To begin today's breath work session,
You can sit,
You can lie down,
You can really find anywhere that's comfortable.
My personal preference is to lie down.
Once you get comfortable,
I want to start today's practice with simply some breath mechanics and a little bit of interception.
Just beginning to breathe in your natural pattern,
But I'd like you to try to use your nasal breath way.
Breathing in through your nose and just sort of feeling what happens.
Where does that breath go?
What do the sensations feel like?
And then as you release it,
Just feeling that shift,
That change.
Breathing in,
Allowing the body to expand,
Allowing your thoughts to maybe settle.
As you exhale,
Allowing yourself to ground.
Now I'm going to begin to give us a little bit of mechanics here.
I want you to breathe in through your nose and with your breath in,
Just let your belly expand.
This is going to activate the diaphragm.
Maybe let that breath wave all the way up towards your heart and then just slowly releasing it.
Breathing in through your nose,
Into the belly for a count of five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Now release slowly for five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Breathing in,
Let the belly expand,
The ribs expand,
The heart lift,
And slowly release.
Breathing in,
Keep this rhythm going as we expand through the belly,
Activating the diaphragm as we lift the heart and just slowly releasing.
And I want you to keep this rhythm going just for a few more breaths,
Bringing specific attention to where you may feel your body tensing or releasing as you breathe.
Maybe you feel some strain in the lower back,
Shoulders.
Maybe this is hard on your belly to do.
If it's painful,
Don't do it.
But if it's just discomfort,
Can you continue to breathe?
Just being present with the fact that there's discomfort.
Maybe it's a stinging in your nose now.
Breathing in,
Letting it come in through your nasal passageway,
Let it expand the belly,
The ribs,
The heart.
And then slowly releasing,
Maybe from top to bottom.
As you breathe in through your nose,
We're moisturizing.
We are temperature changing,
Maybe cold or heating the breath.
We're also introducing the gas exchange of nitric oxide,
Something that you need for vasodilatation and bronchodilation.
This antimicrobial and antibacterial gas comes into the body through your nose,
Into your lungs,
Expanding,
Mixing with the oxygen.
And then we release the CO2.
That CO2 is really important.
The red blood cells carry the oxygen and those little oxygen cells get released.
Breathing in,
Letting it expand,
And then letting it release.
Just keeping this very slow pattern.
We're going to do this for the remainder of the practice today.
We're breathing in for a count of five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One,
And then slowly releasing.
Five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Let's do a few more like this.
At the end of this session,
We're going to do a conscious breath hold or a retention time.
We're just going to start with a short one minute.
At the end of that retention,
We'll have the opportunity to take in a giant breath in.
It's kind of a recovery breath.
Breathing in,
Five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One,
And release.
Let's do five more.
In,
Two,
Three,
Four,
And release.
Two,
Three,
Four,
Breathing in for five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
And release.
Expanding the belly,
The ribs,
The heart opening up,
And release.
Breathing in,
And release.
Let's do one more all the way to the top.
Expanding,
Lifting,
Opening all the way to the top,
And a full release here.
Now take another breath in all the way to the top.
As you release,
Just release and hold.
Stop the breath.
Just becoming aware,
Maybe your heartbeat here.
That conscious breathing may have activated the heart rate,
May have activated some areas in your endocrine system releasing chemicals like cortisol,
Noradrenaline,
Creating a shift within you.
Just notice those shifts.
Maybe you feel a little lightheaded.
All this is okay.
All this is fine.
Thirty seconds have passed,
And we just have thirty seconds to go.
You're welcome to breathe at any time.
Just take a sip in and hold the breath,
Or hold with me for fifteen more seconds.
Noticing what's happening in the body,
Slowing down the heart,
Slowing down the thoughts.
Breathing in,
And five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Take a giant breath in all the way to the top,
And hold.
Bring your awareness to the space between your eyebrows.
Focus there.
Release it.
In five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
And one.
Beautiful first round,
Friends.
Let's start into our second round.
Beginning that conscious,
Superventilative breath,
Breathe in through your nose,
And release.
Breathing in,
Expand the belly,
Five,
Four,
Three,
Expand the ribs,
The heart,
And release.
Five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
Breathing in,
Expanding,
Opening,
And lifting,
And releasing.
Just being conscious of the movement,
I want you to get the mechanics here.
Continue to move your breath,
And maybe even bring your hands to your belly so you can feel the diaphragm moving.
You can feel the ribs expanding after that initial inhalation.
Open up more and expand so we can get the lower lobes of your lungs full of oxygen.
We want to saturate the body here,
Friends.
We want to saturate so then when we go into our retention,
We're not lacking oxygen.
Our body just thinks it needs more air.
We're retraining the thought process.
We're training willpower.
We're training our confidence.
We're also training the mechanics of the body and the anatomy of the body.
Breathe in,
Five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
And release.
Five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
Bring it in,
And release.
