Your breath means far more than just bringing oxygen into your body.
Every time you choose to consciously breathe, you give yourself the gift of being present. Harvard studies show that the slow, conscious breath affects the mental state in a positive and calming way.
Not only does the breath help clear your mind, it also creates space for you to consciously choose response vs. old conditioned reaction. And the conscious breath is your greatest asset to connect with and feel your emotions, which always must be felt unconditionally.
As you can see, “the breath” has many more positive aspects than most people recognize.
Most people breathe in a shallow and unconscious way. This generally has a negative effect on your state of mind, attention span, self-control and confidence.
Your breath is your naturally built in tool.
In essence you can take back control by choosing to consciously breathe. It is a conscious choice on your part because you become present to your thoughts and feelings. Imagine that!?
Taking back control, by consciously breathing and being present to what actually goes on in that head of yours…what a concept.
It is the way to go and it is the way of the future. Control is generally a word with negative connotations attached.
Taking back control is one of the most important things to do because we have turned into a nation of general unconsciousness and we are mostly running on “automatic pilot”. This is dangerous because old/negative conditioning is driving our choices and our lives.
This must stop and the way to start the process is to consciously breathe. We cannot be present and consciously breathing and unconscious and running on automatic pilot at the same time.
To be in control of yourself in every way means taking full responsibility for yourself. Of course this includes consciously choosing to be present to your emotions and feeling them unconditionally. Being in control means you are being present to what you may be feeling. Your conscious breath wants to reach deeply down into the bottom of your belly. The belly is your feeling center. Besides being in control of your mind, you must be present to what and how you are feeling.
As an example, let’s use the simple but yet so harmful emotion “stress.”
When you consciously choose to breathe into the bottom of your belly you will become aware of the experience of feeling stressed. Feeling stressed is ok as long as you breathe, feel, and do not think. This is you taking back control over yourself and your experience. You must not think when feeling negative emotions because the thoughts would anchor and store this emotion within your brain chemistry, neuro wiring, and cell structure, creating anxiety, eventually leading to depression or even dis-ease.
Watch this video “the breath” because it will give you excellent guidance on “how to” properly breathe.
I cannot stress enough the importance of your conscious breath. Let it be your “go to” practice as many times a day as you can possibly remember. You are taking control by consciously choosing to breathe.
It is a conscious choice to be present and to remain present. Your breath will always bring you back to being present if you may have slipped back into shallowness. This happens, especially if conscious choice to breathe and being present is a new behavior for you.
Do not react, but breathe – if you have slipped, it is ok. Breathe deep and do not think. Come back into being present to yourself and the fact that in this moment you are in control and present again. The more you choose to be in control of yourself, your breath, and your mind, the more it will empower you. You will feel stronger and more in control.
You have the choice to consciously choose in every moment of every day.