Today we are looking at the Breath and how we can use our Breath to bring Balance into our life and those around us. I hope you have had a wonderful week enjoying the benefits of Essential Oils and discovered some favourites that work well for you.
Breath is life, and without it we have no life. But just as importantly is the ‘quality’ of our Breath which we will cover in this week. Over the past week I hope you used your Essential Oils in a diffuser or burner and enjoyed an amazing experience of breathing in the well-being of the air around you.
Let’s do a quick exercise using an Essential Oil in either a diffuser or oil burner. If you don’t have either of these place a few drops of Essential Oil into a bowl of warm water and place your face near the bowl to breathe in the vapour.
Begin inhaling and travel with the breath, in through the nose, down the back of the throat and deep into the abdomen – that spot behind your naval, from the navel to the ribs, allowing the breath to expand the diaphragm, the upper chest the sternum, and finally into the collarbones as they lift gently.
Exhale by reversing this action; contract your abdominal muscles as you exhale from the abdomen slowly, releasing the breath from the upper chest, rib cage, diaphragm and feel the warm air leaving your nostrils.
If you like place your right hand on your abdomen and your left hand on your rib cage to help direct the breath on its journey.
Can you feel a shift in your overall being? Or perhaps a sense of peace as your heartbeat slows and the harsh edges of life soften. That is your Breath bringing in that shift and Balance back into your life.
Recent studies have shown that a three part deep breath, rather than a shallow breath, allows you to take in and give out seven times as much air—that means seven times as much oxygen, seven times as much prana, and a more energised and balanced you. And without being really conscious of it, because you are focusing on a deeper breath, you have found your mindful breath.
But what is mindful breathing? Being mindful of your breath simply means observing and opening your awareness to your breath: to your breathing in and your breathing out, without controlling or judging it in any way, letting it be.
Becoming aware of our mindful breath, allows us to more easily focus on our breath in daily activities of life. It will assist with managing stress, increases the self-awareness of your mind and body, improves your emotional well-being and relaxes the body, and at the end of the day allowing you a more ‘’restful’’ sleep.
When you begin to practice mindful breathing it is best to take yourself to a quiet place and close your eyes, so you can focus on your breath without any distractions. After some practice you will find it is like second nature.
I found I could take my mindful breath practice outside when I was in a queue at the supermarket. I would move myself into Mountain Pose (Tadasana) and find something ahead to focus on and just go with the breath.
It’s as if you just ‘click into’ mindfulness mode and then you can expand your mindfulness to anything that you wish. It’s a wonderful process and journey of re-discovering your body, reconnecting with your mind and rejuvenating your spirit.
Mindfulness Breath brings Balance back into your life. Once you have begun to look for more Balance in your life, you begin to find that your perspective on situations outside your control has a whole new outlook. Predicaments that appeared overwhelming suddenly are no longer important, something someone said that really annoyed you, and you couldn’t let go, is longer even an issue.
On the other side of the coin, people and situations that you should focus on have more clarity and you can see the relevance. There is a light at the end of the tunnel and your feel a shift of burden off your shoulders. The clarity of mind, that mindful breathing brings, enables you to see a clearer picture, the big picture without the haze and noise.
Enjoy delving into the Balance of your Breath over the next few days
and I look forward to bringing the next chapter of our series
unfolding the Joys of Relaxation
predominantly around the bathroom and bathtub
my most favourite way to relax! x m
