Take a Deep Breath....

Our bodies are constantly on a journey toward optimal health. They are just wondering when we're going to join them. From something as simple as a sneeze to our blood pressure increasing in response to stress. All the pain we suffer from dis-ease and dis-order simply tells us that our body is responding in an attempt to heal and/or protect itself.  Our bodies automatically and amazingly react to preserve themselves. So, what can we, our consciousness, do (or not do) to facilitate our optimum health?


The list seems endless, less sugar and stress, more veggies and exercise, more vitamins, less drugs...it's soooooo confusing! How the Hell are we supposed to figure out what to do when the so called experts can't agree? I believe that we intuitively know what we need to do, but that it's buried so deep beneath all the intellectual thinking and the absorbed opinions of others that we just can't find it. So let's get back to some basics of what we need not just to survive but to thrive. 


The basics for survival are oxygen, water, food, sleep and shelter from the elements. To thrive though, in addition to survival basics, we need to connect with others and the world around us, we need to move our bodies and we need a sense of purpose, to know we make a difference. Think you're already getting everything? If you're looking for optimal health let's make sure.  We'll start with oxygen and since I'd like to go a bit into depth with each need I'll break them down into several articles over the next couple of weeks.


Most of us know we only live a few minutes without oxygen. We survive because we breathe on autopilot, so to speak. But what we may not know is that the quality of our breathing has a profound effect on our health. Every cell in our bodies needs oxygen. I watch my baby grandson breathe and he's proof positive that we instinctively know not only what to do but how to do it. When he breathes his little belly rises and falls, not his chest. It's called abdominal breathing and it allows a full expansion of the diaphragm allowing the lungs to fill with fresh oxygenated air and empty out the stale air. Deep breathing relieves anxiety, helps us relax and can even lower blood pressure and pulse rates. As a friend of my once likened it to having our own built in easy button. Here's how it's done.

1. Lie down comfortably on your back, with loose garments.
2. Be aware of your breath.
3. Put one hand on your chest and one on your stomach.
4. Slowly inhale through your nose or through pursed lips (to slow down the intake of breath).
5. As you inhale, feel your stomach expand, raising your hand.
6. Slowly exhale through your nose or pursed lips (to regulate the release of air). Exhalation should take twice as long as inhalation.
7. As you exhale feel your stomach contract, lowering with your hand.
8. Rest and repeat
9. Either stand or sit comfortably, spine straight and tall and repeat steps 1-7

A relaxing way to start and end the day, practice before you get out of bed in the morning, before you close your eyes to sleep or anytime in between. Just breathe...