Powerful Affirmations & Breath Work For Anxiety

Affirmations for anxiety are incredibly powerful. In this session, you will be guided to relax with deep, slow breathing exercises to reduces stress in the body. Followed by positive affirmations that will increase your chances of succeeding. Affirmations aren’t wishful thoughts. Instead, they use neuroplasticity to change feelings of fear to those of confidence. You will experience the best positive affirmations for anxiety relief.

Transcript

So as a way of introduction,

I want to share with you all a little bit about myself.

Jay Chodhagam.

I'm a meditation practitioner for over 20 years.

I live in a town called Mountain View in the Bay Area of California,

United States.

And I was a monk for 18 years.

And I'm going to share with you what I have learned over the course of the time,

Over the course of these years as a monk,

Daily practice.

I'm going to also weave that with the other part of my brain,

Which is I'm an engineer.

I hold two engineering degrees,

Worked in Silicon Valley for some time.

And so it is ancient wisdom melded with modern neuroscience.

So today I'm going to start off the session with Pranayama.

And in Pranayama,

There is prana,

Life force energy that comes in from the universe is giving the energy.

It's flowing into us,

Through us,

Out of us.

And then Ayama,

Which is the holding,

Which is the regulating,

Which is the rules around how do you optimize the flow of this energy.

So think of it like this.

Like there's a river that's flowing.

So energy is like a river.

It comes from the universal source.

Call it by whatever name you want.

The great spirit,

God,

The supreme being.

And when that energy flows into us and through us,

If we learn to regulate it,

It's like,

You know how you can put a dam for irrigation.

You can channel it.

You can maximize it.

And you can take that latent power and turn it into tangible energy.

So that's what we're going to do.

So a lot of Pranayama is about how do you retain,

How do you manipulate,

And how do you alter your breathing,

Which is what you're going to learn today.

And breathing is such a fundamental thing,

You all.

It is something that is responsible for your rest and rejuvenate part of your nervous system.

It is also conversely responsible for your stress release of the hormones,

The cortisol.

And so when you have the right kind of breathing technique,

You're activating your parasympathetic nervous system,

Which is your rest and recover part of your autonomous nervous system.

And when you don't,

When you do shallow breathing,

Which is also called chest breathing,

Then you end up creating more stress and anxiety and there's not enough oxygenation of the blood.

And so you get into that cycle of,

Then you want,

You go into shallower breathing,

Faster breathing,

And then you are actually depleting yourself and you're actually becoming more and more anxious.

So today I'm going to teach you some very,

Very basic techniques,

Which are going to create the foundation of how to create this deep breathing.

Now,

The brain,

The body,

And the breath are deeply connected.

Now,

As much as we would like to,

We have a meditation app.

Yes,

We all want to meditate.

I hope you all have tried meditation before and you like meditation,

But you know,

The brain is the most difficult thing to brain,

Reign in to control,

To be able to channel,

To be able to regulate.

Now,

So how do we then work on that?

Breath is the real thing,

The access that we have in the body.

You know,

The diaphragm,

That muscle is something that we have control over.

And when we control the diaphragm,

We're controlling the breath.

And as you regulate the breath,

We're regulating the body.

You'll start noticing at the end of the session,

If you actually have yourself hooked up,

You will see your blood pressure reduces,

Your stress levels reduce,

Your heart rate reduces,

The secretion of your stress hormones,

Like cortisol,

Reduce,

And the balance of hormones begin to happen.

So many benefits,

All with breath.

And breath is beautiful precursor to that state of meditation.

You'll see,

If you'd see it for the first time,

You'll notice that how the regulation of the breath will prepare you for a deep meditative practice.

All right?

So I'm going to teach you four techniques today.

The first technique is,

I'm going to have you do something called belly breathing,

Where the focus is on the exhale.

By the way,

In pranayama,

The focus is almost often on the exhale,

Unless I otherwise state.

And here,

What you're going to do is you're going to breathe and pulling all the air,

Opening up your diaphragm,

Making sure your belly's expanding.

And as you're exhaling,

I want you to pull your belly button back towards the spine,

Really pushing the air out,

Creating that thrust frutches originating from your abdomen,

Emptying out your lungs.

