Often when I tell people that they need to breathe when they are challenged in life, they think I am being silly. After all, breathing is an essential part of living and everyone is breathing. The problem is most people are not conscious of the stress relieving benefits of the simple act of conscious breathing. Now, I am not asking people to take up exercises such as Qi Gong or Tai Chi as I am no expert in this area (but if you feel drawn to, you should for these exercises have positive proven track records). I am merely suggesting that one be conscious of breathing as a way to oxygenate one’s brains rapidly to facilitate clearer thinking. And this can be easily done at the office or at home.

When we are stressed, our muscles are contracted from our face, neck, shoulders to our chest and trunk. This makes it virtually impossible for one to breathe in deeply as the body is not allowing it. But if one is conscious of this, one can immediately focus on relaxing the body and take in deep breaths right into the lungs and expand one’s muscles all over the upper body. This immediately sends a ‘new batch’ of oxygen into one’s bloodstream and into one’s brains to allow one to think more clearly and to allow one to clear the confusion or the build up of negative thoughts. Often times, the solution to problems is right before one’s eyes. The failure to see is simply due to confusion, build up of negativity and too much focus on the problem rather than the solution.

I did an exercise with one of the corporate groups I did a talk with on EQ & Stress and we spent some time just focusing on breathing. Many were actually surprised at how much clearer they were in their minds and wondered why they never thought of doing this sooner!

So breathe! It does more than keep you alive, it lets you live life fully

Notes:

• When you are stressed/confused/muddled/tired/anxious/worrying/sad take 2-5 mins off and focus on taking in deep breaths
• Feel the fresh air going into your lungs, traveling along your bloodstream into your heart and then from there into your brains
• Feel the muscles on your face, neck, shoulders, chest and upper body relaxing and allow the rest of your body to also become relaxed
• Experience a sense of renewal in your mind, as everything becomes clearer and all confusion and negativity fading away with the outbreath
• Take several 2-5 mins break each day to just breathe consciously, it will make a world of difference to your stress management abilities

© 2010 Shamala Tan

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Shamala Tan, expert Holistic Life Coach is the founder of Think Right Feel Good™ Program, the step by step system that shows you how to live a better and stress free life. The system teaches you how to manage your stress levels through Right Thinking. Hundreds have benefited from this system and many are praising the system of how they are living more fulfilling lives and experiencing new levels of freedom within themselves. Get your FREE weekly tips and articles on how to further and dramatically change your life for the better, visit www.thinkrightfeelgood.com

Tags: breathe, breathing, conscious breathing, deep breaths, emotional stress, EQ, manage stress, mental health, qi gong, stress management

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