The power of the breath to relax and regulate emotions.

Since I started teaching yoga, meditation and leading retreats I have met wonderful people. I enjoy the conversations that arise before and after class, the experiences we share about our practice and what we take off the mat. This is exactly what yoga is about –Yoga means unity. We breathe, move and connect in unity and create community.

I particularly enjoy the beginning of class, when we all settle in, arrive in the space and become present. We start by directing our attention to the breath and focus on the qualities of our breath. There are five qualities we can observe: 1. the length of the inhale and the exhale and the little pause in between, 2. the temperature of the breath on the back of the throat, 3. the depth of the breath, whether we breath into the belly or chest, 4. the direction of the breath, whether we breath into the front of our body or the back and 5. the sound of our breath as we inhale and exhale.

Before I started my own regular yoga practice, I was less aware of these qualities. I remain fascinated by the impact these qualities have on my physical, emotional and mental wellbeing to manage stress and anxiety. I particularly love the sound of the breath – reassuring and nurturing– unique to each of us. Every time I feel off balance, stressed, anxious, or even angry I return to the safety of my breath. I return to the sound, the soothing nature of it and I let it guide me and regulate my emotions, sensations and thoughts. Now that I know how powerful the breath is I can not imagine being aware of it. I can not imagine not paying attention. my tension in my body, my aches and pains have gone too as I learned to relax my body and mind. it takes time of course and we need to be patient in the process. You might find that overtime you start a relationship with you breath, you become aware of how the way you breath gives you information about your state of being.

I also use breath work with my children, who are both asthmatic since birth. It can be really scary for children to feel tight and not knowing how to breathe or that the air is taken from them. This can lead to panic attacks and overstimulation too. in this case I use the wisdom of breath work and old techniques to support them and listen and feel into the body and breath. while they still need inhalers they have learned to first focus on the breath before reaching for the inhaler and then to use the inhaler in calm and controlled way.

sometimes it helps to have a couple of sessions with a breath work instructor like myself to practice and focus. so if you are interested in learning more, get in touch or book a session with me. namaste.