Developing Resilience - Day 3 - Breathing

Welcome to session three on developing resilience.

Breathing is a powerful way to regulate your emotions,

But it is something that we take for granted.

Through your breath,

You can activate your parasympathetic nervous system,

The calming response in your body.

One of the most calming breathing exercises you can do is to breathe in nice and deep to a count of four.

Hold your breath and then breathe out for up to twice as long,

Say to a count of six or eight.

Breathe in for a count of four.

Hold.

Breathe out for a count of six.

See if you can make your exhale a little longer to a count of eight.

As you're breathing out,

You can gently constrict your throat,

Making a sound like an ocean,

Which is a deep relaxation technique.

As you're doing this,

Especially thanks to those long exhales,

You're activating the parasympathetic nervous system,

Reducing your heart rate and blood pressure.

Breathe in the fresh air.

And as you breathe out,

Let go of any tightness in the body.

With each breath,

Focusing on letting go of tightness in each part of the body,

Starting from the scalp and gently working your way down through the body to the feet.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Breathe in the oxygen and let go of everything that the body does not need emotionally.

Let go of any worries,

Doubts,

Anxieties or fear that you're holding.

When you are wound up,

You perceive the world differently.

Stress makes you narrowly focused,

Preventing you from seeing the bigger picture.

When you're calmer,

Your attention becomes broader.

I breathe in calmness.

I breathe out stress.

I breathe in peace.

I breathe out any worry.

I breathe in love.

I breathe out any prejudice.

I breathe in happiness.

I breathe out sadness.

My mind,

My body and heart overflow with these lovely feelings.

All forms of tension,

Anger,

Fear and sorrow dissolve away.

At this moment,

I feel tranquil and light.

At this moment in time,

I am content and at one with myself.

All is well and all will be well.

Now as you are breathing out,

Let this love from your heart spread out into the world.

Let it first spread into your home.

Let it then spread to your loved ones,

Your relatives and friends.

And let the exhale of love spread further out to the coworkers or classmates that you engage with.

And let the love spread into your community,

Expanding further out to your entire country.

And then finally,

This cloud of love encompasses the entire earth.

Notice how you feel right now.

Thank you.

Join me tomorrow for a session on you are never a victim unless you choose to be.

Until then,

Be well.