The Importance of Breath in Wellness and Spiritual Practices
‘Aaaaannnd, breathe.. ‘
As they say.
That moment when your partner, your colleague, your quick-witted child tells you to take a breath when things are getting too much.
Not always perfectly timed, delivered or well-received, but they’re right.
The breath. That magical, life-giving force that we so readily take for granted and so often forget to notice.
The breath is an anchor; in that fractious moment it can bring us back home to ourselves and back into perspective, quiet and calm.
It is a bridge; it connects our physical embodied self to our spiritual world within.
And it is a dependable friend; ever present, ever supporting, ever with our best interests at heart. Unconditionally.
It is always there, working away in the background.. and isn’t this amazing.. it’s keeping us alive.
We owe that breath of our’s a whole lot of gratitude.
Why is the breath so important?
Breathing is important for so many reasons beyond the obvious :)
From a physiological perspective it replenishes our incredible bodies with life-giving oxygen; something every single system within them needs.
It aids in the release of the toxins, waste and carbon dioxide our bodies most certainly do not need.
It creates the energetic fuel that keeps us running throughout our demanding days.
It clears our mind, helps us sleep and reduces stress.
Mindful breathing helps control heart rate and blood pressure, and so is the go-to place for managing anxiety and panic attacks.
And from a spiritual perspective, the breath represents our life force; it guides us into ourselves, it centres and grounds us into our present moment and it connects us with all that is bigger than us. This is why breathing is at the heart of meditation and mindfulness, and countless other wellness practices.
Have you noticed how simply wonderful a great big breath of lovely clean fresh air feels?
Treat yourself to one now.
Good, huh?
And isn’t it remarkable that as we tentatively begin to creep out of our lockdowned lives, the air has been busily purifying itself, ready for our return.
Connecting with the breath
By consciously checking in with how you are breathing and making a few mindful adjustments, you will instantly give yourself a little mind, body and spirit boost.
Here are a few super easy practices to dip a toe into:
Long, slow, mindfully connected breaths. Outside, inside, anywhere that’s comfortable where you can take a quiet minute for yourself. Breathe. Extend the breath into long, slow, deep breaths, being sure to fully empty your lungs on the exhalation. And simply be with the breath, consciously following each one in and out. You might start to pay attention to the space between the breaths; at the end of the exhalation and before the inhalation, and vice versa.
Balanced breathing. Breathe in and out to the same count; count of 4, count of 6, whatever feels comfortable to you and doesn’t require effort or force. Spend a couple of minutes here, focussing on that deeply balanced breath. You may like to visualise an object or beautiful scene that symbolises balance to you.
The earth breath. So amazing for grounding during times of panic or overwhelm, or when it feels like life is flying away with you. Breathe in through the nose and out through the nose. With the out-breath, imagine roots growing from you and burying deep into the earth below, intertwining with the roots of the earth. On the in-breath, imagine drawing into your body all the minerals and nutrients and goodness that this incredible planet has to offer.
Find your happy place. We all have one. Sitting in a relaxed, comfortable position, let your breath guide you inwards and allow it to take you to the place where you feel most content, most at peace, most like you are home. It may be somewhere you’ve been before, it may be imaginal. Once you’ve found it, spend some time there and really feel into it; log it. It’s then yours to return to whenever you need.
Intentional mantra-led breathing. I’m a recent convert to mantras and affirmations; when used intentionally, they are extremely powerful. Your mantra can be for anything; to help you through a difficult day, to support you in improving confidence, self esteem, self worth or self love, or to bring to life a more abundantly fulfilled version of yourself. When partnered with mindful breathing, the practice becomes amplified and all the more intentional.
Breathe in peace, breathe out release. This is about mindfully drawing in what you do need, and consciously releasing what you don’t. You may like to add a visual element to this, or take it a step further by imagining you are breathing in goodness and healing for your loved ones, those people you don’t know so well, and the world at large. Then breathe away pain, fear and suffering. Remembering that all our thoughts and actions are energy, this is a generous act during these uncertain times.
Belly breathing to relieve pain or discomfort. By calming down the nervous system it is possible to lessen pain or discomfort; belly breathing is a deeply grounding and effective way to do this. Place a hand on your stomach; you are looking to expand your belly out on the inhalation to make your hand rise, and then to contract your abdominal muscles on the out-breath to aid in a full exhalation and make your hand fall.
Spiritual connection from the heart. This is a lovely practice for opening the heart chakra and syncing in with that deeper part of ourselves. Place your hands in prayer position at your heart. Imagine breathing in and out through tips of the middle two fingers, this opens your channel to those higher spiritual sources. As you do, visualise a beautiful flower at your heart centre slowly opening, one petal at a time.
The beautiful practice of Whole Body Breathing
I was given this wonderful practice by my meditation teacher and fell in love with it immediately.
Sit comfortably with a straight back, shoulders drawn back and down, heart open.
Settle in and let your eyes float shut if that feels good.
Set the intention to open the space within your body, and to expand beyond it.
You aren’t manipulating the breath, simply directing it. Follow its natural and normal rhythm.
Draw the breath in through the crown of the head and throughout the inhale, visualise bringing it down to the feet. On the exhale, breathe out through the souls of the feet sending it down into the earth. Repeat this for a few breaths.
Next, reverse it. Draw the breath in through the souls of the feet, and inhale it up through the length of the body to the crown of the head. On the exhale, breathe it out through the crown of the head and into the cosmos above you. Repeat for a few breaths.
When it feels good to move on, imagine bringing the breath in through the entire front of your body, sending it to the back-body (if you’re visual, you might enjoy imagining this as a wall of energy or light). On the exhale, breathe it out through the back-body and into the world behind you. Feel your auric field starting to expand.
And reverse; breath, energy, light, in through the back-body, out through the front-body.
Now draw the breath in from both left and right simultaneously, until it meets in the centre. Exhale back out through the left and right. Repeat and repeat again.
Finally (and this is when it gets really good), we move into whole body breathing; drawing the breath in from above, below, front, back, both left and right sides, and into your heart. Then exhale loving energy back out in every direction, with each exhale really experiencing the sense of expansion; sending that loving energy out into the universe.
I hope some of these ideas and suggestions may be helpful to you.
And if nothing else, just take a moment to breathe today.