So bring yourself into a comfortable position.
Take a moment to notice how you feel.
Notice any sensations in your physical body.
And then take a breath in through your nose,
Pause at the top and gently sigh out through the mouth.
And we'll do that two more times,
Breathing in through your nose,
Pause at the top and gently sigh out through the mouth.
One more time.
Place one or both hands at the site of your belly,
Just below your ribcage and without changing your breath,
Take a moment to become aware of the breath.
Notice the rise and fall,
Inflation and deflation of your belly.
Notice how your ribcage expands slightly on the inhale and contracts on the exhale.
And this act of simply becoming aware of your breath and where it moves in your body brings you out of your mind and into a more settled state.
Now you're aware of your natural breath,
I invite you to slow down your breathing so that gradually you're breathing low into the lungs and as slowly as possible.
Breathing in and out through thoughts beginning to settle and your body begins to relax and release tension.
And we're aiming for a smooth and continuous flow of breath in and out,
No pauses or holding at the top of the inhale or the end of the exhale.
Now with the breath flowing smoothly and slowly,
We'll begin our first round of ocean breathing.
So when you're ready,
Gently contract the throat muscles to give a little resistance to your breath.
Create the wave or ocean like sound as if the waves were lapping the shore.
I find that having the gentle sound to focus on as well as the sensation is a way to quiet and anxious thoughts and a busy mind.
And you can either just do this on the exhale or on both the inhale and the exhale.
Noticing if you can relax and not make too much effort.
Let your breath breathe your body,
A gentle ocean like sound,
Noticing everything around you slowing down,
Focusing on the sound and the feeling of the breath in your throat.
And then after the next exhale,
Let go of doing anything to your breath and take a moment here to notice any ways in which you can feel a shift in the quality of your mind or the feeling in your body.
What do you notice?
So gently contracting the back of your throat again to make the wave like sound.
And then after your next exhale,
Let go of any control of your breath.
Again taking a moment to notice any shift in your mental or physical state.
Thank you for joining me for this ocean breathing practice.
Have a fantastic day or a restful night.
