Breathing- the physical act of respiration. An involuntary action carried out from the moment we are born until the moment life ends.
Easy , right. You'd have thought so.
But, many of us don't find it easy at all . There are of course a host of medical conditions that can adversely affect breathing so this is not suggesting some kind of cure-all. Mindfulness can help one to focus on the breath and use it to bring about a greater sense of calm by filling the lungs more effectively and improving the uptake of oxygen and by emptying the lungs more effectively and reducing carbon dioxide build up. Stress , being busy, meetings, more meetings, filled calendars. All these and more can lead us to forget to breathe- and when we do breathe it's shallower and faster than it could be which can accentuate the feelings of stress which cause us to breathe faster and so on.
This article article gives some more information on breathing techniques ( it's a little old so I am looking for a more up to date one) Here is this one which is more up to date
When we are in a stressful situation our amygdala is stimulated causing the fight/flight/freeze response. Also called the lizard brain. The reactions hark back to our prehistoric ancestors who would have been in situations where they were the intended prey and would have been fighting for survival.
Catching these feelings , being aware of how we feel, can help us to STOP- stop, take a few breaths, observe and proceed gently.
Ask any woman who has given birth how breath can help.
Breathing can give that time to decide how to proceed, the time to take stock of the situation and the time to ground oneself. Obviously if a bear is really about to eat you then I would 100% be saying to get the heck out of there as fast as possible, but in the 21st century, fortunately many of us are not in that situation. But iur lives are busy busy busy (I will come to that in a future post), there are many many external influences on our daily lives and we are bombarded with information 24/7 .
Taking a little bit of time away to develop mindful breathing techniques, to use it in meditation, to explore how it can be supportive. Worth it? Absolutely. All that's needed is a willingness to give it a try.
Research indicates that mindfulness practices can be supportive in a variety of ways. See here
Some techniques to try here and here
I will post a guided meditation on breathing and would welcome feedback/comments.
Thank you for reading.
