The beginning of 2017 heralds hope for a better year, better health, more love, and greater success. The secret to fulfillment in these areas is finding effective ways to diffuse unhealthy stress. Here you’ll learn three breathing exercises that calm stress and carry you into the positive zone—they’re just enough to motivate and inspire.
You’ll have the opportunity to recheck yourself after stress-busting activities.
An extremely common stress reaction is to lapse into mindless anxiety or worry with repetitive thoughts like, “I’m afraid I’m not smart, strong, or disciplined enough to do this.” Getting stuck in circular fearful thinking moves you into your head and automatically disconnects you from your physical body. In other words, you’re now running around like a chicken with its head cut off and are unable to effectively problem solve. Intentional breathing, however, creates a bridge between mind and body to calm the primitive brain where fear and anxiety arise.
For eons, controlling the breath has been utilized by cultures to expand mind and body awareness. For example, yogic rituals in ancient India used secret breathing practices to tame the body and raise conscious awareness. In ancient Egypt, breathing patterns were used during orgasm to increase vibrancy and elevate self-awareness. The Chinese ancient healing practice of Qigong begins with practicing deep, slow, controlled breathing. Contemporary yoga practices also focus on breathing in conjunction with yoga poses. Abdominal breathing is a common characteristic. You draw air in by extending the lower abdomen instead of the upper chest. The belly rises with each inhale and falls with each exhale while your shoulders remain relaxed and level. Try a few breaths now and notice the difference.
During high stress, the primitive brain rings an urgent alarm of threat, similar to caveman days when it kept us safe by scanning the horizon for physical danger. Although today’s work deadlines, screaming children, busy spouses, and New Year’s resolutions can be highly stressful, they generally aren’t life threatening, yet the ancient part of our brains isn’t able to discern the difference.
Close Your Eyes and Control Your Breath
This story is from the February 2017 edition of Natural Solutions.
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This story is from the February 2017 edition of Natural Solutions.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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