Does this hurt?
Check this out
The deepest natural breaths are often out of our control. As a fairly consistent meditator, I can notice my shallowest breathing when I remember to pay attention. But the rest of the time, the little rising of my chest goes without a wink. The naturalness of everyday breathing is indeed a miracle. It keeps the oxygen flowing and life sustained. But when something astonishing occurs or we notice how we are breathing after running, it brings our attention back to that big deep gulp of air our body craves. Thinking about breathing is weird. Taking note of the risings and fallings as well as the ins and outs of our diaphragm interrupts the natural process of real time breathing. Counterintuitively, paying attention to the way we breathe breaks the flow. The relief of a deep natural breath that is not of our instigation but the happenstance of our body is a signal that calm is on the way. The sense of relief that is delivered in that action tells the brain to stand down a little. When the lungs and the mind work together, the sympathetic components of our restlessness settle. The feeling of relief is like not getting caught doing something naughty as a child. The senses start to thank the universal forces that fought the discovery. A return to natural breathing starts all by itself. The body recovers again and again. Ask anyone who fears flying about how relieved they feel as they touch down and they will explain it.
Take Five
Each week this year, read through the suggestions and see how they call out to you.
- Describe how you breathe.
- Do you know what speeds up your breathing?
- Have you tried meditating?
- Does your tummy puff out when you breathe deeply?
- How does your breathing change when you are frightened?
Come back each day to see if something changes about the effect of an activity. Repeat choices to identify different thoughts. You are not the same person every day. Your life shouldn’t be either.
Live Alive.
