When we are stressed,
Our breath is shallow,
We are hunched forward,
Our chest is closed and our lung capacity is reduced.
We feel rushed,
Uncomfortable and we can't think clearly.
When we feel this way,
We can only react to our environment and we fall into all the usual patterns that are not helpful to us,
Like calling ourselves names,
Getting into arguments or believing the negative things our mind tells us about ourselves all the time.
Low self-confidence is a result of unresourceful mental patterns we have repeated over and over during our lifetime.
As a confidence coach,
I teach my clients to disrupt this unhelpful cycle using the breath,
So they can stop their usual thinking patterns.
I teach them to be calmer on demand,
So they can take the time to choose a better response than the ones they've always used.
The body has a built-in stress reliever and that is the breath.
This breathing technique is a great way to provide the time and space you need to choose a different,
More helpful response.
It also changes your physiology in seconds by turning on your parasympathetic nervous system,
The rest and digest mode of the body.
So let's begin now.
Before sitting,
Stretch as though you were just coming out of bed.
Reach your arms all the way up to the sky.
Take a long,
Big yawn.
Move your head from side to side and take any other movement that you feel like taking before finding a comfortable seat.
Once you choose your seat,
Make sure your feet are flat on the floor,
Your spine is long and tall,
Chin slightly tucked,
Palms of your hands resting on your belly.
Start to notice your breath coming in and out of your body.
Don't try to change it in any way.
Watch it the same way you would watch a river flow.
Be a witness to your breath.
Now we are going to alter this pattern.
We will inhale to the count of four and exhale to the count of six.
I will guide you through the first three rounds and then you will keep going on your own.
Please note that the counts can be altered to suit you.
If four to six makes you feel tense,
Try inhale to three and exhale to five or inhale to two and exhale to four.
The most important thing is that your exhale is longer than your inhale.
Let's begin now.
Inhale 1,
2,
3,
4,
Exhale 6,
5,
4,
3,
2,
1.
Inhale 1,
2,
3,
4,
Exhale 6,
5,
4,
3,
2,
1.
Inhale 1,
2,
3,
4,
Exhale 6,
5,
4,
3,
2,
1.
Now keep going on your own.
Letting go of the counting,
Resuming normal breath.
Just observing it flow in your body like the river flows in its bed.
Notice how you feel now compared to before this practice.
How you feel psychologically,
Physically,
Emotionally,
All aspects of yourselves.
If there is a situation that was disturbing to you before and that you were ready to react to,
Now think about the same situation and ask yourself if you would have other options,
Other ways of responding to that same situation.
That's really what this technique is about.
It's really to improve our relationships,
Not only with others but also especially with ourselves.
I'm going to end this session with a quote from the Hatha Yoga Pradipika which says,
When the breath wanders,
The mind is unsteady,
But when the breath is calmed,
The mind too will be still.
