Gaye Abbott – Page 11 – BREATHING SPACES

The Path of Opening

Angel Oak Tree in Angel Oak Park, on Johns Island, Southern Carolina.

“The person who breathes deep and easy, who holds minimal tension in the shoulders, who lifts the heart and chest – she/he has a very different experience of life. The root of the word courage means heart. When we collapse the chest, we become easily dis-couraged, dis-heartened. When we fill our space and widen our chest, there is suddenly room for connection, purpose and passion. ” Victoria Castle in The Trance Of Scarcity – Hey Stop Holding Your Breath and Start Living Your Life, pg 64

Reading this passage from Victoria’s book this morning I was inspired to write this blog post and also made painfully aware of my own bodies tension and contraction. As I sat to meditate it became very clear that I was clenching my mouth and jaw for no particular reason. When checking with my breath it was contracted as well! This most likely represents many years of muscular armoring in perceived unsafe situations along the way.

The “story” that went along with this contraction spoke to me quite clearly – “Hold tight! You don’t know what is coming at you next!” What a terrible story to live by, yet I am willing to bet that many of us hold this type of story in our bodies and psyche – most often unconsciously. I know that when I live in contraction the tension keeps me disturbed, off balance and attending to what is wrong – or in Victoria’s words “holds us in the Trance of Scarcity”….. and I say perpetuates “struggle mode”.

The amazing tree above spoke to me of the OPEN way in which we are meant to be. This Angel Oak is wide open, spreading, begging to be connected with (as there are so many lovely branches to sit upon), and completely available to you, I or anyone/anything. She has learned surrender, openness, trust, and wisdom from her years of being present to the moment of nature. She is completely embodied in her tree elderhood.

We too can be in that flow by coming out of the daily creation of separation and into the natural state of belonging. When we are out of this flow our breath is shallow, or we stop breathing for periods of time; our shoulders are slumped; brows furrowed; tense necks; clenched jaws; and a collapsed chest. When we release these contractions and the stories that have created them, our world opens up and we naturally “belong” without any effort on our part.

So, I leave you with some identifying markers for the state of OPENNESS. Remember that this state comes with a full embodiment of sensation and breath. What we embody, we become!

OPEN is: (from The Trance of Scarcity)

Ease…Prevailing trust….relaxed body….effortless breathing….”can do” attitude….collaborative….curious, asking questions….see opportunities…..generous……willing to take risks…….laugh easily at self…….energized……fighting FOR (not against)…..resilient….grateful…..releasing things easily…..make clear requests and agreements…..generative, accountable……wholehearted – and coming from your wholeness.

When we each inhabit this place of openness it not only affects others, but inspires them to open as well! I extend my hand to each of you on this path of opening. Though the body memory may want to go back into a contracted survival mode – your willingness to be aware of sensation and breath will give you a choice. The way in which we breathe and embody is the way in which we live our lives. How do you want to live yours?? Create and live by a different story!!

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Breathing Room

These three things that matter can most often be found within another three states: Silence, Stillness and Spaciousness. How our ego puts up a fight against even dipping one single toe into a space large enough to hold a full inhale and exhale in this very moment.

Try this simple exercise and see what happens – stand with feet planted on the floor about a hip distance apart, arms at your side with palms facing forward. Watch as a full breath starts from the belly, expands the ribcage and back, then cascades like a waterfall on the exhale pausing in the pool of breath at the bottom. Take several breaths this way.

Now close your eyes and lean forward as far as you can without tipping over. Watch what happens to the breath. Now come back to center and root down. Watch what happens to the breath and be aware of all the micro-movements and adjustments the body must make in order to simply stand upright.

For most of us this simple exercise reflects what happens constantly all day long. We lean into the future and our breath is literally held as our mind takes us to the next thing on the agenda. There is no breathing room.

I experienced that today in a conscious exercise in yoga class. As we moved very slowly from one pose to the next the mind wanted to revolt, to run, to judge, to do anything but be quiet to the burning muscle or the reflex thought about tomorrow. Instead we were instructed to place our mind on gentleness within the silence, stillness and spaciousness that grew as each breath passed.

To gracefully let go of the ego’s urging to move out of the pose, run to the bathroom, or chant the mantra – this is too hard! Watch the breath, love the body, let go gracefully of what is not meant for you. How much more do we suffer if we don’t give enough breathing room to expand the moment that we are in right now?

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Magical Breathing Space

Having just returned home from an early evening walk…that magical time when light is fading, birds outlined in the sky heading for their evening resting places, and the sounds of insects everywhere. A few years ago I spent some time in Vermont and remember with great delight the first time – YES, the very first time – that I saw a firefly. Seems that they don’t have those magical creatures in California where I lived for most of my life.

It was with absolute awe and delight that I watched these insects of light create a sort of fairyland in the surrounding fields and gardens. I remember feeling like a small child who was somehow transported to a magical land where the path was lit by very small creatures especially for me.

Tonight, in the periphery of my vision, I caught a flash of light. I could hardly believe that it might have been a firefly for this is my 3rd summer in Austin and I don’t remember seeing any the previous 2 summers. But true to their magical character they proved to me that indeed they were out this evening as I spotted flashes of light along the path I was walking.

