Today we are dropping into a balancing breath work practice,
A space to gently rest,
To soften,
And to support your nervous system.
Let this be a quiet invitation to come home to your breath and find steadiness from within.
Take a moment now to settle wherever you are,
Allowing your body to find a comfortable seat or reclined position.
Let your spine rise with ease and your shoulders melt away from your ears.
I invite you to gently close your eyes or soften your gaze.
Let's begin by setting an intention.
Bring to mind something in your life that feels a little out of balance right now.
No need to fix it or analyze it,
Just let it come into your awareness.
Now imagine what a balanced version of this area might feel like.
What does that energy of equilibrium feel like in your body?
What does it sound like?
What does it feel like?
Smell like?
Let that vision anchor you here and now.
Now begin to turn your attention towards your breath.
No need to change anything just yet,
Simply notice.
How is the breath arriving?
How is it leaving?
Is your breath fast or slow?
Shallow or deep?
Just observe.
Now gently begin to deepen the breath.
Let the inhale lengthen a little more.
Let the exhale extend a little further,
Taking your time.
Smooth,
Steady,
And soft.
We will now move into a simple breath worth practice known as two times breath.
We'll start by inhaling for three counts and exhale for six.
Let's begin together.
Inhale one,
Two,
Three.
Exhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
Inhale one,
Two,
Three.
Exhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
Inhale one,
Two,
Three.
Exhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
One more time.
Inhale one,
Two,
Three.
Exhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six.
Now gently increase the count.
Inhale for four and exhale for eight.
Inhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Exhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
Seven,
Eight.
Inhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Exhale one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
Seven,
Eight.
Feel yourself softening and balancing.
Inhaling for one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Exhaling for one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
Seven,
Eight.
Final time.
Inhale for one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Exhale for one,
Two,
Three,
Four,
Five,
Six,
Seven,
Eight.
Now let go of this count.
Let your breath return to its natural rhythm.
Notice the grounded,
Steady energy that may begin to arise.
From here,
We'll move into Nadi Shodhana,
Or alternate nostril breath,
A traditional yogic breath to balance the left and right energy channels.
Using your right hand,
Gently bring your pointer and middle finger to rest on your third eye.
Use your thumb and ring finger to alternate closing each nostril.
Let's begin.
Closing the right nostril with your thumb,
Inhale through the left.
Close the left nostril with your ring finger,
Opening up the right nostril,
And exhale out through the right.
Inhale through the right,
Close that nostril,
Open the left,
And exhale left.
Continuing this rhythm of exhaling,
Inhaling,
Closing,
Switch,
Exhale,
Inhale for the next few minutes.
Inhaling through the right,
Closing,
Exhale left,
Inhale left,
Exhale right.
Inhale right,
Exhale left,
Inhale left,
Exhale right.
Continuing this at your own time based off of your own patterns.
Keep your breath smooth,
Your body soft,
Your awareness tuned inwards.
Continuing this breath for one more minute.
If your mind begins to wander,
Focus back on the inhale and the exhale,
Bringing all of your awareness to your breath and letting it guide you into a peaceful state of mind.
Now we'll add gentle breath retention,
Inhaling through the left and holding your breath at the top.
Exhale out through the right,
Hold the breath at the bottom.
Inhale right,
Hold at the top,
Exhale left.
Hold at the bottom.
Inhale left,
Hold at the top,
Exhale right.
Continuing this for one minute and let this final minute be slow and sacred and still.
Keeping your holds comfortable.
On your next exhale out of the left nostril,
Gently release this breath and return to your natural breathing patterns.
Let your hands rest,
Let your body receive the grounding practices that we have done today.
Once more,
Return to the image you called in at the beginning of this practice.
As we close today's practice,
I invite you to return to this breath work each day for the next week.
Balance isn't something we force,
It's something we remember gently over and over.
By practicing this multiple days in a row,
You will be able to tap into a sense of grounding balance,
Even in times that may feel dysregulating.
You can always reconnect to your breath to help lead you into a balanced state of being.
Thank you so much for your practice today.
