Alternate Nostril Breathing (Nadi Shodhana), calming. Reduces and/or eliminates anxiety or agitation.
This is a yoga breathing practice where you will be inhaling and exhaling through one nostril at a time. Then, you will repeat to the other side. The name comes from the Sanskrit words nadi, means ‘tube’ or ‘channel’, and shodhana, means ‘purifying’. This practice will clear your channels.
The benefits:
Calm Down. It can help reduce stress and anxiety
Balance: It can help balance the left and right hemispheres of the brain and the nervous system
Improve breathing: It can help improve breathing and strengthen lung muscles
Lower blood pressure: It can help lower blood pressure.
How to Practice
Place a thumb by your left nostril and your pointer finger by your right nostril.
First close off your right nostril with your pointer finger. Then, inhale through the left nostril. Gently release the right nostril and close the left nostril. Then, exhale through the right nostril equal counts.
Then, inhale through the right nostril, release the left nostril and then close the right nostril. Then, exhale through the left. Repeat the sequence. Find your flow. 3, 5, or 8 counts will work well. Looping from the left and right side.
Then repeat 5 times total. Once it is comfortable, increase to 8 rounds. Then 13 rounds. You can also alternate starting the inhalation on the right side vs the left.
Tips
Flow: Take it slow. This is a cooling and centering practice.
Do not grasp. Let go of any attachment to an outcome.
Practice being present with each inhale and exhale.
Once you establish your rhythm with your thumb and finger you will move through this effortlessly.
Grief and Anger. Gratitude and Patience. Celebrate and Calm.
There are many opposite emotions that compliment and counter balance an emotion you are experiencing. Ultimately, all emotions are valid; yet, certain emotions will diminish your mental, emotional, physical and spiritual well being. When mood swings become a constant, it is an inner call to practice emotional regulation coupled with some lifestyle and nutritional changes to support your course correction.
A few questions that you can ask yourself about your emotional well being is:
Do your emotions feel like a dragon ride with high peaks and valleys on a consistent basis?
Do you know what it feels like to express all your emotions externally and internally?
Do you know how to use your voice to communicate your emotions without causing harm to yourself and/or others?
You can choose to retain a balanced relationship with your emotional center. If you have not learned how to have emotions or are over indulgent with certain emotions, it will take effort (aka practice) and courage on your part to bring yourself into balance.However, it is worth it. Once, you master how to express yourself, you will realize how much more freedom you have to authentically be yourself. In the present moment, you will know how to regulate your own emotions when they shift. This will assist you in clean emotional living without putting demands on your inner and outside world. In a blissful utopia, we would be rocking calm and engaging our emotions in ways that nourish relationships, feed creativity and expand our individual/collective consciousness. Being we are collectively on a spectrum from an emotional developmental age of a three year old to an early teen, we have some work to do individually and collectively. However, we are at a collective tipping point and we are all poised for our inner and outer evolution for the benefit of all.
Where to Start:
Acknowledge where you are at.
Are you ready to observe your emotions and how they impact you and others daily? If yes, go to the next step. If no, keep acknowledging where you are at without judgement. Once you are ready, go to the next step.
Start observing your emotions and how they are expressed via your words, actions and thoughts. Just observe. Anchor in the willingness to observe yourself continuously. This will help you make changes, see what is and start to cultivate an active meditation practice.
Then, take time to self reflect on your emotions that historically derail you from your natural flow and impact others. As inspired, journal about your emotions and your revelations. Then, decide what emotion you would prefer to use to assist you through those tender moments and unexpected upheavals. This is where the opposite emotion becomes the remedy and practice.
The Practice.
When grief rises up, if you are ready and willing, you can begin to practicegratitude and celebration. For example, if you just lost someone (to death) grief needs to be expressed/processed; however, it is just as important to celebrate your time with them and give thanks for them. This shifts the downward pulling energy of grief into a building energy for you and the person that has moved on. Our souls are eternal. When you radiate an emotion towards anyone who has crossed over or just moved out of your life, the individual can feel that subconsciously. If this person is/was self aware they will feel it consciously. This is how you can help each other out by being responsible with the emotions you choose to exchange. By choosing celebration and gratitude you will lift self and another higher.
When anger rises this is a very potent energy. It is best to remove yourself from the situation (ASAP). Find an activity that will allow you to return to calm (moving the body works well). This activity will be unique to you. Once, your affect returns to neutral. Then, you can start practicing patience. It is easy to grasp and get angry because someone or something is not behaving or emoting the way you want; however, you are not going to get very far in that relationship by using anger (overtly or covertly). Eventually it will exhaust your wood energy (aka liver) and diminish your relationships with self and others. Practicing patience and returning to calm daily will serve you and all of others well. In addition, this will allow you to see the action, your anger was fueling. Then, you can take aware action that will serve you and others.
As inspired, during these Fall and Spring months do some emotional check in. Give yourself the space to tune in and up.
