Emotions' Breathing Patterns

Dear Yogis!

Well! I was driving along and look what popped up on the radio: The lost art of breathing, a podcast by James Nestor. I’ve written about him before, three times, and a couple of you reported that you bought that book. Here’s a short-cut to finding out about his terrific work.

Nestor says in this podcast that our ancestors in India, China, the Middle East and North America developed elaborate techniques to lull themselves into this meditative breathing pattern... They did this through prayer. Any type of prayer will slow down the breathing.

“In a scientific study conducted 20 years ago, Italian researchers discovered that the time it takes to vocalise these prayers works out to be a steady pattern of about six breaths a minute. And they discovered something else. When we recite these prayers, we increase blood flow to the brain while decreasing heart rate, blood pressure and stress”.

But, Nestor says, you don’t need to attend Mass, or learn Sanskrit. You just need a slow cadence of breathing! To our ancestors, our breath was a medicine, a great elixir for troubled bodies and minds. The breath is related to emotions. Every emotion has a corresponding breathing pattern. If somebody is angry, you will notice that their breathing is fast. If someone is sad, their exhale is longer; we sigh. It’s a two-way connection. Respiration changes your state of mind. You can manage your emotions via the breath. Focused breathing can transform our health and wellbeing.

It’s a lovely listen. It’s a well-spent half an hour.

Zoom Classes 

We take more than 25,000 breaths a day. Aim for fewer! I’ll help! In class today we will slow it all down! As I write this, there are two people booked for today’s class. Join us!!! For all classes and especially today, you can book here.

Yoga in the news 

Stylist has: Stress relief: why you should try pranayama yoga to de-stress. ‘“The exchange of energy within those does different things in the body; if you’re working further into the feminine channel, you’ll give the body more rest and move into the parasympathetic nervous system more,” she explains. “Those channels are accessed through the left nostril, with breath moving into the right side of the brain that controls your rest and digest functions. When we breathe into the right nostril, we tap into the masculine, big energy channel. The breath moves to the left ‘doing’ side of the brain.”’

Leicester Mercury has: Simple and free daily task can 'significantly' slow down ageing study finds. ‘During the 12-week study, 96 apparently healthy individuals were enrolled to receive YMLI (yoga-and-meditation-based lifestyle intervention). After 12 weeks of YMLI, there were "significant improvements" in the biomarkers of cellular ageing, the researchers found.’