#114. Breath

Introduction

We need a lot to survive these days, don’t we?

Speak to anyone, and they have a list of things they can’t live without. I have seen all sorts of things that people talk about; like books, sunglasses and most prevalently, cell phones or laptops.

However, have you ever tried breathing?

Sounds ridiculous, right? Well, it isn’t.

“Remember to breathe. It is after all, the secret of life.”
― Gregory Maguire,  A Lion Among Men

Think about this, you are having an intense day. It’s not hard to imagine one these days. Work is more demanding than ever. Our families and friends only have us to rely on. We have to keep up with our fitness levels and that business venture isn’t going to build itself. In the midst of all of these thoughts, there comes a point where it becomes overwhelming to just keep up.

Now, let’s imagine, after that day, or maybe within it, you got an opportunity to just sit down and breathe. You’re obligated to do nothing else in those few seconds. You’ve got this time to yourself, no one coming to encumber these precious moments. Having a few deep, peaceful breaths become enough for us to exist.

We don’t need anything else. Those few breaths are enough. Enough to reenergise us, rejuvenate us and transform us into someone ready to deal with the remainder of the overwhelm.

Don’t just take it from me. There are a number of successful people across time and space who swear by this technique.

From Kobe Bryant to Novak Djokovic, from Will Smith to Hugh Jackman are all proponents of mindful breathing or meditation of some kind.

In all honesty, though, calling this a technique is probably a disservice. I feel it somehow cheapens the impact that it generates in our lives. And the impact is extraordinary. Enough marketing, let’s get into the benefits.

Physical & Mental Benefits of Mindful Breathing

1. Improved blood pressure & heart rate

Breathing mindfully has been shown to reduce blood pressure, and improve heart rate variability, which is one of the biggest determinants of overall health and well being.

2. Reduced Stress & Anxiety

This was one of the unique selling propositions of mindful breathing for anyone who reads this. In the moment we start breathing mindfully, we can easily forget all the tensions around us, even if it is for a couple of minutes, which can lower our bodies responses to such stimuli.

3. Superior Focus & Mental Clarity

Mindful inhalation and exhalation has a pinpointed impact of drawing all of our attention to the present. No matter how much we try, as long as we determine to glue our intention and awareness to just in and out breaths, it is damn near impossible to have our mind wonder towards the past, which causes regret or the future, which causes anxiety.

Most of what I have shared so far is common knowledge for anyone who has been in the realm of personal development for some time. I guess this might be the first ever thing one might have learnt when beginning their personal development journey.

But what if, I told you there is more to the story here? What if I were to tell you there is a secret, fourth benefit?

The Secret Fourth Benefit

4. It helps create much needed space

We have talked about overstimulation in detail in our past articles. You can read more here. The TL; DR, however, is that maintaining sanity in a world which is ready to throw stimulus after stimulus is like trying to sail a boat in the hurricane Patricia. We ought to be more careful about what we allow as input for ourselves.

Mindful breathing helps create a space between the always on internal stimulus we have, which is our own thoughts. It is immensely interesting that we have tempering mechanisms for almost all stimuli out there, except for our own hyper-driven minds. It is almost fitting that the solution is within us, right there with the problem.

So next time, you find yourself in constant fight or flight mode, you know what to do. And the biggest selling point, which I have forgotten top allude to yet; it’s free, and always available.

If you stuck around this far, thank you for your time. If you enjoyed this, share this with one friend of yours whom you think will benefit from reading this. Thanks for reading, and I will see you in the next one. 🙂