Have you ever seen how a baby breathes? How they breathe right into their belly and it blows up like a little balloon? It is so natural for their small beings that they don’t even think twice about it. I want you to just take a moment and breath as you normally would. What do you notice, what does the air feel like entering your lungs? As adults we somehow lose that deep belly breathing that used to come so naturally as infants. Our breath tends to go as deep as our chest, our breathing is shorter and quick through the busy day.

Five years ago, a yoga teacher brought my breathing to attention as I sat on my mat crossed legged and she instructed her students to breath normally. And so, I did, in that moment my breaths were shallow and rapid. She told us to bring both our hands to your stomach and close our eyes. Next, she guided us to take a deep breath in but not only to fill our lungs but to fill our hands like our belly’s were balloons. I did just that and what happened next blew my mind. I had been breathing at limited capacity, I was only bringing in air to the upper half of my body and to breathe into the belly felt amazing. It brought in new energy to that part of my being. A simple deep breath had never felt so good. When I exhaled it was like I was letting go of trapped energy, stale air, I was letting go of something.

Belly breathing became one of my favorite things to integrate into my practice, and found I also used it in everyday life. I immediately felt renewed from being introduced to this breath, it was like I had just been taught how to breath again. As if some how breathing to that part of my body was lost to me as I grew up. Belly breathing opened a new power for me, it was the cure I had been looking for, the take control action I so desperately needed. I had been so paralyzed by anxiety and my nerves, when I found belly breathing. The short shallow breaths added to the anxiety, there wasn’t air circulating as it should, it was getting trapped in my upper body and exiting just as quickly as it had come. Being able to breath long deep breaths not only into my lungs but allowing my belly to fill reduced the stress. It brought calmness inside where there once was internal chaos. It let go of the tightness I felt inside my chest, it allowed my busy mind to quiet and my tense body to relax.

I notice many benefits from this breathing technique, it reduced stress and my anxiety was manageable. I was able to relax and calm my mind, which led to deeper sleeps and sleeping through the night. I was slowing down in my daily life, I wasn’t living at quite full speed anymore. I was more alert of what was happening inside my body, I was feeling in tune with my self. Everything felt aligned. I was learning how to breath again. I was finally giving my body the oxygen it deserved. Deep breathing I learned has many added benefits like aiding in better posture, increasing energy, help with circulation, it can detox, reduces inflammation in the body, can strengthen your lymphatic system, improve one’s digestion and so much more.

Deep breathing brought me back down to earth, grounding me, being me into the present letting go of the past and no longer fretting about the future. Being present also brought gratitude into my life confirming that everything in the day was perfect, the timing was perfect and everything I had in that moment was enough. For the first time in a very long time I was not longer focusing on what the people around me might be thinking of me, I was only concerned with how I felt in that moment. It allowed me to get clear, to really focus and find out what I liked about myself and what I wanted to do with my life. It was my breath that freed me from my anxieties. I was now in control, in fact I was always in control I just didn’t know how to harness the power before. I had learned to breath and with it came so many gifts that I needed, mindfulness being the big one. Becoming mindful of your breath, body, situations, and other people’s energies as well. The breath has showed me how to become in tune with myself, like what stress I can handle, or what foods make me feel okay, good or great! I have learned a lot about myself by learning how to deep belly breathe.

I invite any of you to do exactly what the yoga instructor had guided me to do; sit in a seated position and place your hands on your stomach and close your eyes, then when you are ready take a deep breath in and breathe it in to the belly feeling your stomach rise under your fingers. Take some time to feel the inhales and exhales. After taking a few deep breaths slowly open your eyes and maybe journal to reflect on what you just experienced. Did that feel different from how you normally breathe? Can you incorporate this breath in your own practice and/or your everyday life? What would your life look like if you breathed into your belly like your younger self used to? Really tune in to your breath and body and see what you could learn about yourself.

Feel free to head over to my Instagram and leave a comment on my latest post telling me what you experienced and what you thought of the deep belly breathing exercise.

XO

Kristy