And that way you're able to massage your organs,

It is also a great way for you to be able to tighten your abdominal muscles.

It's actually you're tuning your abdominal muscles,

Which actually,

For the most part,

For most of us,

It doesn't get enough exercise.

It doesn't get enough workout.

And so you see it becoming slack and it becomes bloated and so on and so forth.

So this actually is also you're activating your digestive system as you're doing this.

So that's going to be the first exercise.

And the next one I'm going to be teaching you how to do this three step breathing,

Where you're going to start by focusing on the belly breathing,

Like the big first step,

First lesson I talked about.

And then we're going to slowly change our focus into higher into the thoracic region,

Into the lower part of your rib cage,

And then up into the upper part of the rib cage towards your chest.

And then the third one I'm going to introduce,

The third exercise,

I'm going to introduce the same breathing exercise,

The third exercise,

I'm going to introduce the same breathing and continue,

But you're going to add another layer.

You're going to add the layer of movement of the hands.

And so I will show you when we get to it.

But so you'll be moving your hands up.

I want you to stretch your arms out,

Outwards,

Perpendicular to your body,

And then bring it up.

And you're going to touch your fingers on the top.

And you're going to bring the hands down.

So this is going to be synchronized with your inhalation and exhalation.

All right,

So that's what we're going to do.

And then the fourth one is called Brahmari.

And I'm going to show that real quick so that way when we get started,

You can keep your eyes closed.

By the way,

In pranayama,

The focus is on trying to close your eyes.

The ears are the most attentive things.

So I'll ask you to go to close your eyes.

I'm going to give instructions now.

So you can keep your eyes closed as we go through the entire breath work and the meditation.

So in the Brahmari,

You're going to use three fingers,

The thumb,

The middle,

And the ring finger.

And the way you do that is you're going to go ahead and close your ears.

I'm moving my headset here.

So you're going to close your ears and close your eyes.

Okay.

Now,

If you have your headset,

It's okay.

Go ahead and keep it next to the ears and go ahead and close your eyes.

Right.

So that's what we're going to do in Brahmari.

And then I will teach you how to do the breath work.

You inhale into the belly and you're going to exhale by the humming.

You keep your mouth closed and the exhale is going to come out like this.

So that's the flow of what we're going to do.

And then after that,

I'm going to lead you through a powerful exercise on affirmations.

Right.

So that's the agenda for today.

All right.

With that said,

Let's go and dive in.

I ask that you go ahead and downshift your gaze or let your eyelids glide to a closure,

Whatever feels comfortable and let the inhalation through the nostrils deep into the belly.

I want you to notice the rise and the collapse of the abdomen,

Not the chest.

It's like a balloon.

Let the lower part of your belly expand.

And then as you're releasing,

Exhaling through the nostrils,

I want you to squeeze your belly button back towards the spine.

Squeeze,

Squeeze,

Squeeze and inhale.

So make this nice and even inhalation through the nostrils,

Exhalation through the nostrils.

Nice,

Even breathing.

With the added push of using the muscles in your lower part of your abdomen.

This is diaphragmic breathing as well as you're exhaling,

You're letting go,

Causing a thrust that initiates in the abdomen.

And let you do it at your own pace.

Even,

Nice,

Even breathing,

Squeezing the belly button back towards the spine.

And if you're doing this right,

You should be noticing that the rib cage opens up,

The angle below the sternum in your rib cage,

Obidens as you're inhaling and as you exhale,

Your diaphragm is dropping back and it's becoming nice and soft.

Now moving on to the next exercise.

Now I want you to do,

This is called three-step breathing.

So inhalation,

Taking in the air,

Expanding the lower part of the belly like we just did in the first step.

And when you feel like you've expanded,

The balloon is blown,

I want you to take a little bit more air to fill the area just below where the rib cage is,

The lower part of the thoracic region,

Your chest cavity.

And then breathe in some more to open up the upper part of the chest cavity,

The upper rib cage and the shoulders area and then let go.

Relax,

Letting it all out.

Let's do this a few more times,

Inhaling deep into the bottom of the belly,

Allowing that to expand,

Followed by expanding of the lower part of your chest.

