Deep in and out

When we want to change our behavior, one of the things that can get in our way is stress.  Change itself is stressful and when we forget the milk, or get stuck in traffic, or get into a debate on the relative merits of the Marvel and DC Universes, we might fall back into old, unhelpful patterns, whether those involve slamming doors or eating all the M&Ms.

One of the simplest ways to deal with stress is something we have to do anyway:  breathe.

Yes, we do it all the time (unless we are dead, in which case we have a whole different set of problems).  We tend, however, to take shallow breaths.  When we get anxious, we breathe faster, too.

Making a point of taking deep breaths helps remind our bodies that we are not, actually, about to die.  We probably don’t even need to sprint at top speed away from a hungry bear.  It is good to practice taking deep breaths when we are not stressed so we are better at it when the time comes to help ourselves calm down.

So:  inhale and let your belly fill.  Exhale and hollow your belly out.  Sometimes holding the space for a count or two between the inhale and exhale and the space between the exhale and inhale can be helpful.  Even five deep breaths can give us the time we need to reconnect with our more serene selves.