Box Breathing

Box Breathing is a technique I've used from time to time to help calm my nervous system - especially before I lead a program or get filmed. 

And especially lately. As an empath, I find I've been profoundly impacted by the volume of fear, anxiety, concern, anger, and hatred being expressed all over the world right now. I have practices that support me, but I hadn't bulked those up to match the onslaught of negativity's current global level.

I do not usually tell people about this. I learned young not to be "emotional." I've worked hard not to be "so sensitive" and so "emotional." And yet, here I am, stress-eating to numb out all this emotion. At times I feel a bit helpless about the impact of all the emotions around me, but I do not want to be perceived as weak or a victim, so I've worked to hide this.

I'm sharing it now because I know I'm not alone in experiencing our collective upset.

Stress-eating has typically been an effective (but costly) way to numb myself so that I can't feel the anxiety/angst. I haven't done this for years. When I saw that the behavior had come back, it occurred to me that I need to build more resilience.

I don't want to turn off feeling. I don't want to be consumed by it or find myself unable to act because I'm overwhelmed by it.

Unfortunately, stress-eating only works for about 30 minutes. After that, I start feeling unwell. So it cannot be my go-to practice anymore.

Another way for me to build more resilience without having to numb myself is box breathing. There are numerous ways for me to build resilience, and this one seems to be really helpful.

Instructions for Box Breathing (sometimes called 'square breathing'):

1. Inhale for 4 seconds (use an amount of time that works for you) "up" one side of the metaphorical box

2. Hold your breath for 4 seconds across the top of the box

3. Exhale down the side of the box for 4 seconds

4. Hold your breath for 4 seconds across the bottom of the box

5. Repeat at least 3x

What are your practices for calming your nervous system?

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