Today I'm going to guide you through a breath practice called voloma.
This is recommended for calming and balancing the nervous system and releasing stress.
There are some slight retentions of breath or pauses in the breath.
If you notice any lightheadedness or dizziness,
Feel free to pause,
Take a break,
Maybe try again when you feel ready.
If that's not for you,
You can always do another practice.
Finding your way towards a comfortable position that works for you,
Whether that's seated,
Against a wall,
Using props,
Or lying down.
Once you find your way to that comfortable position,
Option to close your eyes halfway or maybe all the way if you're comfortable.
If that's not available to you or doesn't feel right for you at this time,
Just soften your gaze on one point.
Next we'll begin to tune into the breath.
Noticing how your breath moves in and out of your body,
Where it flows to along its journey through your body.
Noticing the temperature of your breath.
And if you feel it in your body,
Maybe moving the belly or the chest,
There's no wrong answers here.
Focusing in on your inhalation now.
Over the next few breath cycles,
We will separate that inhale into three sips of air.
You can feel free to listen along first or maybe try it out as I guide you through this.
So those sips of air,
We're going to break that one inhale into thirds.
Now this is going to be like three sniffs in through the nose,
And then it's going to be one long smooth exhale out through the nose.
Inhale for a third,
Another third,
Last third,
And release in one solid and smooth exhale.
Inhale sip of third in,
Pause another third,
Pause another third,
And one smooth long exhale out through the nose without letting it burst out.
Let's try that again.
Inhale a third,
Another third,
Last third,
Exhale one smooth release.
Continue just like that.
A few more times,
Sipping the breath in in thirds and then releasing in one solid and smooth exhale.
And you can feel free to continue just like that,
Or if instead you want to take in four sips through that inhale and break it down,
You can try that out also.
That's it.
Just a couple more rounds if you would like.
And when you're finished,
Just slowly returning back to an easy,
Smooth breath without pauses.
Now we're going to do this one more time,
But we're going to focus on splitting up the exhalation,
The breath out.
So it's going to be just breaking that exhale down into thirds and the inhale will be one smooth breath in.
When you're ready to join me,
We'll take a nice big inhale.
Exhale in thirds,
Just a little bit.
Pause a little bit more.
And then that last third of your exhale,
Let it out.
And then a smooth inhale,
One big breath in through the nose.
And then break the exhale down into thirds.
Exhale a third,
Pause.
Exhale another third,
Pause.
Exhale the last third of your breath and then inhaling again through the nostrils.
Exhale a third,
Pause.
Exhale another third of the breath and pause.
Exhale the last third of your breath.
And then nice smooth inhale through the nostrils.
Now a few rounds like this at your own pace,
You can feel free to stretch the exhale out a little bit extra if you would like.
Perhaps breaking it down into fourths.
Exhale a third,
Pause.
And then a couple more rounds just like that if you would like.
And when you're ready,
Slowly returning back to your easy smooth breath without pauses.
Just making your way back to the natural pattern of inhale and exhale.
Notice how you feel in body and mind.
Bring your focus back into the space that you're in.
And if your eyes are closed,
Just slowly opening them when you're ready.
Thank you for sharing this practice with me today.
