Breathe

Yes, we all breathe or we would be dead. However, some of us only truly breathe very little or very shallowly. There. I just breathed. Consciously. The breath is one of the most powerful things we can do for ourselves. It's so simple, it's free, and we can do it anywhere. All it requires is that you check-in with yourself, notice your breathing, or lack there0f, and take a slow-measured breath and gently exhale. It is one of the single best exercises for managing stress and anxiety.

There is nothing so grounding that requires nothing else but yourself, and some conscious awareness. Other grounding activities are walking barefoot in nature, stretching, yoga, hugging someone, laughing, physical fitness, sport, and any creative endeavor. But they all require much more effort, space, someone else, something else, and whatever... you know what I'm getting at.

Breathing has greatly affected my life. I didn't learn about it until I lived in Los Angeles and got into acting. It was seriously eye opening. My scene partner and I were working a scene in acting class and our teacher stopped us in the scene (which is very common in most cold reading classes) and said, "take a breath. Just breathe in slowly, watch it, and breathe out slowly." I was instantly calmer. Centered. Grounded. From then on I was hooked!

Since then I always notice people who aren't breathing, even family members. They are all locked up and tense. You can hear it in their voice. It's tight and restrained and everything comes from the throat and shoulders up. You see it when people are emotionally overwhelmed. Just the other day I got a guy to connect with his breath. My neighbor was having some wood work done at his house and the guy cut his finger on a powered circular table saw. I rushed out to help. by the time I got out there my neighbor had taken care of everything and we were all waiting for the ambulance to arrive. The guy was panicking in pain, and understandably, so I got his to focus on his breath, especially the slow exhale. To control it. And he calmed down instantly. It was remarkable to see him shift.

I am a huge fan of cold water therapy, and the mix of very hot and then very cold transition. Two weeks ago, I brought it back with cold shower finishes. I take a hot shower and then finish with a 10 second (now 15 second) cold shower. I don't even think about it (because if you think you're dead! Just don't even think about it!). I just turn the knob down to cold and let the cold water hit me from head to toe. In the beginning I can feel the cold restricting my breathing, with the freezing water shocking my body. So what did I do? I focused on the breath. It calmed me down, centered me.

From a metaphysical perspective, another way of looking at it is you allow the energy to flow through you instead of absorbing and enduring. There is a huge difference. Surrender and accept and allow your energy to work with the universal energy of your environment, letting it flow through you. (NB: this goes for anything we do in life!)

There are so many breathing techniques out there. Below are some options. No matter which technique, they all share the same approach of eventually getting you to breathe from your abdomen and calm the mind and nervous system. For me the key is really focusing on the slow exhale. That's what grounds you in the present.

1) Boxing breathing: This is used by the Navy SEALs. A simple four count inhale, then hold the breath for four seconds, and then a slow four count exhale, and a four count hold (pause) between repeating the cycle.

2) Same as above, but with an eight second exhale.

3) Same as any of the two options above, but no holds/pauses.

4) You can also try to extend the count to as much as you can.

5) Do a double quick inhaled breath with a hold, then a slow release.

6) You can also block one nostril and breathe in through the other nostril. Scientific research into this yogic practices further supports this suggestive notion. "Right-nostril breathing is involved with relatively higher sympathetic activity (arousal states), while left-nostril breathing is associated with a relatively more parasympathetic activity (stress alleviating state)."

7) The Wim Hof method is another alternative.

The breath grounds us in the present and sharpens our focus. It connects us to that universal energy source. I check-in periodically throughout the day to see if I am breathing. I can tell because my stomach and abs will be all locked up and tense, and I can follow the tension locking up my breath in my throat. S0 all I do is take a conscious breath and slowly release the tension in the exhale and repeat the cycle, always focusing on getting myself to breathe from my diaphragm. It has helped in so many situations. Total game changer for me. When in doubt breathe it out.