Learning to Breathe

The first type of meditation that we're going to do is to focus on our breathing.

There is a tremendous connection between our breath and our mind and how we respond to stressful situations.

Often times,

If we are in a panic state or if someone else is in anxiety,

We tell them to breathe.

We hold a lot of tension in our body,

A lot of stiffness,

Because we're not breathing properly throughout the day.

Most of the time,

We are not taking deep breaths in.

Our breathing is very shallow.

And we'll notice that just by our breathing,

Taking deep breaths,

We'll be able to alleviate a lot of the different stress points and tensions that we're holding within our body.

The breathing will also give us a wonderful opportunity to observe the mind and how quickly it gets distracted and begins to plan the lunch menu,

The dinner menu,

Or starts to think about the weekend or your next vacation.

As we notice the mind doing this,

Without getting frustrated or upset,

We want to calmly bring it back to our breathing.

So,

Let's go ahead and sit in a comfortable position.

We can sit on the floor cross-legged or on a chair.

Either is fine.

We don't want to sit on a surface that's so comfortable,

Such as a couch,

That we fall asleep.

It might happen that we will fall asleep anyways because of the breathing,

Because the breathing will relax us.

However,

The surface shouldn't be too comfortable,

Like a soft couch or a bed.

If that's all we have,

Fine.

But a chair or the floor on top of a yoga mat or a cushion is ideal.

Sitting comfortably,

We can close our eyes and just take a moment to come into the present moment.

Trying right now to not plan and not think about all the things we have to do or all the things we did yesterday,

But just sitting peacefully and comfortably and keeping our mind in the present moment.

We can see the mind already wanting to run,

But let's just calmly keep it in the present moment and become aware of our self sitting on our chair or on the floor.

And feel the weight of our body pushing down against the seat that we're sitting on.

Let's keep our focus on the weight of our body.

Now bring your awareness to your feet and feel the weight of the feet against the floor.

Slowly take a deep breath in and as you're taking the deep breath,

Feel the cool air going in through your nose.

For now,

Let's just breathe through our nose and not the mouth.

And slowly exhaling through the nose,

Feel the warm breath exiting your nose.

Take another few deep breaths in and each time pay attention to how the inhalation is cooler than the exhalation.

And just keep your focus on that.

Take a couple more breaths like this.

If your mind is starting to wander,

Bring it back to the breathing,

Keeping it here in this room on this activity.

Now we'll do a short counting down of our breath.

We'll count down our breathing,

Keeping the mind focused on the breath.

Very quickly the mind will want to wander,

But let's keep it focused on the breathing.

Inhale,

12.

Deep breath in,

Completely filling the lungs.

Exhale,

12.

Inhale,

11.

Again,

Deep breath in.

Exhale,

11.

Deep exhalation.

Inhale,

10.

Deep breath in,

Completely filling the lungs.

You can breathe through your nose and mouth if you like.

Exhale,

10.

Inhale,

9.

Exhale,

9.

Inhale,

8.

Exhale,

8.

Now continue breathing and counting down on your own until you get to one.

Staying focused on the breath.

Keeping the mind in the present moment.

Staying focused.

Trying not to plan.

Deep breath in,

Filling your lungs.

Deep exhalation.

Once you've finished,

Just breathe comfortably.

Keeping your mind in the present moment.

Inhale,

For a count of two.

Pacing your breathing and counting.

Exhale,

For a count of two.

Keeping your breath and counting even.

Inhale,

For a count of four.

Exhale,

For a count of four.

Counting and breathing gradually at an even pace.

Inhale,

For a count of six.

Exhale,

For a count of six.

Staying focused,

Trying not to plan.

Inhale,

For a count of eight.

Exhale,

For a count of eight.

Inhale,

For a count of ten.

Exhale,

For a count of ten.

Inhale,

For as high a number as you can.

Exhale,

For the same amount.

Again,

Sitting comfortably.

Take a few slow and deep breaths in.

Focusing again on the cool air going in and the warm breath coming out of your nose.

This time,

We're going to breathe in,

Hold our breath,

Exhale,

And then hold our breath.

Inhale,

For a count of two.

One.

Hold your breath,

For a count of two.

One.

Exhale,

Count of two.

One.

Now hold your breath again.

Count of two.

One.

Inhale,

For a count of four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Hold your breath,

For three.

Two.

One.

Exhale,

For three.

Two.

One.

Hold,

For three.

Two.

One.

Inhale,

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Hold your breath,

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Exhale,

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Hold your breath,

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Now do it on your own,

For a count of eight,

And then for a count of ten.

Staying focused on the breathing.

Notice when you hold your breath,

The mind doesn't wander at all.

It really stays in the present moment.

And after you've finished,

You can again take a few deep breaths in,

In through the nose,

Out through the mouth.

Feeling the cool air going in through your nose.

And a warmer breath,

Leaving your body through your nose.

Now bring your awareness to your eyes,

And you can slowly open your eyes.

We can see how the breathing can really put us into a relaxed state.

But this relaxed state doesn't mean that everything we do now will slow down.

It just means that we have de-stressed and let go of some of the tension that we've been holding for the day,

The week,

The month.

And now whatever we do can be with clearer focus.

It's almost like pressing the reset button on one of your electronic devices.

So we just press the reset button and rebooted our system.

And now we can function a lot better.

We'll be more clear in our communication.

We'll be calmer in our dealings with others.

A little more patient,

A little more empathic.

And of course,

We'll achieve greater physical health by letting go of some of the stress and tension that we've been holding within our body for so long.

You can slowly take another deep breath in.

Exhale.

Feel free to repeat this on a regular basis,

Once a day or twice a day,

A few times a week,

Whatever suits your schedule.

Just know that it's an investment into your own physical,

Emotional,

And mental well-being.

Thank you.