Some breathing techniques and pranayama exercises increase the relaxation response, allowing you to be more present, aware, calm, and attentive to your thoughts, feelings, and experiences, and more resilient to stress and anxiety.
I would like to share a couple of simple techniques that I use in my breathing classes and that have proved very effective in even the most demanding situations. There are many other techniques, but I find that less is more: the simpler the exercise, the more effective it tends to be. These breathing practices can be used anywhere: at work, at home, or whilst travelling.
Please note that these are not cures of any sort. They can be considered personal tools for day-to-day challenges. If you continue to feel unwell, I would recommend seeking advice from your doctor.
These techniques can also support a general pranayama or meditation practice. Breathing exercises are a good starting point for bringing the mind inward and developing a steadier sense of awareness. In my own practice, I use the Breath Awareness technique as the first exercise of the day to awaken my senses, body, and mind.
Enjoy and happy breathing.
Breath awareness
(10- 25 counts)
- Settle into your seated position (chair, floor, or cushion).
- Bring your awareness to the breath and stay with it for a minute or so.
- When you have found the flow and rhythm of your breath, begin counting to ten.
- One count is one inhale and one exhale.
- Over time, increase the count when you feel your awareness can hold steadily to each count.
Conscious breathing
- Sit comfortably with a straight spine.
- Place your hands on your legs.
- Close your eyes.
- Feel the sensations in your body.
- Go through a brief body scan: feet, legs, torso, neck, head.
- Bring your awareness to the abdomen and watch the breath there for a few seconds.
- Pause.
- Next, bring your attention to your nose and sense the breath at the nostrils.
- Rest there for a few seconds and observe the sensation of the breath passing through.
- Pause.
- Now inhale consciously through the nose, then exhale gently through the mouth, slightly open.
- Next, inhale through the nose and exhale through the nose.
- Repeat these two breathing cycles until you begin to notice a sense of calm and quiet in your body and mind.
- Pause.
- Stop the exercise and rest quietly, watching your breath with your eyes closed.
These techniques sit at the beginning of a much larger body of work. Laurent's Breathwork and Pranayama Professional Training is a YAUK-accredited programme of 60 or 100 hours, open to yoga teachers, therapists, healthcare professionals, and those with no prior experience. Explore the Breathwork and Pranayama Training →
To practise these techniques in a structured weekly class, online or in person: View Classes and Pricing →