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Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

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Re: Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

#11

Post by klyrs »

rojobuffalo wrote: post #7

It's remarkable that I so often lapse in my meditation practice when it's such a short time commitment and so consistently improves my mood. I tell myself that morning yoga is enough or a walking meditation while taking the dog out is enough - I do those every day without fail. But they're not the same as seated breath work. Why do other mood improvement habits seem more approachable, like making a cup of tea or exer…

> sitting and breathing seems harder?

The stillness, I think. With adhd, that's my challenge anyway. The mind does not shut off, and 5 minutes can feel like forever. Even thinking about it makes me squirm. But I took a yoga class once that did breathwork, and with guidance, I found the ability to focus my entire attention on my breath; the action and the feeling of it.

Re: Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

#13

Post by nvader »

rojobuffalo wrote: post #7

It's remarkable that I so often lapse in my meditation practice when it's such a short time commitment and so consistently improves my mood. I tell myself that morning yoga is enough or a walking meditation while taking the dog out is enough - I do those every day without fail. But they're not the same as seated breath work. Why do other mood improvement habits seem more approachable, like making a cup of tea or exer…

I've heard meditation described as "motionless ju-jitsu with yourself". In the absence of any obstacle, the only opponent is you, but by definition you are equal in strength to yourself. So meditation can devolve into a heated evenly-matched contest of wills, which is extremely draining.

Re: Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

#14

Post by rojobuffalo »

nvader wrote: post #13
rojobuffalo wrote: post #7

It's remarkable that I so often lapse in my meditation practice when it's such a short time commitment and so consistently improves my mood. I tell myself that morning yoga is enough or a walking meditation while taking the dog out is enough - I do those every day without fail. But they're not the same as seated breath work. Why do other mood improvement habits seem more approachable, like making a cup of tea or exer…

I've heard meditation described as "motionless ju-jitsu with yourself". In the absence of any obstacle, the only opponent is you, but by definition you are equal in strength to yourself. So meditation can devolve into a heated evenly-matched contest of wills, which is extremely draining.

Oh man I love that description! It makes me think how exercise is like a contest against physical limits, which are knowable. Hard work leads to heavier lifts or longer runs. But when you kick your own ass in meditation, the limits are more ambiguous and progress isn't so linear.

Re: Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

#15

Post by wpietri »

rojobuffalo wrote: post #7

It's remarkable that I so often lapse in my meditation practice when it's such a short time commitment and so consistently improves my mood. I tell myself that morning yoga is enough or a walking meditation while taking the dog out is enough - I do those every day without fail. But they're not the same as seated breath work. Why do other mood improvement habits seem more approachable, like making a cup of tea or exer…

For me during meditation, many thoughts arise. Often they are things I am troubled or anxious about. If I am doing something else, I have a ready-made distraction from those thoughts. But if I'm just sitting, I actually have to be present for them. It's much harder to build a habit where the short-term payoff is negative.

You might try making it part of a broader routine. Lately (and unusually for me) I've been struggling with sleep. So I've explicitly adopted a bedtime routine that gets me to wind down. As part of that, I light a big candle when I start the routine. Then the last thing I do before blowing out the candle getting into bed is to sit down by the candle and use it as a medication focus. This way I feel like I'm getting the sitting for "free" in that I don't have to expend any willpower to make it happen; there are other positive associations that serve as the reward.

Re: Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

#17

Post by weregiraffe »

nvader wrote: post #13
rojobuffalo wrote: post #7

It's remarkable that I so often lapse in my meditation practice when it's such a short time commitment and so consistently improves my mood. I tell myself that morning yoga is enough or a walking meditation while taking the dog out is enough - I do those every day without fail. But they're not the same as seated breath work. Why do other mood improvement habits seem more approachable, like making a cup of tea or exer…

I've heard meditation described as "motionless ju-jitsu with yourself". In the absence of any obstacle, the only opponent is you, but by definition you are equal in strength to yourself. So meditation can devolve into a heated evenly-matched contest of wills, which is extremely draining.

"Perfectly symmetrical violence never solved anything"

Re: Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

#18

Post by tsujamin »

williamscales wrote: post #16

I have pretty severe anxiety at this time and these breathing practices have really helped me get out of a bad situation without medication: 1) Box breathing 2) Yoganidra (even if I’m not trying to fall asleep)

+1 box breathing

Re: Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

#19

Post by [deleted] »

JaggerFoo wrote: post #10

I like that they described how each method is performed. The mindful meditation method was a bit different from what I've used, but something I can adopt. So cyclic sighing can replace mindful meditation, except that it requires more use to reap the benefits. So now Cyclic Sighing, Mindful Meditation and Binaural Beats are techniques I can call upon in times of stress. Cheers

[deleted]

Re: Brief structured respiration enhances mood and reduces physiological arousal

#20

Post by nobodyandproud »

kbutler wrote: post #9
DFHippie wrote: post #5

The one that works is the one that people do without special training: sighing*. There had to be some reason why people sigh. * Yes, this is an odd sort of sighing, but it isn't that different from spontaneous sighing. And people also hyperventilate on their own, but mostly preparatory to diving or holding their breath for some other reason.

Except sighing isn't generally a natural response to stress, but a response to boredom. So maybe it's consciously emulating a natural behavior matching a lower-stress state, to help shift to that state. From personal experience, the deep inhalation preceding a sigh (extended exhalation) is also helpful.

A sigh of frustration is pretty common. Biting one’s tongue and taking a breathe.
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