breathing

See the products page for the whole CD.

Implied in the words “stress management” is the idea that the key to calm is controlling your stress. As an advocate of prevention, I know that the key to managing stress is having the ability to handle whatever is being thrown at you – to say yes to sudden change. Easier said than done, right? As great as the best breathing techniques are for anxiety when breakdowns occur, there is a better way, a shortcut you might say.

What if you didn’t go into fear and resistance at all and thus have to do the extra step of clearing yourself?

Here is a five minute technique from my book and CD The LifeQuake Method. As you are waking up in the morning before coming into full consciousness, set an intention that you will say yes to whatever happens throughout the day. This does not mean agreeing to injustices hurled at you, it means simply responding, rather than reacting to the crisis. In your mind’s eye, experience yourself in the flow of life events. Whatever you do when you get out of bed: make the coffee, pick up the house, feed the dog, etc you will do gracefully, peacefully, devoid of frenetic rush you may find yourself usually falling into. Imagine having your first meal with the focus on really tasting what you are eating and letting it nourish you.

Now imagine you are driving to work or if you work from home, sitting at your computer and something happens you didn’t count on like coffee spills all over your desk, someone cuts you off in traffic, etc but you stay remarkably calm. Now imagine an even bigger upset, something you really have been afraid might happen like losing your job or a big client. Feel the feelings that come up around this, now breathe into them until it releases and declare that something amazing is going to come from this. Repeat this phrase again, “something amazing is going to come from this”. Now scan through the rest of the day and all the task you have to do, imagining yourself doing them with joy and gratitude. Imagine your state of being having an infectious effect on all you come into contact with even in the midst of a crisis. Now imagine getting into bed, scanning the day you just finished, amazed that on a really challenging, crisis driven day, you claimed peace as yours. Now, open your eyes, and feel your body moving with great agility and light footedness. Believe it or not, this is all you have to do to have an impact on world peace, not to mention your nervous system and over all health.

Dr. Toni Galardi is a licensed psychotherapist, author, and public speaker. She can be reached through her website at http:www.LifeQuake.net