In 2017, my father was diagnosed with Pulmonary Fibrosis and Pulmonary Hypertension. His lungs were functioning at a 20% capacity, and he was terminally Ill. Things would not get better. At this moment he told me that all he wished for was the ability to breathe.
Years before this, I adopted a breathing routine that I would do every morning and many times my father would walk by my room and smile knowing I was repairing my lungs and working towards a healthy lifestyle.
As the UCLA lung specialists searched for better ways to help his severe condition, they always recommended breathing techniques that could ease the pain.
My dad looked at me and said, “you are good at this; you have a gift.” I found it my mission to help him in whatever way possible.
Why Breathing Changed My Life
Growing up I was a very anxious kid; always overthinking everything. I was an honors student and I attributed that to my constant anxiety of wondering “did I study enough?”
Many of us deal with anxiety on various levels and while mine was controlled, it still felt like a problem that needed to be addressed. I always wondered what it would be like to just enjoy life without that constant reminder of something wrong.
Family issues, heartbreak, tough times and many other variables brought on more stress that didn’t help my scenario. What could help me change my mentality?
Confused On How To Start?
I graduated college in 2004 and in 2007 I had the pleasure to travel to India for 3 months. It was my first time as an adult in a foreign country with a new perspective. I decided I wanted to enjoy without a worry in the world, being in a whole unfamiliar environment.
Step 1: Just decide you want to do something different
Overthinking just kills action. My friend advised me to just start with a simple practice of breathing. He showed me a technique he learned from his culture called Pranayama. This technique involved breathing in through one nostril and pumping your stomach in and out and then releasing the breath through the opposite nostril.
I first saw it as intimidating, but I realized that there was a whole other world on breathing. I had never seen anything like it. It looked fun and the benefits were amazing. He told me to start slow and just believe in it as a positive practice.
Step 2: Understand why your breath is important
As I began to understand more techniques there was a main idea that kept popping up: why were we never taught to properly breath and use it as a positive force in our lives?
What does proper breathing look like? What can we do to improve our lung function?
Here are some core reasons I fell in love with its importance:
- Can help provide mental clarity
- Help reduce stress levels
- Aid your digestion
- Stabilizing blood pressure
- Slowing down heart rate
I began doing the Pranayama technique for 30 minutes/day every morning for over 15 years and fell in love with its benefits. I felt a clear mind, my anxiety was not at the forefront, and I felt happy. I started to laugh and think: did oxygen just make me feel better? Was all that was needed was breathing?
As my father dealt with his lung condition, he inspired me to share what I learned. He dealt with many terrible days of always needing 10L of oxygen constantly on. When we did some rehab exercises, he noticed a calmness that came from just breathing and trying to control our minds from feeling nervous.
Just breathe became our mantra, no matter how severe a scenario became.
How does meditation figure into this?
Many mornings after breathing, I would read to start my day. The books I chose had to do with spiritual growth, meditation and calming the mind. I started to feel as if my breathing routine was a form of meditation, and there was a correlation: eyes closed breathing can inspire meditation.
Many meditation routines begin with focusing on slowing down your breath and focusing on just inhaling and exhaling to relax. That is when I really wanted to pair my breathing routine with a meditation routine.
Start With Simplicity!
When I thought of meditation I did not know if I would succeed. My overthinking led me to believe that I did not have time for it and that I do not think I can quiet my mind. What is the point. I finally told myself that it was time to change that mentality.
JUST START SOMEWHERE
The key is to just familiarize yourself with the process. Meditation at its core can be simple. I started with this routine:
- Sit in a comfortable spot: in a chair or on the floor
- Close your eyes
- Inhale slowly and deep then exhale slowly. Do this 30 times
- As you do this, envision oxygen flowing to all parts of your body
- On the last breath just sit there and keep your eyes closed for 10 minutes
The purpose of this process is to just get comfortable with your own breath and silence. In this world we are constantly distracted and never take time to sit still with ourselves. It is a great start to just notice what we think about when we are trying to relax.
Do not judge yourself and just enjoy getting started.
AfterIMeditate was created to help you learn about the power of positive routines in our life. Let us start with some basics and have fun. Our mission is to improve our mental health and be happy about ourselves by doing things we love.
In future articles we will look at meditation and breathing in depth and find ways to improve our lives.