Just Breathe

 "Breathe, just breathe". Life can be frustrating, confusing, disheartening at times. We spend our days trying to do the best, be the best, understand it all. Sometimes it gets overwhelming and we feel like quitting. We feel like we can't measure up, or that what we do doesn't matter anyway. It feels like a mountain too high to climb. And we forget to breathe. 

Not the physical act of breathing. Fortunately our body inhaling and exhaling, taking in oxygen and releasing carbon dioxide is an internally regulated process. Our body is wired with sensors that trigger the breathing when it senses too little oxygen or too much carbon dioxide (CO2). But there is a part of breathing that is part of conscious thought. 

One example is singing. In order to properly use your full voice when singing you need to consciously inhale and exhale with your diaphragm. That gives you a full voice, whereas if you only exhale and inhale with your mouth and nose- singing with your head -you will struggle with your sound and volume. 

Sometimes we live like that - operating on fumes of air. We wonder why we get tired often and don't have the stamina or clear thinking to handle life's demands. We need to allow ourselves time to slow down, pause the treadmill of life, and breath.

A colleague once taught us a breathing exercise. She said count 1,2,3,4 inhale, hold for 5.6., and breathe out 7,8.  She advised doing that a few times in a row at crucial moments of the day - especially before doing something or meeting someone important - or what/who we think are important. It is a way to pause and come back to the very basis of life, shutting everything else out and focusing on slowing down our heartrate and consequently our racing mind. 

Have you ever been driving somewhere, got lost, and kept driving down the road trying to figure out which way to go? How long do you continue before you pull off the side of the road and check a map, google the address, or check some other authoritative source to help get you to your destination. If you are a guy like me asking directions is not our strong suit, so it may be longer. But it will eventually come.

That is how it is with conscious deep breathing. It is a very simple thing but we neglect to do it. It takes remaining still and we are constantly in motion. But if you do it you may find that your way forward is clearer and calmer. So again I would say "breathe, just breathe".