Today we're going to be doing an exercise called box breath.
It's really
quite simple.
All you'll need to do is inhale for a count of four,
Hold for a
count of four,
Exhale for a count of four and then hold again for a count of four
and repeat the process.
In breathing in this way we're actively down regulating
our nervous system,
Moving away from the fight-or-flight mode and into the rest
and digest parasympathetic nervous system.
Main bits of advice here would be
just to make sure that you're not out of breath in any way.
If the counts aren't
working for you you can always adjust them to maybe three or five depending on
how you find it.
But just make sure that you're comfortable and that you have
enough breath throughout the process.
So just beginning by closing your eyes,
Sitting with a straight back if you can,
A relaxed but alert posture and just
taking a few nice and big in breaths through the nose and then releasing
through the mouth.
Breathing in,
Letting go,
Filling the lungs,
Releasing.
Final one
and releasing and then allowing your breath to return to normal.
Closing the
mouth and breathing through the nose for the remainder of the session.
Checking
in with the state of the mind as you begin the practice today.
Approaching it
with a spirit of curiosity if you can.
It's like,
Okay this is how my mind feels
right now and that's perfectly fine for the purposes of today.
Then taking a
moment to gain a sense of being grounded,
Noticing the points of connection between
your feet and the floor,
Your legs and the chair and then just taking a few
moments to listen out for any sounds that might be present in the room right
now.
Doesn't matter what you can hear,
It could be a complete absence of sound or
distracting noises.
All you need to do is allow hearing to unfold exactly as it
wants to.
And then moving away from hearing and starting to connect with
your breathing wherever you feel it most clearly in the body right now.
This could
be at the chest or the belly or the nostrils,
It doesn't really matter.
Just
go with the one that feels most natural for you right now.
And then gently and
gradually I invite you to start controlling the breaths,
Working towards
inhaling for a count of four,
Holding for a count of four,
Exhaling for a count of
four and then holding again for a count of four.
Inhale two three four,
Hold two
three four,
Exhale two three four,
Hold two three four.
And if the mind wanders
off as it so often tends to,
Just remembering that this is what the mind
does and it's nothing to worry about.
All you need to do is just gently and
smilingly revert your attention back to your breathing and continuing with these
box breaths.
And the idea of box breaths is that each side of the box is one of
the counts of four.
For some people that helps them to visualize the box as they
breathe,
But this isn't completely necessary.
All you need to do is inhale
two three four,
Hold two three four,
Exhale two three four,
Hold two three four.
And again if the mind has wandered off,
Just remembering that mind-wandering
will always be part of meditation practice and it's completely fine.
Just
reverting your attention smilingly back to your breathing.
I'm seeing if you can
tighten up your attention on the breaths for the final few moments of the
practice.
And now just letting go of all effort.
You can drop the focus on the box
breaths.
I'm just doing absolutely nothing for a moment or two.
If the mind
wants to think,
Then let it think.
Starting to become aware of any sounds or smells in the room.
And finally
checking in with your mind as you did at the start of the session.
Is there any
change that you can notice,
However subtle?
And when you feel ready,
Opening
the eyes and coming back to the room.
Feeling free to stretch or wake up the body in any way that feels good for you
right now.
And congratulate yourself for turning up and practicing today.
My hope
is maybe that you're feeling a little bit calmer now.
Hopefully you got a taste
of how this breathing practice can slightly shift you out of the fight-or-
flight mode and can put you into a bit more of a peaceful state.
Have a great
day.