And taking some more to open the upper part of the chest,

The shoulder blades moving and relax.

Exhale through the nostril.

Take in another deep breath,

Three steps,

The lower abdomen,

The lower part of your chest,

The upper part of your chest.

And let go.

And one more time.

Now I want you to add the hand movement that goes with it.

I want you to keep your eyes closed and as you're taking these breaths,

Stretch your arms out on either side of you.

And then as you're inhaling,

I want you to raise your arms up above like the wings of a swan.

And imagine they touch on the very top,

The tips of the fingers are touching.

And then bring them with that contact in front of your face as you're beginning to exhale.

And completely emptying out your lungs.

Then rise as it goes up in circular motion.

Inhale.

Arms are going up all around,

Up to the top.

Fingers touch,

Tips only.

Exhaling,

It's coming down in front of you.

This is called,

By the way,

Sun breathing.

Inhale,

Nice,

Even flow,

Synchronizing your breath with your arm movement.

And then exhale,

Bringing the arms down,

Fingertips touching each other.

Let's do this a couple more times.

Inhaling nice and deep.

Exhaling,

Letting it all go.

Emptying out,

Letting the toxins out of your body.

Allowing it to be replaced by the nourishing,

Life-giving oxygen.

And now we move on to the fourth and the final exercise of the pranayama set,

Which is brahmari.

You're welcome to go ahead and lock your ears.

If you have your headphones,

Just go ahead and put them in front of it.

Keep your middle and the ring finger in front of your eyes.

Inhale deep into the belly,

Allowing the belly to expand.

And as you exhale,

You release with a hum.

Mouth is closed,

Exhalation air through the nostrils with a hum from deep in the throat.

Two more rounds.

Hum.

Hum.

Keep your eyes closed,

Bring your arms down,

Rest them on your lap,

On the armrest of the chair you may be sitting on.

Or if you're lying down,

You can put them next to you,

Making sure that you're not locking any joints.

Just relaxed,

Having a nice curvature,

Keeping the joints open,

Because this is how the prana flows.

This last exercise,

By the way,

Is an excellent way to massage the internal organs inside your head.

It is also a way to massage the sinus cavities.

Overall,

Just drop into this feeling and notice how things have changed just in the last 15 minutes we've been doing this.

Notice how there may be more lightness in your body,

Quietening of the mind,

And ease of your breath.

If there's any tightness anywhere in the body,

I want you to breathe into that,

Softening that area,

Oxygenating it,

Giving it prana,

Life force.

Any sluggishness,

Let's just breathe that out of the system and replace it with this revitalizing life force.

Loving the nice,

Even breathing,

Deep breathing,

The breathing that's responsible for your rest and recovery,

Activating the parasympathetic nervous system.

And as I guide you in from the breathwork into the heart space,

As I am about to begin the affirmations,

I want you to feel into the affirmations.

Don't just repeat them in your head,

But actually drop into the experience.

Make it real for you,

And then notice what it does.

Now,

As there's some ground rules for those of you who are first time in my channel,

I say that it's important that you understand what meditation is and isn't.

Number one,

The brain is the most abused muscle in the body,

And when you sit down to meditate,

It will wander,

And that's okay.

You're going to teach it,

It's like a new skill,

Building a muscle,

And you're going to be gentle with it,

And persistent with it,

And patient.

And notice that it will start serving you,

Becoming present,

Focused,

Not distracted.

The second ground rule for meditation,

I say,

Is that the idea of meditation is not trying to blank the mind.

The mind is an incessant factory of thoughts.

You don't want to stop that.

That's its natural role.

What we want to do here is select our thoughts and sequence them.

Ground rule number three,

Think of meditation more like a dance form than solving a mathematical riddle.

What I mean by that is lead with your heart space,

Let your feelings be your guide.

Don't be overly analytical and critical about it,

And use your brain,

Know how do I feel about what is being said and what I'm experiencing.

Ground rule number four is don't be judgmental,

Do not compare one day's meditation with the next.

Whatever arises today,

Let it be.

No two days are going to be the same.

Making sure your eyes are closed,

Making sure your even deep breathing is happening from the diaphragm.

