With Every Breath

The beauty of haven taken so many holistic health courses, is that I get free health information from the instructors. During of my courses, we did some techniques that helped to identify imbalances within the body. The techniques are from Traditional Chinese Medicine  (TCM)

When it was my turn, I got on the massage table and took a deep breath. I couldn't imagine what she would imbalances she would say that I had. I am thinking I am good. Being the holistic health practitioner that I am. She started poking around and says "Do you smoke?" I had to sit up and see who she was talking to. Surely she could NOT be talking to me. Perhaps while she was poking around she was talking to another student. Yeah that's it. So, I said... WHO ME? She said yes. I then looked at her with such confusion and said NO.  She said well your lungs are weak. You are not getting enough air in  your lungs, do you have Asthma? No lady, I don't smoke and I don't have Asthma. I couldn't figure out why I wasn't getting enough air in my lungs and I was too cheap to pay her for a more detailed analysis after I just paid a large sum for the course. O_o So I went about my life as usual with the lack of oxygen I was getting.

One day I was driving to work, putt putting along when I realized I was holding my breath and gripping the wheel like I was choking the very life out of it. Surely if that was a person, I would have killed it. When I looked at my hands, I still had the marks from my nails still in them. This had been my driving to work pattern for a long time. It wasn't until I started studying meditation and became a personal trainer that I learned of breathing techniques and became aware of my own breathing patterns. That was it!! I was breathing incorrectly and therefore I was not getting enough air in my lungs. All my life I had been breathing incorrectly and now everyone wants to talk about how to breathe. Like that was something new. Who knew?

Some of the health  issues non-conscious breathing habits can cause:

• Headache
• Chronic fatigue
• Sleeping problems
• Concentration problems
• Anxiety and phobia
• Panic disorder
• Depression
• Heart disease

"Practicing regular, mindful breathing can be calming and energizing and can even help with stress-related health problems ranging from panic attacks to digestive disorders." says Andrew Weil, M.D.

By being conscious of the way that I breathe, I am able to get more air in my lungs and combat some of life's stressors. I am focusing on the now. The present. Just my breath.

As always, thank you for reading. Visit my website at www.nu-bodi.com and I will see you tomorrow!