Recovery is a lifelong journey of healing. Part of that journey is recognizing your triggers. You have completed treatment and may face anxieties associated with triggers. Somedays, your recovery is remarkable, and other days, you may struggle. On the days when you struggle, others may say the phrase, “Just breathe.” At the moment, it is a simple solution; you may not recognize that you are holding your breath.
Being aware of the space you are in is key to understanding the struggles you may face in recovery. Understanding your breathing patterns can affect your daily life. Triggers are hard enough for anyone to face, let alone someone in recovery. You breathe every day unknowingly and do not put much effort into it. Most times, when you are worked up, breathing is the best thing that you can do.
Breathing brings a sense of clarity to the mind and focusing on inhaling and exhaling can provide a calm sense of being. Understanding how breath affects our thoughts can bring a sense of peace and be a healthy coping skill to manage triggers. Learning breathing techniques can help you through rough days and decrease triggers.
What Is Breathwork?
Take a deep breath. You probably feel better already. Deep, cleansing breaths are known for decreasing stress and cleansing your body. Breathwork is the act of consciously breathing with intention. You can learn a breathing technique to keep you grounded and balanced.
Research has shown that focusing on breathing decreases stress, anger, anxiety, depression, triggers, and so on. Breathwork is a form of meditation that incorporates intentional breath to relax the body and bring clarity to the mind.
Relaxation
One of the essential benefits of breathwork is relaxation. You have many things happening in your life, and relaxing is probably not even in the top three. Breathwork incorporates control of the breath, which relaxes your body. The muscle tension you feel when stress arises can be reversed by focusing on your breath and delivering more oxygen to your muscles.
Your breathing affects how you think and process information. This is why your emotions are affected when breathing heavily or slowly. You have the power to change your life just by changing your breathing patterns.
Stress Management
Have you ever had a day where you struggled to overcome racing thoughts that caused you stress? Breathwork can decrease stress and help calm you. Breathing techniques will help you increase awareness and connection within your body. Sometimes when life happens, you forget to just breathe. When you focus on your breath in a stressful moment, you send oxygen throughout your body and increase awareness.
Focusing on breathing during a stressful moment can bring you back to the present. All too often, your mind takes you to places you do not want to go. By focusing on your breath, you are taking the attention off the stress and into the present moment. It is important to stay in the present to decrease triggers during your recovery journey.
Energy Through Breathing
Yes, you read that right. Participating in breathwork can increase your energy. By focusing on deep breathing that causes your diaphragm to expand, you calm the nervous system, and your body relaxes. This practice increases energy and a sense of awareness.
Take a moment to practice increased energy by completing the following:
- Breathe deeply through your nose and out your mouth three times. These breaths should fill your lungs up.
- Next, take three fast breaths in through your nose and out your mouth.
- Last, take three big breaths, filling up your lungs.
This can be practiced sitting or standing, where ever you prefer. Pay close attention to how you feel afterward and acknowledge your increased energy.
Breathing and Triggers
Facing your triggers can be overwhelming. When you do not understand the reasons behind your triggers or how to get through them, it can cause more stress. Learning healthy coping skills to address your triggers benefits your overall health.
Sometimes when faced with a trigger, your body responds with anxiety or stress. Breathing is key to decreasing stress. Knowing that you have a positive coping skill on standby is half the battle.
Empowerment can come with recognizing your triggers and taking time to breathe your triggers out of your mindset. Your breath can be the source of a different perspective or intuition.
How Can This Help Me?
Saving space to quiet the mind, even for a few seconds, will do wonders in your daily life. All too often, you are faced with the demands of life and may feel like you are burning your candle at both ends. You may identify your triggers and feel frustrated. Focusing on your breathing brings awareness to your mind, producing a calm sensation throughout your body.
When stress occurs, your body becomes tense and can create anxious thought processes. At times, you hold your breath unknowingly, and this often creates even more stress. When you focus on your breath, your body automatically relaxes.
The next time you are faced with a trigger out of the blue, take a couple of deep breaths and remind yourself of how far you have come. You may be surprised at the results.
You know what your triggers are in recovery and find yourself in a space of curiosity about ways breathing can help you stay grounded. You continue to hear about the breathwork, however, you struggle to apply it in your recovery. Breathing is the key to maintaining focus and clarity within your recovery. Staying focused on how you are breathing can be the difference between stress and calm. Breathwork is beneficial for a variety of emotions and to ground your mind. At the Guest House, we are specialized in breathwork and focused on guiding you to be more conscious during your daily life. Give us a call today at (855) 483-7800.