Bring it in into the belly,
Ribs,
Hearts,
And releasing maybe from top to bottom.
Make this a very circular motion.
If you're seated,
You may be able to feel that.
If you're laying down,
Bring your hands to your belly and feel the diaphragm moving.
This is not just about oxygen.
This is about how we breathe and what other areas of the body are being activated.
The pulmonary system certainly is getting activated,
But what about your circulatory system?
What about your limbatic system,
Your immune systems,
All being influenced by this simple breath or bringing alkalinity into the body,
Higher amounts of oxygen?
Then we're going to go into a retention.
When we go into the retention,
Your body will begin to build up CO2,
Creating a CO2 tolerance.
As you train this,
You'll be able to hold your breath longer.
For the time being,
Just breathe in.
Feel the experience of being connected to your breath,
Connecting to the systems of your body,
And then releasing,
Grounding,
And coming back into aqua-limiting.
Let's do five more breaths here,
Breathing in and release.
Make it audible.
It's okay.
Bring it in and release.
Three more all the way up and releasing.
Let's do two more.
Expand the belly,
The ribs,
The heart,
Lift,
And then release.
One more.
Bring it in all the way open,
Lifting and releasing.
Let's take one more together all the way to the top.
Giant breath and a full release.
One more,
Friends,
All the way up.
As you release,
Release to a neutral lung and hold,
This neutral lung apnea,
A space where we're not full of oxygen,
But our muscles are certainly saturated,
And we're not fully exhaled.
Start to scan your body.
We have 90 seconds in our retention.
Maybe you find some areas in your lower back or you're even squeezing into the belly.
See if you can let that go.
Relax the shoulders.
Relax the face.
Relax your toes.
Just be here and slow down your heart.
You do have the capability to do that.
Feel it.
Feel it as it surges with adrenaline,
Dopamine,
And as you sit in this calm place building up your CO2 tolerance,
You're training your heart that it's okay.
That it's okay to slow down.
That it's okay to build up CO2.
Even though CO2 is a stressor,
You have the ability within your mind to self-regulate that.
And you can breathe at any time or sit with me for 15 more seconds.
Breathing in,
In 5,
4,
3,
2,
And 1.
Take a giant breath in all the way to the top and bring your awareness to your third eye.
Space between your eyes.
Bring the awareness into the thoughts.
We're bringing attention and energy into the space where we're firing new neural pathways within our brain and release.
Wonderful second round.
Let's do a third round.
Breathing in,
Back into that pattern,
Into the belly and releasing.
Staying connected to the body.
Breathe,
Open up and release.
Even if you're judging yourself here,
You're doing it right.
You're breathing consciously.
You're bringing awareness to this idea of breath being a tool,
Not just something that happens to you.
Breathe in,
5,
4,
3,
2,
And release.
Bring it in,
5,
4,
3,
2,
And release.
Don't worry so much about the exhale.
Just let it all go and move back into your next inhale.
You may find that this pattern is too slow for you or maybe it's too fast for you.
It's really about how you feel here.
There's no wrong way to do this,
Friends.
Just simply breathe consciously.
Bring it in through your nasal breathway,
Into your belly,
Expand the ribs,
Expand the heart and then release,
Moving into your next breath.
Just continuing to move this as we activate the body,
As we activate the systems within us.
Continue to breathe,
Expanding,
Opening,
Lifting,
And releasing.
Let's do 10 more.
In,
2,
3,
4,
And release.
2,
3,
4,
Bring it in,
5,
4,
3,
2,
And releasing.
5,
4,
3,
2,
And 1.
Keep that breath moving.
Feel.
You may have some fatigue in your nasal breathway.
You may have some fatigue in your diaphragm.
This is all okay.
You're going to have a retention time coming up where you can rest that.
Just do 5 more.
Bring it in.
5,
4,
3,
2,
And release.
2 more.
Bring it in.
All the way up.
Expand.
Get the mechanics right and then release.
Last one.
Just giant breath for 3,
2,
And 1.
Releasing all of us together.
Giant breath.
Fully in.
Fully out.
Last breath here.
Fully in.
And release.
And stop.
Hold the breath.
A 90-second retention,
Friends.
And you can always breathe at any time if you'd like to.
Maybe you just sit present now.
Now that the body is saturated with oxygen and now that the nervous system is activated,
You may be feeling it in your fingertips,
In your head,
Maybe you might be hearing a ringing sound or maybe the change in your temperature.
All this is fine.
This is all temporary.
Sometimes people feel something called tetany,
Which is a kind of a locking of the hands.
If you're experiencing that,
Don't be afraid.
It's okay.
It's all very temporary.
The nervous system is reacting to the signal that you have given it.
The signal you've given it has put it into a fight or flight mode and now here we are under retention,
Just holding,
Calming,
Saying it's okay.
I realize that you're getting a signal that's saying I should be afraid,
But I am not.
