Hi,
This is Cindy Wolk Weiss.
Thanks for joining me on the powerful breath.
The breath is our anchor to the present moment.
It grounds us into this moment of being while improving our concentration and focus.
You don't need to breathe in any special way for this.
We are easily distracted and move away from attention to our breath easily.
A sound may distract you,
A thought,
A smell.
This is natural.
So simply when you notice that you've wandered,
Invite your attention to return to the sensation of the breath within your body.
When you are anxious or worried,
What happens to your breath?
Then it contracts into the upper chest,
Becoming short and shallow.
The body then reacts with panic,
Sensing something is wrong,
And it needs to respond in flight,
Bite,
Or freeze reaction.
If this happens,
Take a slow,
Deep breath fully into your lower lungs,
Slowly,
And fully breathe out,
Doing this several times,
And returning to normal breathing.
Allow the breath to naturally flow into and out of your body.
As you practice awareness of breathing,
You will develop the ability to bring calmness and ease to each moment.
You will recognize when the breath moves from deep to shallow,
And you can pause to regain the power of your breath,
When in the present moment,
You can make clear choices.
So let's begin by checking into our breath.
Just notice where it resides in the body without judging it,
Becoming aware of the breath moving in,
Aware of the breath moving out.
Where does it most vividly reside for you?
Perhaps at the nose,
Perhaps the rise and the fall of the chest or belly,
Or perhaps you can sense the entire body breathing.
Wherever it is,
Choose to locate your attention here,
Just allowing the breath to breathe you in and out,
In and out.
And of course,
At some time,
The mind will wander,
And when you notice,
Gently invite it back to sense the breath again and again,
Kindly training the brain to be present within the body.
Sensing the breath moving through the body as a whole,
Experiencing the sensation of the breath as it flows in and out,
Staying present with sensations of the breath moving through the body as you settle in just a bit more deeply.
Connecting with this one inhalation,
Experiencing it to the end,
And connecting with the experience of the out-breath,
Riding the waves of your breath as it comes and as it goes,
Fully present in your body,
Breathing.
Coming home to the breath over and over.
This is a simple way to connect to the power of your breath throughout the day.
You can pause at a light and check into your breath.
Are you holding it?
Is it shallow or deeply relaxed?
At the checkout line,
Any time throughout your day,
Invite yourself to pause and breathe often.
Blessings.
