Our Adrenaline-driven minds. Those minds that are still running from the lion well after the lion has given up chase. Those minds that are stuck in “How come I didn’t see Parkinson’s coming,” instead of “what am I going to do about Parkinson’s now that it is here?” Those minds that are angry and frustrated about the past and fearful and worried about the future. Those I-need-to-solve-every-problem-have-every-answer-cannot-shut-off-the-chatter-Adrenaline-driven-minds. What are we going to do? How do we turn down the volume and shut off the noise? How do we bring our minds into the moment?
Breathe. That’s right, breathe. Something our bodies do without us thinking about it. Our bodies are survival mechanisms, and our bodies know we need to breathe for our bodies to survive. So what does breathing have to do with healing our Adrenaline-driven minds? Everything.
Here is a relaxation breathing exercise. Give it a try and see how you feel. The first instruction is to close your eyes, so you may wish to read the whole thing before you begin:
1. Close your eyes and picture yourself laying in a beautiful field with a light breeze blowing.
2. Inhale deeply and smell all of the smells…the flowers and the grass and the fresh air.
3. Exhale fully and feed your carbon dioxide to the life growing around you.
4. Repeat this for 5 full breaths. On the sixth inhale, slowly open your eyes and re-adjust to your surroundings.
How do you feel? With practice, you will be able to proceed forward with the things you have to do while maintaining the calm relaxation you felt in the field. It is bringing this calm and relaxed mind into our everyday life that heals our Adrenaline-driven mind and puts us in the moment of what is happening now.
The next time you feel the surge of your Adrenaline-driven mind chatter about to take you on the roller coaster named fear, don’t forget to breathe. And, if you can take a moment to do the relaxing breathing exercise explained above, you will be surprised to find that you were able to get off of the roller coaster named fear, and deal with your life in a calmer, clearer manner. How refreshing is that?
Breathing as part of our recovery from our Adrenaline-driven minds. Who knew that breathing could be so powerful?
Close your eyes and start breathing yourself into calmness and relaxation.
Aren’t you worth it?
All my best,
Howard
