Hello,
My name is Sam.
This meditation focuses on deep breathing to help with feelings of anxiousness or panic.
It's really easy to do and can have an instant effect.
When we're anxious,
We tend to take quick,
Shallow breaths that sit within the chest area.
And this type of breathing,
Called thoracic or chest breathing,
Causes an upset in the oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in the body,
Resulting in the increased heart rate,
Dizziness,
Muscle tension and other physical sensations.
When the blood's not being oxygenated properly,
This can signal a stress response in the body,
Which further contributes and compounds any panic attacks or feelings of anxiety.
Deep belly breathing,
Or diaphragmatic breathing on the other hand,
Stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system,
Which is part of the peripheral nervous system responsible for regulating heartbeats,
Blood flow,
Breathing and digestion.
Deep breathing helps us to lower the amount of cortisol in the body,
Which is the stress hormone that triggers the fight or flight response in mentally or physically terrifying situations.
And that's what we're going to try now.
So get into a comfortable position in a quiet place where you won't be disturbed.
You can sit or lie for this session,
It doesn't matter,
As long as you feel supported by the chair or the floor.
Allow your body to nestle into the surface you're supported by and start to relax your muscles.
Let your legs be heavy and let go of any holding that you feel in the hips.
Allow your shoulders to melt down away from the ears so there's a sense of space around the neck and upper back.
Relax through your hands,
Especially the thumbs,
Softening the mound where the thumb meets the index finger.
Slacken your jaw so that your teeth fall slightly apart and a feeling of relaxation moves into the cheeks and temples.
Take a moment to appreciate this feeling of stillness and quietude.
As you sit or lie here,
Shift your focus to your breathing and for a few moments just notice the quality of your breath.
There's no need to change anything right now,
Just take stock of how your body is breathing,
Noting things like where the breath travels to when it goes in and how the body expels the air on the out-breath.
Notice if there are any sounds made as this process happens.
Take a mental snapshot of how you feel right now with your breathing as it is.
For this exercise you have the choice of placing one hand on the belly and the other on the chest or you can just keep your arms relaxed by your sides.
Our goal is going to be to breathe into the hand on the belly for the next several minutes,
Keeping the hand on the chest still.
Let's try one now together.
Inhaling through the nose if you can,
Send the breath to the pit of the belly and feel the hand resting upon it gently rise.
Breathe out through pursed lips and let the air make a whooshing sound as you breathe out.
Feel the hand fall as you do this.
Let's try that again and don't worry if the hand on the chest moves a little,
We're just doing our best to breathe into the belly.
Take another deep breath in and then let the air whoosh out through your lips.
It sounds really relaxing and it's soothing to do.
At your own pace continue to breathe deep down into the belly,
Inflating it like a balloon and feeling your hand gently moving up and down with each breath.
Okay.
Let's do one more breath in this way.
Now we will continue with this deep,
Beddy breathing,
But from now on,
Allow the breath to be exhaled through the nose if that's possible for you.
Alternatively,
If you enjoyed blowing out through your mouth,
Continue with that,
It's all valid.
So as we exhale through the nose,
See if you can extend the length of the out-breath a little bit,
So it takes longer to breathe out than it did to breathe in.
Notice how you're entering a deeper state of relaxation.
We're mimicking the type of breathing our bodies do naturally when we're asleep.
Breathing in through the nose and out through the nose.
Notice the speed of your heartbeat now.
It's becoming slower and your blood pressure is also lowering.
The body's entering a state of deep rest.
Continue to notice the hand on the belly rising with the breath and lowering with the out-breath.
If your thoughts start to wander,
Try counting the breath and how many seconds it takes to breathe in and how many to breathe out.
How many seconds pass before the next breath starts again?
How does the temperature of your body feel at the moment?
Has it become a little cooler over the last few minutes?
Breathe into the hand on the belly and let it go.
Take three more breaths in this way and once complete you can relax your hands by your breath.
Take a few moments to recheck in with the quality of the breath now.
How does it differ from the start of the session?
Whenever you're feeling anxious or panicky,
You can turn to this technique.
Place one hand on the belly,
Another on the chest and guide your breath deep into the belly.
It's a really effective way to calm and relax your body and mind.
Thank you for taking the time to do this meditation with me.
I wish you all the best.
