Meditation On Dealing With The Breath

In this meditation I'm going to talk about Box breathing, alternate nostril breathing, and cyclic sighing. I'm also going to talk a bit about stimulating the vagus nerve. This meditation is based on a live session that I did in November, 2024. Music by Chris Collins. #90

Transcript

Welcome,

And I hope that each one of you will come to find peace within yourself.

Today I'm going to talk about breath.

This session is based on a recent live session I did,

And I'm going to cover box breathing,

Alternate nostril breathing,

Cyclic sighing,

And a little bit about the vagus nerve.

The vagus nerve is the 10th cranial nerve.

It's also the longest cranial nerve,

And it goes from the brainstem down into the abdomen.

And it plays a crucial role in quite a few bodily functions,

Including heart rate,

Digestion,

And mood.

Meditation can be a powerful tool for stimulating the vagus nerve.

In fact,

It's hard to meditate and not stimulate the vagus nerve.

So when you meditate,

Especially when you focus on deep,

Slow breathing,

You activate the parasympathetic nervous system,

Which helps to calm the mind and the body.

It can lead to the reduction of heart rate,

Lower your blood pressure,

And increase your overall sense of relaxation.

Now,

There are a number of ways you can stimulate your vagus nerve.

One,

As I said,

Is deep breathing.

Focus on taking slow,

Deep breaths and extending your exhales to be longer than your inhales.

A good example of that is 4-7-8 breathing,

Where you breathe in for a count of 4,

Hold for a count of 7,

And then exhale through your mouth for a count of 8.

That can help slow your heart rate and promote relaxation.

Another way to stimulate the vagus nerve is through mantras.

Repeating a calming word or phrase can help focus your mind and reduce stress.

Cold stimulates the vagus nerve,

Like standing out in the cold or splashing cold water on your face.

Humming will trigger your vagus nerve,

And it also increases nitric oxide.

Nitric oxide helps relax and widen blood vessels,

Improves blood flow,

Lowers blood pressure.

It's also involved in the immune response,

Neurotransmission,

And the regulation of smooth muscle.

I hum a lot.

Other things you can do to stimulate the vagus nerve would be to massage your neck,

Oral stimulation like chewing gum,

Or even sleeping on your right side.

Now,

Close your eyes now,

And let's begin to get in touch with our breath.

It doesn't matter if you're sitting,

Standing,

Or lying down.

The only thing that matters when you meditate is that you're comfortable and alert.

As we start to settle in,

Let's focus on our breath.

Just breathing in and breathing out,

One breath at a time.

Scan our body.

Relax your face.

Unfurl your brow and unclench your jaw.

Relax your neck.

Relax your shoulders.

Relax your arms and your hands.

Look for any tension in your chest or belly.

Relax your legs and your feet.

As you begin to relax,

Let's focus even more on our breath.

Our breath is our anchor.

It's there for us at all times,

And it's there to help us be calm and tranquil.

Our breath is like a river flowing in and flowing out.

Breathing in and breathing out,

One breath at a time.

So now just continue to breathe and listen to my voice.

And the first type of breathing we're going to talk about is box breathing.

It's sometimes called square breathing,

And it's a deep breathing technique that can help you slow down your breathing and clear and calm your mind.

It's simple,

But it's a powerful relaxation technique.

I've mentioned before that box breathing is used by Navy SEALs and other elite troops to center and relax themselves before a mission.

So with box breathing,

We're going to inhale for a count of four,

Hold for a count of four,

Exhale for a count of four through your mouth,

And then hold for a count of four.

That's why it's called box,

Because you're doing four equal sides of four.

So I'm going to count,

And you can breathe while I count.

So we'll do three cycles,

Just so you get the feeling for it.

So if you're ready,

Let's begin.

Breathe in,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Exhale through your mouth,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Breathe in,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Exhale,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Breathe in,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Exhale,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Now just breathe normally.

Normally when I box breathe,

I box breathe for about five minutes.

