This 10 minute breath work practice will help us calm the body and mind.
Settle into a comfortable straight position,
Ears above shoulders,
Shoulders above hips.
Place one hand on your chest and the other on your belly.
Close your eyes or you may choose to soften your gaze and lower your focus to the floor.
Mouth is closed and we're breathing in and out of the nose if this is comfortable for you.
I invite you to place your attention on your breath.
Don't alter your breathing at this stage,
Just observe it.
Bring curiosity and inquiry to your breath.
Can you feel your body breathing?
Do you notice movement in your belly,
Your chest or both places?
Observe whether your breathing feels fast or slow.
Notice the length of your inhale.
Notice the length of your exhale.
Notice which is longer,
Your inhale or your exhale.
Perhaps they're about the same.
Notice the volume or amount of air that is coming and going with your breath.
Move your hands onto your lower ribs,
Relax the shoulders back and down.
Can you feel breathing movements beneath your hands?
Can you feel a gentle expansion of your ribs as you inhale and gentle contraction of your ribs as you exhale?
Inhale ribs expand and exhale ribs contract.
Tune in to the rhythm of your diaphragm driving your breathing and the movement of your hands moving away from each other on the inhale.
Moving toward each other on the exhale.
Ribs and belly widen on the inhale,
Narrow on the exhale.
Continue focusing on this 360 degrees expansion and contraction sinking with the rhythm of your breath.
Breathing gently in and out of your nose.
Can you breathe so quietly that you can't hear your breathing?
Encourage the breath to become lighter,
Gentler,
Softer.
Can you gently decrease the amount of air that's coming and going with your breath so you're breathing less air?
Breathing low in the body,
Soft in volume and slow in pace optimizes oxygen uptake.
Complete your last couple of exhales before you release your hands.
Lowering both hands onto your belly as a reminder to continue breathing low in the body,
In the belly.
Breathing gently in and out of the nose.
We're going to add a count to the breath,
An inhale of two counts and an exhale of three counts.
Inhale one,
Two and exhale one,
Two,
Three.
Inhale one,
Two and exhale one,
Two,
Three.
And continue with this count,
Inhale of two and exhale three counts.
It's your count,
So find a count that fits your breath faster or slower depending on your comfort level.
Inhale two and exhale three counts.
You might like to add a hum on the exhale to your count of three,
Like this.
Inhale one,
Two and hum for three counts.
Inhale one,
Two and hum for three counts.
Humming can amplify the practice,
Creating an internal vibration that settles the nervous system and increases our sense of calm.
Check that you're not holding any tension in your jaw,
Neck or shoulders and soften and release any tightness you sense in these areas.
It's a gentle inhale for two and gentle exhale for three.
Extending our exhale helps the body understand we are safe and helps us shift into a parasympathetic state of rest and digest.
Finish your last couple of exhales before you release the count.
You may like to place your hands palms up in your lap,
Right hand on top of the left hand,
Thumbs are resting against each other.
Check you're maintaining a straight posture,
Ears above shoulders,
Shoulders above hips.
Continue nose breathing,
Light in volume,
Slow in pace,
Low in the belly.
We're adding a silent mantra to the breath.
On the next inhale,
Silently say the word OM and as you exhale,
Silently say the word peace.
On the next inhale,
Silently say the word OM and as you exhale,
Silently say the word peace.
Attaching OM to each inhale and peace to each exhale.
Continue with OM on the inhale and peace on the exhale.
Whenever the mind wanders,
Return to OM on the inhale and peace on the exhale.
Complete your last couple of rounds of the mantra before releasing the mantra.
After your last mantra,
Keep your eyes closed and observe the impact of this practice for a few moments.
Perhaps the breath feels softer,
Slower or deeper within the body.
Perhaps the mind feels quiet,
Calm,
Focused,
Alert.
Breathing in and out the nose,
Slow in speed,
Light in volume and low in the body helps settle our nervous system.
And calm the mind.
Gently blink your eyes open,
Bringing your attention back to the room.
