Hello again from guest blogger, Lisa Robinson. In this post on The Mindful Path, let’s think about breathing and the role it plays in mindfulness. When you focus on your breathing, it enhances your awareness and ability to pay attention to the present.
The short video below provides information on how to do deep abdominal breathing, which is also known by other names such as diaphragmatic breathing, and belly breathing.
There are many advantages from deep abdominal breathing. In a post from Diana Herrington https://ow.ly/vXJj4 , she lists benefits that include enhanced functioning of the respiratory, digestive, lymph, immune, circulation, and nervous systems.
Both children and adults can learn to do deep abdominal breathing and enjoy the calm and clarity that it promotes. Children can be delighted to push out their stomach muscles to take a deep breath. Some women may find it challenging at first to do this at first, since many of us grow up learning to hold in our stomachs and breathe more shallowly. To get the feel of how to do this properly, I found that lying on the floor with a hand on my stomach was helpful. As I took a deep breath it was easy for me to tell the difference between shallow breathing centered in my chest, and deep breathing that used my diaphragm and pushed out my stomach muscles.
I have called on this technique many times when driving in heavy traffic that feels stressful. It’s also a great way to start the day. First thing in the morning, I take three deep abdominal breaths while sitting at my desk at work.
I hope that you try deep abdominal breathing and enjoy its benefits.
If you have any questions or would like to suggest topics for future posts I make here on The Mindful Path, please contact me at mindfulpath@outlook.com . You can also find me on Twitter @learningdojo
I look forward to sharing more helpful information with you soon.
