The Heart of the Matter

Have you ever felt that you’re on a hamster wheel some days?

Stubbornness is not one of my most endearing traits. At times, I have been able to hang on to that hamster wheel like my life depended on it.

It’s amazing how quickly a few negative thoughts about what I’m challenged with in my life can turn into a negative unending spiral. And down I go – hanging on to that stupid hamster wheel.

The only thing that got me off the darn thing was getting desperate and saying “ENOUGH!!”

As soon as I did that, it created an opportunity. I had a CHOICE!

And when I realized that I could choose to not be a hamster, I fell off the wheel. And immediately my memory was flooded with all of the tools that I already have at my fingertips to blast that wheel into smithereens!!

Several years ago, my youngest sister was given a diagnosis of terminal cancer. She was given three to five years to live.

Well, I jumped on to that hamster wheel in a big way at first! I was really angry that this had happened to her. Eventually, I realized that the hamster wheel was really all about me.

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Diaphragmatic Breathing

Breathing is something we take for granted, and rarely think about. Yet, focusing on breathing in specific ways can make monumental shifts in your physical and mental state of being.

Diaphragmatic Breathing is, simply stated, breathing from your diaphragm.

Diaphragmatic breathing (inhaling from your belly through your nose) activates the Vagus nerve, the 10th of the 12 pairs of nerves that run from your brain to your body, connecting the brain to all the organs. Exhaling and holding your breath after the exhale further taps into the Vagus nerve.

This simple exercise is a great (and fast) way to create a shift from the sympathetic (the Fight or Flight) system to the Parasymathetic (the Rest and Digest) system, bringing a sense of calm to your day.

Click below to download a .pdf of the exercise.

“The truth is that there is no actual stress or anxiety in the world; it’s your thoughts that create these false beliefs.”

-Wayne Dyer

photo by Phil Konstantin

This Month’s Gift

Calming Anxiety Protocol

The Calming Anxiety protocol is a 5 minute recording of a series of five tuning fork sounds created by Dr. John Beaulieu.

Listen to the track once in the morning and notice how you feel for the remainder of the day. Do this daily for a couple of weeks to explore the difference it makes. .