Breathing is the single most important source of life to us, yet each day we completely take it for granted. When we focus our attention on our breathing, we anchor ourselves in the present moment and naturally calm our mind. This focus technique returns our mind to our body and keeps our thoughts from wandering and jumping around (monkey mind).
As we begin our journey of self and personal breakthrough, we focus on our breathing to build the foundation of our new life practices.
Why People Struggle With Meditation
I work with many people that find mindful breathing or meditation difficult when they first begin to practice. This is very common, do not feel alone. People tend to over-complicate it. They think about it too hard.
Some teachers teach that you have to sit a certain way or distract you with strange mental imagery, sound, or music. These teachers have good intentions, but it can be so much easier than all of that. There doesn’t have to be rules or structure to it. Keep the practice very simple, whatever works for you. Whatever you can do to make it a habit.
The important part is that we are patient with ourselves. When starting out, keep it short. If possible, stick with it daily. Make it part of a daily routine (like brushing your teeth). You will begin to see benefit from it right away.
The practice of mindful breathing is one of the most important tools we have available in our journey of life. It should be no less important than the daily tasks we do to take care of our physical bodies. This task is simply taking care of our mind and our connection with life.
The Problem with Our Current Habits
The problem we have with building a practice of mindful breathing come from our daily habits. We have built so many distracting/busy habits that keep us separated from life versus helping us to connect with it. Life is here for us, to help heal and support us, but we must reach out to meet it.
It takes a little discipline to change. Our minds will always want to take the easy path if possible. Invest in building new, healthy daily habits. This takes time, but we need to simply start building healthier habits. Some cultures build meditation habits from a very young age, while others don’t teach it all.
Lets Try Mindful Breathing Right Now
Lets jump right in. There are no rules to doing it right or wrong. We simply focus our attention on our in-breath and out-breath. Just follow your breathing in and out.
You don’t need to sit a certain way. You don’t need to close your eyes (you can if you want). Simply follow your breath in and out without controlling it. The key is just relaxing, letting go of everything and simply following your breathing, the movement of your chest and stomach. Just you and your breathing. You can be sitting, standing or lying down.
Lets try it now for a minute or two and as we breathe, we can say the following to ourselves (if it helps):
Breathing in…. I know I am breathing in
Breathing out… I know I am breathing out
Ahhhhhh…. very nice. What an amazing feeling to return home to ourselves. The energy of mindful breathing reconnects us to our bodies. It quiets the constant noise in our heads and connects us to life in the present moment. Anchoring us in the “what is” without judgement and without suffering.
A Simple but Powerful Life Tool
The simplicity of our breathing is an extremely powerful tool that should not be taken for granted. When we lose our focus and are swept off in powerful emotions, we always have the foundation of mindful breathing to calm the storm and bring us back to our connection with life. Its quite easy and does not need to be complicated.
Some people find it easy to start by practicing it every morning before you get out of bed for just 30-60 seconds. As you get more comfortable with it, simply add more time in small increments over time (adding just 1 or 2 minutes more per week). Dont push it. Be patient and build your breathing habit slowly over time.
You can practice mindful breathing whenever you desire. Its not something that needs to be scheduled. It just helps to build it into a daily habit.
Try practicing mindful breathing when you are overwhelmed with difficult emotions (stress, anger, tension, sadness). This is a key time to calm our minds and our breathing will help us get through the storm. Simply stop what you are doing, wherever you are and begin to follow your breathing as before:
Breathing in…. I know I am breathing in
Breathing out… I know I am breathing out
Keep this pattern going for as long as you need to calm your thoughts and return to your body.
Spiritual, Science and Medical Agree
Mindful breathing is a sacred practice that has been taught for thousands of years, across many cultures. Science and medical experts agree that relaxation and meditation benefits our physical and mental health.
Proven scientific benefits:
- Helps reduce anxiety
- Boosts your immune system
- Helps reduce fear
- Lowers blood pressure
- Relieves pain/suffering
Start Building the Breathing Habit
Like all skills we learn, we must practice and be patient with ourselves. This is the single most valuable tool we can learn in life. It can be used anytime and anywhere. It doesn’t require anything and all human beings can benefit from it (young or old). But we need to begin.
Make a commitment to building the important habit of mindful breathing. This is a great first step on your journey.
Wishing you peace and love,
Until next time…
—
Greg
