Hi,
I'm James.
I'm a qualified breath worker.
I love sharing how our breathing can be a secret superpower,
Giving us far more influence over our body and mind than we often realise.
Thank you for joining me for this short practice.
Together,
We'll use a simple but intentional shift in our breathing,
Which will slow the heart rate and calm our systems.
This tool is gentle yet powerful,
And it's simple enough to practice almost anywhere.
It works in the moment,
In real time,
When anxiety,
Overwhelm or challenge leaves us with that feeling of a thumping,
Racing heart and a loss of control.
And if that's how you feel now,
You're not alone,
And there's nothing wrong with this reaction.
In fact,
Your nervous system believes it's doing its job and helping you.
This practice is your manual override,
Helping you steer back to steadiness.
Let's do it.
It's not essential,
But if you have the space and conditions,
You can sit or lie down.
If it feels right,
Gently close your eyes.
Bring your awareness to meet your breathing.
Gently close your mouth and breathe through your nose.
If that's not available to you right now,
Allow a soft gap between your lips as if you were breathing through a small straw.
Notice the inhale,
Cool air coming in.
Notice the exhale,
Warmer air leaving.
Encourage your breath to feel easy,
As if you're doing less,
Not more.
Gentle and easeful,
Not forced.
Now,
Meet me at the bottom of an exhale and inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
And now take one calm,
Light breath in,
And a soft breath out,
And hold just for a few seconds in stillness.
Notice that pause,
And now gently return to your breath.
You'll have noticed in that exercise that we were exhaling for double the length of our inhale,
And you may already sense it.
As the exhale lengthens,
The heart rate naturally slows.
A simple,
Powerful shift available anytime,
Anywhere,
Just by quietly slipping into the driving seat of our breathing.
Let's round out by feeling into a couple of variations,
Experimenting with how a range of these tools might feel for us in our uniqueness.
If we're ever in a situation that strongly triggers our system,
And our heart rate is really racing away,
It might be helpful to meet it with a 2,
4 pattern,
Always aiming for softer rather than big heavy breaths.
Let's try that now.
Bring your attention back to your breathing,
Gently close your mouth,
And breathe through your nose.
And again,
If nasal breathing is not available to you right now,
Allow a small opening between your lips,
As if you were breathing through a small straw.
Notice the inhale,
Cool air coming in.
Notice the exhale,
Warmer air leaving,
And encourage your breath to feel easy,
As if you're doing less,
Not more.
Gentle and easeful,
Not forced.
Now,
Meet me at the bottom of an exhale,
And in 2,
Exhale 2,
3,
4.
In 2,
Exhale 2,
3,
4.
In 2,
Exhale 2,
3,
4.
In 2,
Exhale 2,
3,
4.
In 2,
Exhale 2,
3,
4.
In 2,
Exhale 2,
3,
4.
And as you feel ready,
Ease back up to our 3,
6.
So,
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
Inhale 2,
3,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6.
And if it feels comfortable,
A 4,
8 may be available to you,
But only if it feels easeful and helpful.
Let's experiment with that now.
Inhale 2,
3,
4,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
Inhale 2,
3,
4,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
Inhale 2,
3,
4,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
Inhale 2,
3,
4,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
Inhale 2,
3,
4,
Exhale 2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
And now take one calm light breath in and a soft breath out and hold just for a few seconds in stillness.
Notice the pause and then gently return to your breath.
And as you feel ready gently open your eyes if you haven't already and slowly return to your space.
If the 4,
8 felt forced or stressful,
There's no need to push.
With this,
The most effective pattern is always the one that feels gentle,
Calm and sustainable for you.
Most importantly,
You've just felt how you can influence your body,
Your nervous system and your state of mind by a simple and subtle change in your breathing.
This shift didn't come from force or effort,
Just a quiet signal from your breath to your body.
This power is yours to carry with you.
You can use this practice anytime you need calm,
Steadiness or a reset.
Your breath is always with you.
Thank you for listening and breathing with me today.
It's a privilege to share these simple,
Effective,
Usable breathwork tools with you.
Have a wonderful day and I'd love to meet you here again next time.