But when you first start out,

You might want to try just doing it for two or three minutes.

Here I'm going to pause for a minute so you can just breathe and think,

And then I'll be back.

Now,

We're going to look at alternate nostril breathing.

This is my favorite,

And it's been scientifically shown to help manage stress and anxiety,

Lower blood pressure,

Lower heart rate,

Improve your lung function,

And improve your brain function.

It's great for relaxing.

And what I want you to know is that there are many variations of alternate nostril breathing.

If you search for it on the internet,

You'll find countless varieties that people have come up with.

In some variations,

You have a hold while you're breathing.

In this one,

We won't.

So if you feel lightheaded or dizzy,

Just stop immediately because alternate nostril breathing is sometimes difficult for people with COPD or asthma.

So with alternate nostril breathing,

We're alternating,

Closing off,

And opening our nostrils.

Most people use their dominant hand,

They use the thumb to close the right nostril,

And the ring finger to close the left nostril.

But you can use the index fingers of opposite hands to do the same thing,

Whatever is comfortable for you.

So we're going to exhale completely,

Then we're going to use the right thumb to close the right nostril.

Then we'll inhale through the left nostril,

And then close the left nostril with your fingers.

Then open the right nostril,

And exhale through that side.

Inhale through the right,

And then close that side.

Open the left,

And exhale through the left,

And that's one cycle.

Now we'll practice this,

We'll just do two cycles,

Because I realize that this is difficult when you can't see me demonstrating it.

So I will tell you which things to open and close,

And how to breathe,

And you just try to do it.

So we're going to start.

We're going to start off by shutting our right nostril,

Inhale through the left.

Now shut the left nostril,

Open the right,

And exhale through the right.

Now inhale through the right,

Close the right,

Open the left,

And exhale through the left.

One cycle.

Now shut the right,

Inhale through the left.

Shut the left,

Open the right,

Exhale through the right.

Inhale through the right,

Close the right,

Open the left,

And exhale through the left.

That's two cycles.

Here I'm going to pause for a minute,

So you can relax and not over-breathe,

And just think,

And I'll be back in one minute.

Now,

The last technique I want to talk about today is called cyclic sighing.

It's also known as the double inhale,

Or the physiological sigh.

And it's just a controlled breathing technique that can help reduce anxiety,

Improve your mood,

And promote calm.

And how it works is,

You take an inhale through your nose,

And then you inhale a little bit more,

So that your lung is completely full,

And then you exhale through your mouth.

And once again,

It reduces anxiety,

And helps make you calm.

And hopefully,

You're seeing a pattern here,

That all of these breathing techniques promote calm,

Relieve anxiety,

Improve your mood.

And ultimately,

You might pick one that's more comfortable for you.

Maybe box breathing,

Maybe alternate nostril,

Maybe 4-7-8,

Maybe cyclic sighing.

But the key is that the breath gives you a way to calm yourself,

To get rid of stress and anxiety.

So you have to remember that breath lies on the edge of conscious control,

And allows us to influence our overall physiology,

And our stress response.

So when we take a moment and breathe intentionally,

And let the calming effects of our breathing technique work,

It can work wonders in our lives.

But I want to point out before I close,

That it's always best in your daily life to breathe both inhale and exhale through your nose,

Because it humidifies the air,

Warms the air,

Filters the air,

And so on.

But these breathing exercises take advantage of our physiology by exhaling through our mouth.

So as we come to a close,

Open your eyes and come back into the room,

Wiggle your fingers and toes and stretch,

And feel how good it is to be alive.

How good it is to be in this moment.

By getting in touch with our breath on a regular basis,

We can become more calm,

More tranquil,

More serene.

It can help us in our daily life.

I hope this has been a beneficial and calming session.

Till next time.

Reviews

Precious reminders of how to try different breathing and other ways to calm our parasympathetic nervous system. I bow to you, dear Teacher 🙏🏽💚🌟