I am safe.
I am comfortable.
I am moving into this hormetic stress in a way to encourage growth,
To encourage going deep and to encourage me connecting to myself.
You can breathe at any time.
Hold for another 10 seconds.
Breathing in,
Three,
Two,
One.
Take a giant breath in all the way to the top and hold.
Bring your awareness to the space between your eyes.
Feel the heart beating in your fingertips and release it.
Moving into our final round,
They give us an opportunity to speed up the breath and move into a more DMT activating breath.
Your choice where you can stay with this nice slow cadence.
Let's begin by taking a giant breath in,
Fully in and slowly release.
Beginning to move back into that rhythm of belly,
Ribs,
Chest and release.
Moving back in,
Five,
Four,
Three,
Two and release it.
Bring it into the belly,
The ribs,
The heart and release.
Continuing to move this breath,
Feel and experience it coming and going.
You may find that you have blockages maybe in one nostril or another.
You may feel sensations that feel a little funny,
A little crazy and that's okay.
We're activating systems within you that are reacting to you.
The reacting giving you this signal saying,
I feel something in my body,
What should I do?
Your job is to continue to breathe calmly with a cadence.
Be with your breath here,
Expanding the belly,
The ribs,
The heart and release.
In and release.
Almost feeling that circular motion as the belly rises,
As it goes towards your heart and then it goes back down the spine,
Back down to the belly as you release.
Moving the breath,
Bring it in,
Expanding,
Opening and lifting.
We're halfway through this round.
You can keep this cadence or if you'd like to speed up with me,
Kind of activating the DMT,
We're going to do a little bit of a different of a whole at the end also.
Continuing to move here.
I'm just going to activate the breath just a little bit faster.
Bring in three,
Two,
One and release.
In two,
Three and release.
Keep that mechanics moving belly,
Chest all the way up and then release.
In two,
Three and release.
Bring it in and two and three and release.
Ten more.
In and release.
In and release.
Seven more.
You got this.
Focus on bringing it in through the nasal,
The breath away.
Release through your mouth,
Expand the belly,
The ribs,
The heart,
Releasing.
Bring it in.
Five more.
In two,
Three and then release.
In two,
Three and release.
In two,
Three and release.
In two,
Three and release.
Giant breath in,
Fully in all the way to the top.
Releasing fully.
Last breath here.
Fully in and release and hold.
A 90 second retention.
Explore your body and be curious.
What sensations are you feeling here?
Activation,
Maybe it's a sense of calm or a sense of connectedness.
What do you feel?
You don't need to make sense of it all right now.
Just know that something is happening within you that you had full control over activating and calming.
Let's work on slowing the heart down.
Slow it down.
Maybe just saying I'm sending a message to my heart that I'm okay.
I love you.
I am listening.
I hear you heart.
I'm okay.
All right.
One minute has passed.
We just have 30 seconds to go and you're welcome to breathe at any time.
There's no demand on that.
Only the ego wants you to hold longer,
More connected in that way.
But if you feel like you need to breathe,
Breathe.
Those of us who are still holding,
About 15 more seconds to go and the retention is going to be a little bit different.
The recovery time at the end of that,
We're going to do several of them.
Breathing in in just a few seconds.
In five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
And one.
I want you to take a giant breath in all the way to the top and hold.
Maybe you squeeze from your perineum all the way up to your pineal gland,
Drawing that spinal fluid up.
Now slowly releasing all the way down.
On your next breath,
Breathe all the way in and hold.
Maybe you squeeze if that feels good to you.
Or just draw awareness to your third eye.
And slowly release.
We're going to do one more like that all the way to the top.
Breathe in fully and hold.
Maybe you squeeze here,
Maybe you feel a little something.
And as you're ready,
Slowly release.
We've completed our breath work rounds today.
But I've left some extra time at the end of this track for you to simply be introspective,
Feel around in your body.
Simply move into a sound journey meditation.
I want you to see if you can,
If you're staying with the sound journey,
To use this time to just begin to recognize.
Recognize whatever is coming up.
Any thoughts,
Any emotions,
Any sensations,
Any feelings.
And allow them to be present.
Not changing them,
Not trying to make anything of them.
And allow them to be there as part of your experience.
After you've allowed them to be there for a while,
You can begin to investigate where they live in your body.
Maybe they're behind your hips,
In your heart.
Maybe they're somewhere in your muscles,
This previous experience or trauma.
You can investigate.
See where it lives.
Notice it.
And finally nurture this sensation,
This feeling.
Not shaming it,
Not telling it it needs to leave you.
Just saying I see you.
And I'm happy we're on this journey together.
I'm healing today.
And we may not always be on this journey together.
But as I heal,
My body will change.
I am very aware of it.
I'm grateful.
Rest here.
You'll hear a chime at the end of the sound journey,
Indicating the end of our meditation together.
