Five Breaths Meditation For Managing Anxiety

This meditation is a lifeline for situations in which you are facing stress, anxiety, or fatigue and have very little time. It will show you the power of a few, deep, intentional breaths. This meditation will guide you through 5 slow deep breaths and help you reground yourself in about a minute.

With this practice, you may find calm in the moment and learn a new tool for stress management that you can take with you anywhere.

Transcript

Hi,

This is Claire E.

Parsons,

Lawyer,

Meditation teacher,

Blogger,

And author.

This is a meditation to help you restore calm briefly whenever you need it.

Let's get started.

Find a comfortable and stable position.

We won't be here long,

So you can be seated or standing,

However you're comfortable.

Close your eyes if it is supportive to you,

And bring attention to your breath.

Inhale fully,

Sensing the fullness in your lungs as you do,

Then exhale,

Releasing all the air in your lungs,

And count one.

Inhale again,

Filling your lungs all the way up.

Pause for a moment,

Then exhale,

And count two.

Allow another pause for just a moment,

And then inhale fully again.

Exhale,

Noticing the sensations of letting go as you do,

And count three.

Noticing if the breath is starting to slow down,

Inhale again,

Then exhale slowly and count four as you do.

After a pause,

Inhale,

Then exhale,

And count five.

Take a moment to notice the effects of this brief practice.

When you are ready,

You can open your eyes and return to your activities with a sense of calm and peace.