Hello,
Welcome to this short meditation practice for calming the nervous system.
Today we are going to learn about box breathing.
Box breathing is a powerful breathing technique that can be used to balance the autonomic nervous system.
Under stressful circumstances,
One may find themselves overwhelmed,
Restless,
Anxious,
And fearful.
Use this breathing practice to promote a sense of safety from within.
It's like sending a love note to yourself.
This practice helps one to relax back into balance.
We are going to do this practice lying down,
So I would like you to come into a reclined position.
Feel free to lay down onto the floor or you can lay down onto your bed or onto a couch.
Support your head with a comfortable pillow and place your arms alongside your body.
Stretch your legs out long and then support your back by placing a pillow underneath your knees.
Take a moment to tune into the way that you're aligned.
If you'd like,
You can draw an imaginary line from the crown of the head all the way down to the space between your heels.
And then see if you can get the right and the left side of your body to be symmetrical.
Box breathing is a four-count breathing practice.
We will inhale for a count of four,
Hold the breath for a count of four,
Exhale for a count of four,
And then hold the exhalation out for another count of four.
Begin with a simple breath awareness.
Allow your breathing to be natural and relaxed and let your awareness of the breath be the focus of your attention right now.
Take a deep breath in and out.
Feel the breath as it moves into your belly,
Ribs,
And chest.
And then part your lips and exhale through the mouth nice and slow so that you can feel all the sensations of the breath as it's leaving your body.
Do that again.
Inhale through the nose,
Tuning into where you feel the breath the most.
And then exhale through the mouth.
And then exhale through the mouth.
Nice and slow.
Do that one more time,
Allowing yourself to breathe in a natural,
Gentle,
And comfortable way.
And then exhale through the mouth.
And then exhale through the mouth.
Gentle and comfortable way.
Allow your breath to return to its most gentle state.
Easy breath now.
We're going to explore a round of box breath together.
I'm going to guide you,
So all you need to do is just follow my instructions.
We'll start with simple breath.
Take a full breath in through your nose and then sigh the breath out.
And now inhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold your breath,
Two,
Three,
Four.
And now exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold the exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Great job.
Now return to that natural,
Easy,
Simple breath.
Let go of box breathing for a moment and just notice the way that it felt.
If for any reason the four count created a sense of resistance within your body,
You have permission to modify the count with a two or a three instead.
It is important that you find a rhythm that doesn't cause a feeling of stress or strain,
Especially when you're just learning this practice.
You want to find a rhythm that feels right for you.
And now let's try again.
We will go for a few rounds this time.
Start with a simple round of breathing,
Inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth,
Like clearing the slate.
Do that one more time and then I will guide you into a few rounds of box breath.
Now inhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Inhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Inhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Exhale,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Hold,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Keep going,
Box breath.
Allow your breath to flow with ease.
After a while,
You will find a rhythm that will feel natural and easy.
A practice that has a fluidity.
At that time,
You can let go of the counting part of the practice and just allow the breath to flow in an even way,
Inviting in the pause at the top and the bottom of each cycle of breath as a way to suspend yourself in time and space and then flowing back into the rhythm of your breathing as the breath flows in and out on the inhale and exhale.
If you find that your mind wanders while practicing,
Then come back to the counting.
The counting can be an anchor for you to steady your mind as you practice.
Nice work.
And now I'd like you to let go of your box breathing practice if you haven't already and relax into the rest of your practice.
Now,
I'd like you to let go of your box breathing practice if you haven't already and relax into a natural,
Simple,
Easy breath,
Gentle breath.
Observe the imprint that this practice has left on your body and mind.
Notice how you're feeling.
Ideally,
The body will feel more relaxed and at ease,
And the mind ideally will feel alert and calm at the same time.
There might be a sense of open awareness.
In closing,
I'd like to leave you with a quote from Eckhart Tolle,
To know yourself as the being underneath the thinker,
The stillness underneath the mental noise,
The love and joy underneath the pain is freedom,
Salvation,
Enlightenment.
Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful practice with me.
Namaste.
