Mindful Breathing

Your breath is what keeps you alive and provides your mind and body with the necessary oxygen. While your breathing and heartbeat are both autonomous, your breathing is easily controlled by conscious effort; therefore training ourselves to breath more effectively brings forth benefits to a vital part our functioning.

It’s easy to grow short on breath when we face stress. However, a shortness of breath is a mechanism meant to incite our primary instincts to keep light and flee a potentially dangerous situation. If we work jobs that keep us in a constant state of mild or high stress, then our breath may be shallow on a regular basis and our brains will become even further stressed from a lack of sufficient oxygen.

Mindful breathing is helpful for calming the mind while remaining alert and aware. Sufficient oxygen is needed to keep your mind functioning in its top condition. By maintaining proper breathing through techniques, we are able to function with a clearer mind – allowing for less chance to make emotional or rash decisions from an agitated state of mind.

There are a lot of different breathing techniques - it may seem overwhelming and like additional stress to try and learn them all. Fortunately it doesn’t need to be complicated. What’s most important is to take a deep breath, fill up your lungs completely through a deep and low inhalation. After you’ve breathed in completely, simply just let go of the breath. Focus on maximizing the inhalation, and simply release the breath. Don’t overstress your lungs; simply fill them up completely while maintaining comfort.

The inhalation is the most important part of the breath because it supplies the oxygen. When you maximize your breath, you maximize how much oxygen you’re taking in. At first, you may feel light-headed if your body is not used to the additional oxygen uptake. However, your body will adapt to the levels of oxygen taken in as the practice of deep breathing becomes regular.

You can practice this kind of breathing for as long as it feels comfortable and you will naturally deepen your breath without having to consciously think about it. Be mindful that it would be a good idea to start this exercise when you are already resting and not doing an activity such as driving. It would be dangerous to become light-headed in certain situations, so be careful and smart when practicing.

It’s difficult to remain in a constant state of deep breathing. However, if we can make time to consciously be mindful and aware of our breath, we can see improvements in keeping a calm, more balanced state of mind. This is effective in handling life and its daily demands under control on a regular basis.

For related reading on artists’ self-development, please read Being In The Moment.