Wellbeing tip #4: Using the breath

A monthly series where I’ll offer some suggestions for tools and strategies that can help with our well-being.

Each one of us is different, and what one person finds helpful, may not resonate with others. 

We may find that what has helped previously, may not be connecting with us in the same way in the present.

Or you may have a well-established set of tools that are ‘tried and trusted’, but you’d like to add some more.

It is my hope that these tips will give you some ideas. 

April: breathing

Breathing, an everyday part of living.

But I wonder – how often do you think about your breathing?  Whether that be its speed, whereabouts in your body that you predominantly breathe into, or any changes to it depending on how you might be feeling?

Breathing is not only a fundamental part of our biology, of our being, but it is also strongly connected to our emotional wellbeing.

It connects to our nervous system, the part of our body that reacts to external stimuli, to what is happening around us, as well as within us, to our emotions and thoughts.

When we’re feeling stressed or anxious, our breathing might quicken, getting shorter on the in and outward breath.

It might feel caught, jagged, sometimes stuck or as though it is catching somewhere.

When we’re relaxed, we might not even notice our breath, might not be consciously aware of it, but it might lengthen, flow more, have a sense of calm about it. 

Our breath is in harmony with us – with how we are, reflecting our being in any moment.

Breath also has the power help us connect.

To help us connect with ourselves, to help us ground when we need, to pause and take a moment.

To help us connect with whatever is happening within us, to notice those thoughts or feelings that we might otherwise be too busy to bring attention to, or be avoiding, waiting for a ‘better time’.

To help us let go, to step away from the busyness of the world around us, and enter into our own world, a place of peace and tranquility, even if just for a short moment.

There are ways that we can consciously connect to our breath, to notice it, and by doing so, support not only our body, but also our emotional wellbeing.  This might be through trying a breathing exercise, joining a breath workshop, or taking part in an activity that involves the use of the breath such as yoga or meditation.  Or it might be that the idea of using breath to support wellbeing is totally new to you and you’re not quite sure what it involves.

If you’re curious, or would like to try, here is a little exercise, an introduction.  Why not give it a try?

Find a space where you feel comfortable.  This might be a quiet space in the home, sat under a tree in the park, or even a toilet cubicle in the office; just somewhere that you feel comfortable and able to avoid distraction or disturbance for the next few moments.

Settle into where you are sitting.  Or you might want to stand or lie down.  Whatever works for you – this is your time, your moment, your space.

If you feel comfortable to do so, bring your eyes to a close.

Place one hand on your belly and the other on your chest or heart space.  Or if you are seated, you might prefer to place your hands on your knees or in your lap, with palms facing up or down. 

You might want to place the soles of both feet onto the floor, grounding yourself to the surface beneath you.

Notice how you are feeling – how are you feeling in your body?  Are there any thoughts or emotions sitting with you?

Take a deep breath in and sigh it out.

Take another deep breath in, and again, sigh it out.

Now, take a slow, steady breath in through the nose, pause, and then exhale, still through the nose.

Keep doing this, focusing only on the breath, on the rise and fall of your upper body, of the sensation of your hands moving in sync with the breath, no matter how slight or how large.

Shift your focus to the length of your breath – make the exhale longer than the inhale. 

You might do this by feeling it, or it might help to count the length of inhale, hold/pause, and then count the exhale, aiming to extend it by the count of 1 or 2. 

It doesn’t have to be a vast difference – just a couple of counts or a single count is enough.

If your mind starts to wander, that’s ok.  Just bring your mind back to the breath. 

You might ask how you do this?  For some, noticing that they have been distracted by a thought and consciously thinking about returning to noticing their breath instead can be enough.  For others, counting the inhale and exhale can bring them back to the moment.  Or sometimes, you might want to silently say to your thought ‘not know, I’ll come back to you later’ and make a conscious decision to ‘park it’ for now.  Visualisation can also help with this, whereby you visualise in your mind, the thought going away when you have asked it to or going into an internal storage until you want to come back to it later.

Keep inhaling and exhaling, through the nose, with the exhale longer than the inhale, noticing the sensation, for a few moments.  You might want to set a timer before, or you might want to go for as long as feels comfortable.

It can be a couple of minutes, 5 minutes, 10, or longer.

Just a few moments can make a difference.

When you come to the end, before opening your eyes and moving, notice again how you are feeling, like you did at the beginning.

How are your shoulders feeling?  Your face?

What about the rest of your body?  Your mind?

Gently open your eyes, take a few moments, and then slowly and kindly, return to your day.

The above is a simple breathing exercise that we can use at anytime, anywhere, when we want to take a moment for ourselves.

When we want to nurture ourselves, perhaps take respite from the day, or savour a moment where we are.

Or we might be feeling a bit uncertain, anxious, stressed, and want to pause to connect with what is happening within us, to explore it and understand it.

You might feel relaxed after.

Or emotions may have risen to the surface; emotions that have been suppressed, perhaps because of a busy day in the office or because you have had other things that you have had to prioritise or focus on, and that now, in a moment of calm and pause, have risen to the surface and reminded you that they are there.

If that is the case, be kind to yourselves.  Rather than rush back to your day, take a moment, allow yourself to feel, be gentle with yourself, and ease yourself back into the day when you feel able.

You might feel grounded, centred, and recharged.

You might feel a sense of balance, of calmness.

It might be different each time.

There are many other tools and techniques for using the breath to support our wellbeing, such as box breathing (breathe in for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4), the 4-7-8 technique (inhale for 4, hold for 7, exhale for 8) or alternate nostril breathing.  It is about finding what works for you, what you feel comfortable with.

So how about this evening, as you come to the end of the day, you take a moment to give some conscious breathing a try.

To see how it feels for you, and perhaps add it to your wellbeing toolbox, or make it a regular part of your daily routine.

Take a moment… and breathe.