Imagine an elastic band and the slow stretch and release. This movement that begins at rest, stretches until there is tension, then releases back to rest. Each time that stretch happens, when it’s done gently, creates a new threshold of where that elastic can stretch to without breaking or losing its elastin quality altogether. That’s how we want to approach breath practice.
This is an individual process as each one of us starts with our own baseline or threshold and we each have our own window of tolerance that we need to work within for this practice to be constructive. Slow and steady is key to ensure we do not overwhelm the nervous system and turn this practice into something that is producing more strain than benefit.
I have found that the best place to start with this practice is to remember that a little bit of stress is totally healthy and good for the system, as long as we honor the space and time needed after bouts of stress to regulate and come back into a state of calm connection. Breath practice becomes an opportunity to connect with ourselves in whatever state we find ourselves in, as well as the ability to show our body that we can turn stress on and then we can turn it off. Eventually this completely changes your relationship with stress, as something that serves a purpose and does not leave us stuck in an activated state. Flexibility is the cornerstone to optimal health.
In Rhythm we Trust
Flexibility leads us to discover the wisdom and emergent properties of rhythm. We are not static beings. It is best to think of life, moments, change and growth as a rhythm that oscillates between two poles. We can tap into an ever-expanding and sustainable wave of growth with an exponential trajectory AND constant stability or still point. Your body was self-formed, spirals within spirals creating tubes within tubes, all conducted by the pulse, rhythm and leadership of your heart. A swing in one direction can and will create an equal and opposite swing, and when we tap into momentum, we can use this natural movement of energy to support our growth in a healthy and optimal rhythm of effort and surrender.
The pace, depth, rhythm and coherency of your breath is an expression of your brainstem's assessment of the necessary dose of energy your body needs for anticipatory performance. If you are stuck in a nervous system state, your breath will match what the nervous system is communicating. For example, if you are overwhelmed and heading into a shutdown response, you breath will likely become slower, yet rather than a coherent rhythm, more likely there will be an aborting of the exhale before it reaches it's satisfying release or complete absence of breath, exemplifying the dissociation and vacant body experience of shutdown. Or, if your body is at the beginning phase of sensing danger (even just through thought alone), and activation is rising, it will signal the breath to be prepared for action by breathing quick, shallow, chest dominant, with tension, and potentially even pauses in breath felt more as a bracing (versus a collapse or dissociation in the shutdown response), as this is a subconscious reaction to suppress, dull or avoid intense or painful feelings. The breath shows us what is going on inside, it is like a window that gifts us in-sight to explain behavior, thoughts, postures in the body, and the perspective(s) you currently have access to. Or in other words, your psychology resides in your physiology.
The word "psyche" comes from an ancient Greek word that means "life force" as in the energy that is animating the body through breath. When we know our breath intimately, we have access to the inner-workings of our own psyche.
It is your physiology that is driving the pace, rate, tone, and quality of your breath while it also informs the fundamental functioning of your psychology. By learning the intricacies of breathing and when, how and why to dance the line of guiding the breath versus being guided by the breath, we can be conscious navigators of our mind and body and optimize our mental and physical health.
Inhale and Exhale in Rhythm
Your inhale is connected to your Sympathetic Nervous System, and exhale is part of the Parasympathetic Nervous System. These two systems are meant to work harmoniously as two poles or opposites that together create the rhythm of life. To breathe well is to increase the heart rate and sympathetic tone on the inhale, and release/let go with the exhale, decreasing heart rate and stepping into a parasympathetic tone (referred to as Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia). High heart rate variability is only accessible in a relaxed state as the healthy oscillation of sympathetic and parasympathetic tone can flow. In a stress state, heart rate variability is flat, our breath locking us in a pattern which doesn’t oscillate because the breath remains strained.
Practice:
Lay down or settle into a seated posture with your hands wrapped around your low ribs on either side of your waist.
As you inhale, gently squeeze to contain your low ribs slightly, to slow your inhale down and ensure you are directing your breath to expand from your pelvis and low belly first.
As you exhale, relax your hands and feel the gentle nurturing touch as your exhale slow releases.
With each breath, guide your inhale and exhale to slow down until you settle into a sustainable rhythm where the inhale and exhale are around the same duration.
Breathe in slow motion (which is relative to whatever your rhythm was when you started this exercise) as if a slower breath expands the present moment for you to notice more.
Continue for at least three minutes to give your heart time to syncopate with the rhythm of your breath.
After a few minutes, release your hands and just relax into breathing in whatever way feels good and natural in that moment. Notice the difference between being the guide and then stepping back and witnessing your body be breathed, being guided.
Balance between being the Guide and being Guided
When your deliberate breath practice “steps on your reflexes“ you are acknowledging that your reflexes are not in sync with what is truly needed in this moment. A self regulating, or autonomic, system is not necessarily self optimizing. Guiding our breath and occasionally initiating a conscious stressor serves a purpose as we can learn to meet it and relax, resulting in a reduction of dysregulation in lower level stressors that we experience throughout life. A good rule of thumb every time you pause to tune into your breath is to include both being the guide and letting go to listen and be guided by your breath. We need to build lots of safety as we start noticing the breath, and using curiosity and receptivity to how your body is naturally breathing is a great way to increase safety. The spotlight on the breath can feel alarming at first, and if we try to change it too much, too quickly, we risk creating more activation and increased difficulty in feeling relaxed in our breath practice. As you increase tolerance to carbon dioxide, your breath will naturally become slower and smoother without force or manipulation. Keep breath practice and manipulation for specific and deliberate times of the day. Otherwise we must allow and relax and observe the breath.
xo
If you would like to learn more and take your journey of optimizing your health with breath to the next level, check out my Space to Breathe program and reach out with questions.
**This video comes from module 1 of my Yoga Nidra and Pranayama online program, and guides through the basic foundational steps of connecting with your breath to cultivate a nourishing rhythm.