One of the most underrated techniques for relaxation is the slow,
Calm breath.
I say it's underrated because everyone seems to recommend it,
But very few people seem to employ it.
Or if they do,
They don't do it systematically.
The mind and the body are intricately connected.
If your body is tense and tight,
With shallow breathing and tense muscles,
The mind will reflect that state.
And if your mind is anxious,
Or depressed,
Or tense,
Or fixated,
Your body will reflect that state.
So what I want to do in this little quick session is just demonstrate that fact.
I want to give you the gift of calm breathing.
What we're going to do together is ten slow,
Calm breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth.
But before we begin,
I just want you to take a quick stock of how you're feeling.
Just quick body scan,
Quick brain scan,
And just note your relative level of tension.
Because my hope is that after these ten breaths,
Just ten,
You'll feel significantly more relaxed.
In order to do these breaths,
I just want you to sit comfortably,
Or stand,
In a way that has decent posture,
Something you can maintain for the duration.
And you're going to breathe in through the nose,
And sort of into your belly.
Slow,
Deep,
Full breaths.
Your belly will rise,
Then your chest,
And then you may feel some breath sort of entering your throat.
When you breathe out through your mouth,
Slowly,
It will exit in the reverse order.
So you'll empty from the top,
The throat,
Then the chest,
Then the stomach.
But don't stress too much about this process.
The basic answer,
Or the basic way,
Is to breathe slowly and deeply.
Let's do ten breaths together now.
You ready?
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
One,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Okay,
So how are you feeling?
Just take a quick scan of your mind,
And your body.
Notice if you're feeling more relaxed.
Slow breathing is available to you anywhere and everywhere.
I like to use it as a quick response to stress,
As a lead-in to sleep,
As well as a lead-in to my morning mindfulness practice.
Just ten slow breaths can make a massive difference on your mental state.
Have a great day.
