Soft Belly Breathing

Soft belly breathing is a beautiful technique to slow down, relax the physical body and the mind, and become deeply present. This breathing practice brings awareness to the belly and what we may be holding on to there. Softening the belly is receiving the breath, nurturing the emotions/tensions that may be living in there, and inviting ease into our "digestive" center.
Place your hands on your belly and feel your belly rising, expanding to meet your hands, and falling, to surrender what your body is ready to release.
Create space in the body, belly and mind with this calming, comforting, compassionate practice.
Soft Belly Breathing is designed to engage the vagus nerve and shift the nervous system out of stress response and into the parasympathetic "rest-and-digest" mode. Letting the abdominal muscles completely relax allows the diaphragm to fully expand downward, maximizing oxygen intake and calming the nervous system.
Featuring the sound of Maui's ocean waves in the background.

Transcript

This is a soft belly breathing practice. Come to sit in a comfortable position on the floor, On a cushion, In a chair, On a couch. Allow yourself to arrive. If you feel comfortable, You can close your eyes. Otherwise, Just fix your gaze on an unmoving point. Take a deep breath in through the nose. And exhale out the mouth. As you exhale, Allow your chest and your heart and your belly to release. Let your body land. Wherever you are, On the ground, The couch, The chair. Allow your breath to arrive in your body. Taking a few deep inhales through the nose. And exhales out the mouth. And listening to the sounds around you. Letting all of the muscles in the face release, Relax, And let go. Let your shoulders drop away from the ears. Let gravity take hold of your body, Of your bones, Your organs. Let yourself be heavy. Let yourself feel supported wherever you're sitting. And as your breath flows in the next inhale into the body, Feel it move down into the belly. As your breath flows out. Let your belly be effortless. Releasing any energy in the belly. And as you inhale, Telling your belly. To be soft. Allowing your belly to receive your breath. And on your exhale. Just allowing the belly to let go of any resistance. Inhale, Soft. Exhale, Belly. Letting go of all of the muscles, Anything you could be clenching or holding onto in the belly, Soften it. Let your belly. Release. On each inhale, Imagine your belly. Being cared for, Nourished, And nurtured by the breath. And with every exhale, Let the breath loosen, Relax, And release everything from the belly. Let your breath make room in the belly. Let your thoughts, Emotions, Sensations arise and fall in and out of a spacious belly. Breathing in soft. Exhale, Belly. Our belly is our emotional center. And only soften it. We're relaxing our feelings, Our thoughts, Our images, And our memories that may all arise and fall. So welcoming all that rises and falls with the soft belly. Observing, Acknowledging, Meeting what arises and releasing what falls. Drawing your awareness back to the flow of your breath. In, Soften. Exhale, Belly. Breathing in, Soften. Exhale, Belly. Inhaling in. Noticing the beginning. The middle and the end of the breath as you exhale out. There is a space that exists between each breath. Experiencing that breath in a spacious belly. Open Belly. Receptive belly. Becoming aware of the space at the top of the in-breath. Before the out-breath. Becoming aware of the space at the bottom of the out-breath before the in-breath. Inhaling in, Soften. Exhaling out, Belly. Breathing in, Rising belly, Fill the belly. Exhaling falling belly releasing and letting go softening the belly Breathing in, Soften. Breathing out. Belly. And I invite you to place your hands on your belly now. Feeling your breath meeting your hands on the inhale, The rising belly. And on the exhale, The falling, Releasing belly. Allowing thoughts and emotions, Memories. To come up. To exist, To be acknowledged. And to be released, To dissolve in your soft belly. Nothing to hold on to. Just inviting the breath in, Softening. And out, Releasing. Inviting in. The softness in the belly. And as you exhale, Opening. Bigger space to be healed in the belly and the body. Connecting with your breath on the inhale, The rising. The opening, The softening. And as you exhale, The falling, The releasing, The cleansing. To let go. Breathing in. Softening the belly. Breathing out, Releasing from the belly. Breathing in, Inviting joy, Pleasure. Connection. And as you exhale, Releasing. And opening the belly to feeling good, To comfort. Grounding. Breathing in. Connecting with the rising of the belly. Breathing out. Connecting. With the falling and the releasing, The let go. Breathing in, Softening the belly. Breathing out, You can let it out the mouth this time. Letting go of anything that might be left over in the belly. Nourishing the belly with the breath. Caring for the belly with the breath. Allowing the breath to make room. In a spacious belly. Soft, Spacious belly. Ease, Relaxed belly. Staying here as long as you'd like with your hands on your belly, Creating space. For a deeply relaxed belly, Soft. Belly. And taking your time to slowly come back. Bringing the chin to the chest. Stretching the back of the neck. Bringing the ears side to side towards the shoulders. I'm starting to rub the belly. From the right side to the left in a big circle. Comforting the belly. Inviting the belly now. To move through the day with softness, With ease, With relaxation. And as you. . . Move your hands around in a circular motion from right to left in a big circle. Inviting in to the belly today. Joy pleasure. And anything that you would like. To bring into your awareness and into your day. Gratitude, Compassion. Nurture, Take a big inhale through the nose. Sighing out the mouth. Reaching the arms overhead. Opening up. And as you exhale, Sweep the hands around the body back to the earth. Feeling grounded, Feeling connected. Beautiful, Soft belly. Aum Shanti Shanti Shanti Peace.