Being Present With Our Breath

Breathing. Being present with our inhale and exhale. Something so simple, and yet, so powerful. In moments of crisis and trauma, times that activate our fight-or-flight responses, it can be difficult to remember to breathe.

A really easy and beneficial breathing practice you can try is called paced breathing, which is a Dialectical Behavior Therapy skill and focuses on the calming effects of the exhale.

When we breathe in, we use our sympathetic nervous system (i.e., fight-or-flight). When we breathe out, we use our parasympathetic nervous system (i.e., rest and digest). In paced breathing, we want to focus on having a longer exhale than inhale where, over even just a few minutes, increased activation of the parasympathetic nervous system leaves one feeling more calm and relaxed.

I encourage you to have an exhale that is at least two counts longer than your inhale (e.g., breathe in for 5 counts, breathe out for 7 counts). Maybe pair it with sitting in a quiet place and listening to calming music, if possible. Try it out for at least 5 minutes and notice how you feel after the practice.

Mindfulness practices, such as this, can be incredibly helpful in becoming more aware of our thoughts, including our limiting beliefs. Meditative practices are not about having a completely blank mind, but rather it is a means of learning how to simply observe our thoughts without attaching any emotion or judgment to them. 

If you are interested in identifying and changing your own negative core beliefs, click here to sign up for my weekly newsletter and get access to my FREE guide, What’s Holding You Back?: 10 Common Limiting Beliefs in Parenthood!