying to tap your inner wisdom.
*The results of the study were published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology