Breathing. One of the most basic yet fundamental things we can do with our bodies. It’s an automatic response that we don’t even have to think about throughout the day. But when we consciously focus on our breath, miracles can happen!
What is Breathwork?
Breathwork is the conscious act of focusing on your breath to bring awareness to your physical body. So many responses occur when you do conscious breathwork. It delivers oxygen to all your muscles, cells, and organs, giving life and vitality. Breath is the lifeblood of your physical body. You need oxygen to survive and breathing allows for the delivery of this oxygen. When you do conscious breathwork, you are doubling up your efforts by breathing deeper and often with intention. You are amplifying your body’s ability to heal because breathing:
Allows enough oxygen so your body can focus on other things such as healing
Relaxes your muscles and releases any tension, allowing for healing to enter that space
Calms your mind by focusing your attention away from destructive and negative thoughts
Moves your brainwaves into a theta state, which is meditative and deeply healing
Calms the autonomic nervous system response, especially the fight or flight response, taking your body out of constant overdrive and exhaustion
Takes you out of your ego and into your true heart and center
Clears energy blockages
There have been many scientific studies conducted on the health benefits of breathwork as well. According to parsleyhealth.com, breathwork:
Reduces stress and anxiety
Boosts the immune response
Increases focus and alertness
Breathwork from a Spiritual Perspective
From a spiritual perspective, breath is life. Breath connects you to your true, Divine self. It brings balance into your entire being – mind, body, and spirit. It helps to keep you grounded and in your body. Often when we meditate and connect spiritually, we can move into states where we literally don’t feel our bodies. While this is beneficial and a beautiful experience, it’s also important to stay grounded and connected to the Earth.
Our bodies are these dense containers that house our souls, our True Selves, our true essence. Although these bodies don’t live forever, it’s still an important vessel to do our work here in this lifetime on Earth. It allows us to accomplish our mission and function on a gravity planet such as Earth. It’s important to connect the spiritual work with the bodywork – to marry the two so to speak. To receive messages and relay this information to others, I need a clear and healthy vessel.
Breathwork as Self-Care
The healthier my body is, the clearer these messages are going to come through. As a healer, my body must be healthy, because I am the conduit through which healing energy is channeled and delivered to my clients. I need to take care of it so that I’m healthy enough to do my work here on Earth.
Even if you’re not a healer, it’s still important to treat your body right, take care of it, and love it up! Your body is pretty amazing. It carries you every day and allows you life. I always wanted to be a nurse or something in the health profession, because I am so fascinated by the human body and all the magic that happens while we go about our daily lives!
Part of taking care of your body is becoming consciously aware of it every day. And you can do this by taking big, deep breaths. When you do breathwork, you will notice different sensations in your body. You might feel a tingling or warm sensation. This is your life force energy flowing throughout your entire physical body and energy field in and around your body.
Breathwork for Grounding & Releasing
Taking big deep breaths not only cleanses and releases stress and tension but letting it out in a big exhale is also very therapeutic and helps to release whatever was just cleared. When I do energy work, I feel when my client releases a blockage and I naturally take a big breath and think about the energy being released down into the Earth where she can transmute it into love.
Different Types of Breathwork
There are so many different ways to do breathwork. You can do an entire meditation just focusing on breathing. Or you could focus on it for a couple of minutes to calm and center yourself. Or you could actually take a breathwork class. I encourage you to try a couple of ways and see which one feels best for you. It may change every day too!
Alternating Nostrils. Place your finger over the right nostril and breathe in through the left nostril. Then, place your left finger over your left nostril and then breathe out of your right nostril. You can do this for several cycles until you feel calm and relaxed. This is a great way to help you feel grounded, balanced, and connected to your Root Chakra.
Belly Breathing. This type of breathwork involves taking big, deep breaths into your belly versus just your lungs. This is a great way to help you connect with and balance your Sacral Chakra.
Counting Breaths. Breathe in for 5 seconds, hold for 5 seconds, and then breathe out for 5 seconds. You can repeat this same cycle or maybe count down to 1. You can try breathing in for 7 seconds, holding for 5, and then breathing out for 3. There’s no right or wrong way here.
·Breathing in a Word or Affirmation. This helps brings intention to your breathwork practice. Breathe in a word and then breathe out the opposite. For example, breathe in peace and breathe out anxiety. This brings intention to your breathing and helps you focus on your breath and how your body feels.
Yoga. If you have ever taken a yoga class, then you know the focus is on connecting your breath with the different body movements/poses. This allows for your life force energy to flow throughout all your chakras, clearing blockages and creating balance and harmony.
Kundalini Yoga. This is a very specific type of yoga that involves heavy breathing along with meditation and different poses. It’s designed to awaken your kundalini and is a powerful way to use breath to clear energy blockages.
These are just a few examples of breathwork you can try. If you are just starting out, I would begin with just simple, focused breaths or some belly breaths. Take a yoga class where an instructor can help guide you. Work up to the more intense breathwork practices, such as Kundalini yoga. If that resonates with you, I highly suggest taking a class. Learn how it works under supervision before trying it on your own!
Just Breathe
There are many different types of breathwork exercises and practices out there that go beyond the scope of this blog. My guides wanted me to bring breathwork to your attention and let this serve as a reminder to just breathe.
Allow your breath to clear your mind and body, to easily feel your life force energy flow through you, and to connect you with your true, Divine self.
Energize yourself and boost your vitality and focus throughout your day through breath.
No matter how you choose to practice breathwork, it’s going to bring awareness to your physical body and help you appreciate the unlimited strength and power you hold within your own beautiful, amazing vessel created by Source.
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