Mindful Breathing

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Mindful Breathing

Start Level One Now.

Change nothing, nothing changes.

Level One

1. Get comfortable.  Stand, sit, lay down, whatever works for you.  
2. Start with just normal breaths 3-5 times.  It doesn’t matter if you breathe through your mouth or nose.  Don’t overthink or worry about how to do this, just breathe.
3. The key is to simply focus your attention on what you are doing.
4. Now slowly inhale (3-4 seconds), exhale a bit slower (4-8 seconds).  These don’t need to be deep breaths.  Just whatever is comfortable.
5. Repeat as many times as you like.
6. Take your time.  Don’t rush this.  Remember that the object is to relax.
7. Do this whenever you feel the need to relax.  Just like any other exercise, repetition and consistency are important.
8. Set aside a specific time each day to practice.  When you wake up, get out of the shower, before your drive home from work, or just before bed time, it doesn’t matter when, just be consistent.
9. Do this for at least one week.  

Level Two

1. Get comfortable again.
2. Now repeat as above except inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth.
3. Again do this several times each day for at least one week.

Level Three

1. Continue with the same technique, but don’t lay down.  Use the breathing straw to exhale.  Adjust the back pressure.  (Pick the straw that’s right for you.)  It should feel like you are blowing up a balloon.
2. Personally I really like feeling the pressure in my lungs, it gives me something to focus on and distracts the “active mind”.  You may not like to feel the back pressure.  In that case, simply slow down your exhale to what feels comfortable.

Level Four

1. Try a structured system.  Start with a 3-5 count.  Inhale through your nose for a count of 3 then exhale through your mouth for a count of 5.
2. There is no magic as to how fast or slow you count.  Just focus on the count and try to slow the count until you are at a comfortable speed.
3. Keep using the breathing straw during your practice sessions.

Level Five

1. If you’ve stayed with it this long, you’ve now learned enough to branch out on your own.
2. Try different inhale, hold, exhale combinations.
3. The internet is full of advice and apps.  Feel free to try any of them.
4. One of the more popular systems is 4-7-8.  Others expand the sequence to inhale, hold, exhale, hold.
5. Remember, the goal is to use breathing to calm down.
6. Once you’ve settled on what works for you, practice with and without the breathing straw.  The straw is merely a training device and aids in achieving proper technique.  
7. Vary where and when you do it.  You want to be prepared to use the technique whenever you need to, regardless of what you are doing or where you are.