I watched my breath deepen and open and realized that it was not just the fireflies that were magical. It was my inhale and exhale that stopped me in my tracks. Some huge number leapt out at me from my brains store of facts taken from the many workshops on breathing that I have done over the years.

The average respiration rate for a person at rest is about 16 breaths per minute.
This means on average, we breathe about 960 breaths an hour
23040 breaths a day
8409600 a year
If a person lives to 80, then that means on average they will take 672,768,000 breaths in a lifetime!

(Note: this does not include that our breath rate is faster as a child, and that breathing rate does increase when we exercise!)

For each breath we take there is potential. Like the fireflies that I did not notice the two summers prior to this one, many breaths have passed in my lifetime without gratitude for this magical process that gives us life. Although science can answer our questions about why the firefly lights up at the end of its body, and how our breath physiologically occurs – what cannot be answered completely is the source and creation of light and breath.

May we always remember that there is mystery and magic to life. Each breath treasured and celebrated!

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Return To Deep Harmony

My recent offering of a class called Decrease Anxiety, Indulge Inner Peace has been an awakening on many levels. Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the United States affecting 40 million adults age 18 and older. That equals 18.9% of the U.S. population and doesn’t even include those under 18.

Shallow constricted breathing is one aspect of the emotional posture of anxiety. Our entire system turns acidic with this type of breathing, our secondary breathing muscles in the neck, shoulders and upper chest become tight and contracted, and the stress response is activated over and over again.

Did you know that the average person reaches peak respiratory function and lung capacity in their mid-20’s As they continue to age they lose between 9%-25% of respiratory capacity for every decade of life. The findings resulting from a 5,000 person clinical study group observed over a 30 year span showed that the way a person breathes is the primary measure of potential life span. (Framingham study). This tells me that we can change the decline in respiratory function by breathing more fully as often as possible and potentially decrease anxiety!

“For breath is life, and if you breathe well you will live long on Earth” Sanskrit

That full diaphragmatic breath that was so easy when we were infants somehow became distorted and contracted as we learned over the years that is was often not safe to be completely ourselves. This “shut down” on so many levels is perhaps the core reason why there is so much shallow breathing and anxiety these days.

In addition, the minds default for survival always seems to go to the past and to the future to supposedly protect us from making the same mistakes or creating new ones. We resist the fact that everything changes. It is the moment to moment experience of life NOW that somehow gets lost in the fray!

A key to opening back to what Deepak Chopra calls “deep harmony of body, mind and Spirit that was yours at birth” is a full unrestricted breath…one after another. Is our goal to always breathe in this way? Well, perhaps intention is a better word here for if we can be aware of our breathing throughout the day, and at least start and end our day with at least 5 minutes of conscious breathing practice, our body will start to remember what it was like to be that open and unrestricted. Our hearts will celebrate as they are massaged by the diaphragm and open to love, and our minds will once again remind us of the capacity for wholeness and interconnection.

We won’t always be able to breathe this fully, but at least we can have the intention. It takes practice and a willingness to live the moment. Here is a mantra that you might want to use in your daily breath practice:

On the inhale silently say to yourself “alive” and on the exhale “now”. Then rest in the “pause” before the inhale naturally comes back in again. The moment is a gift of awareness. This also can be a great “break” during a very busy day when you realize that you are forgetting to breathe, or in the midst of emotional, mental, or physical stress.

As Dennis Lewis says in the last of The Ten Secrets of Authentic Breathing, “Remember you are a breathing being, alive right now and here. Let yourself feel the mystery and the miracle of your breath and your life as often as you can.”

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Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:
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A Waste of Breath

How much of our breath is taken up with words of complaint or dissatisfaction? How often are we reacting to life creating our own suffering versus savoring each precious moment?

I ask myself these questions often as a reminder to wake up to the beauty and simple act of breathing. Breathing in the experiences that are present to each of us on a daily basis within each moment.

A few years ago now I remember taking a signed “Complaint Free Contract” into work and pinning it to the board above my computer. It created quite a stir with laughter and puzzlement by many of my co-workers. They shortly found out that I was dead serious in my intention, not only to be free of complaining, but also to be grateful for as many things as possible.

Slowly it affected those in close proximity to me and for a few weeks complaining went down by 75% or more. Smiles were seen more often and our patients benefited from a staff that seemed happier and more collaborative. But like anything it didn’t last and the complaining slowly crept back in again.

Our breath is precious, not only to keep us alive, but to bring our whole expression into the world. Complaining is indeed a waste of breath. It serves only to bond ourselves and others into a group victim consciousness with no resolution in sight.

The suggestions in the picture above are simple and we forget them often. I include myself in that. As our inhale and exhale moves us into the next moment of our lives we have a choice.

Let go of reaction first. Then breathe…. reflect instead before wasting one single breath on that first word of complaint. We only have a limited amount of breaths allotted to each of us during our lifetimes. Wouldn’t you rather spend your last breath (and many more before your last!) saying I love you?

TIP FROM THE UNIVERSE: If your breathing itself was not proof enough that you are loved beyond comprehension, then how about your freedom to feel unlimited joy, in spite of circumstances that surround you?

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WEBSITE: www.ResonanceWithLife.com

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:
www.WildlyFreeWoman.com
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

Give Us This Day Our Daily Breath Preview, Reviews and purchase links can be found here:
http://resonancewithlife.com/daily-breath-book/

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