And let's drop into the experience of each of these affirmations that are going to be spoken.

I am a pure soul,

Completely stripped of my role,

Character,

And this costume,

The body.

My identity is pure,

Bright,

White light.

I own nothing and desire nothing.

Everything I need is right here inside of me.

I am a peaceful soul.

I am totally at peace with my life.

I seek nothing different in any way.

I am absolutely content.

I am a powerful soul.

My body is strong,

My vision is pure,

And my words are sweet.

Every thought is far reaching,

Helping others.

Nothing is impossible and nothing unachievable.

I am a loving soul.

I love myself and respect myself.

I love my life and the surroundings that I find myself in now.

I love all those close to me.

I am love.

And no extra drop of love from out there can complete me.

I am a loving soul.

I am truthful.

I have all the wisdom I need to solve my problems.

I am in touch with my intuition.

I feel what is right and I follow my truth.

I am beautiful.

I am filled with the light of divine virtues.

I color others with the inner palette of my beautiful qualities.

I shine with the sparkle of divinity.

I am happy.

So happy that my cells are dancing inside.

So filled with gratitude towards everything.

So thankful for my life experiences.

I am thankful for my friends and family.

I am balanced.

My mind,

Body and spirit are healthy.

My giving and receiving are balanced.

Being and doing are aligned.

My equanimity serves me and my equanimity serves as an example to others.

I am in harmony.

There is harmony between my head and the heart.

Harmony with my family and friends.

I am in harmony with Mother Nature.

And then I feel aligned with the divine universe.

I am victorious.

I have all the qualities to succeed in life.

I have the wisdom to navigate through my challenges,

Any challenge that life throws at me.

Anything that I put my mind to does manifest.

Victory is my birthright.

With these virtues in guard by my side,

What is unachievable?

I am a fortunate soul.

I want to bring your attention to the Anahata chakra,

The heart space.

Imagine a glowing light filling and expanding from this heart space.

I want you to now think of any person,

People or place that needs some light,

Some love,

Some strength.

Let a beam of light emerge from your heart chakra and shine towards that person,

People or place,

Giving them what they need.

Giving them hope,

Courage,

Strength,

Whatever it is.

I want you to now think of any person,

People or place that needs some light,

Some love,

Some strength.

I want you to now think of any person,

People or place that needs some light,

Some strength.

May their worries be removed.

May their struggles end.

May they experience wellness in their entire being.

Let's bring our palms together in prayer position at our heart center and stake a bow of gratitude for this moment,

For how I'm feeling right now.

For everything and everyone that has contributed for me to experience being here in this moment.

Let's turn that attention and gratitude to the Great Spirit,

The Supreme Light,

Supreme Being.

And as we bring this to a closure,

Ask yourself,

How do I feel right now?

And if you could summarize how you feel right now in one word,

What would that be?

And I invite you to go ahead and share that one word in the chat window.

Elated,

Thankful,

Grounded,

Peaceful,

Grateful,

Nourished,

Chilling,

Peace,

Peace,

More peace,

Calm,

Grateful,

Open,

Light,

More grateful,

Enlightened,

Peace,

Contented,

OK,

Motivated,

Calm,

Wonderful,

Calm,

Content,

Connected,

Content.

Oh,

It's beautiful to see this.

Well,

That's fantastic.

Look at all these things,

Peace and serene,

Expansive,

Protected.

Yes.

Folks,

This is the beauty of just connecting and breathing together,

Meditating together,

Taking this time to make ourselves a priority.

You've done this and you've creeped the gift of that.

Congratulations.

Very well done.

And I invite you to take a moment to hit that donate button and go ahead and make your contributions.

Exchange of energy,

Support of this movement.

I've been on this movement,

Left my corporate career and decided to make this a priority.

And every dollar that you donate is going to further how much this goes out and reaches people,

Touches lives,

Transforms people.

So go ahead and contribute generously.

Whatever little you can,

However best you can.

And we can all support each other.

I wish you all stay strong,

Be healthy,

Be happy and be well.

Thank you.

Reviews

Love, love this mediation and I had it on repeat!!!

Love the flow of this meditation, the breath work so important. These affirmations powerful ❤️