“I invite you to tune in to your breath. Take a deep breath in…Now, allow yourself to exhale fully. Continue to breathe in…and out…in…and out…With each exhale, begin to feel your muscles becoming soft and warm. Feel your whole body sinking into the table, allowing everything to slowly unwind. Continuing to breathe…if any difficult thoughts or emotions come up, continue to breathe and let go. With each exhale, you are creating energetic space…with each inhale, fill that space with beautiful healing energy…light…love.”
And so begins a typical Healing Touch session.
If you think about it, our breath provides a simple, yet powerful metaphor for healing body, mind, and spirit.
From a physiological perspective, it is something that we instinctively know how to do. Our body knows precisely how much oxygen to take in and how much carbon dioxide to emit – every single minute of every day. When we exercise, our body knows to speed up our breathing to take in more oxygen and release more carbon dioxide; when we’re resting our breathing slows down because our need for the oxygen-carbon dioxide exchange decreases. Without any cognitive effort on our part, our breath keeps us in perfect harmony.
When we apply that same principle on the emotional level, we can use our breath to bring comfort. If we are feeling sad, stressed or anxious, we can take several deep breaths, making a conscious choice to soften and release those emotions when we exhale, and bring in peace and serenity when we inhale. The breath provides emotional balance.
To cultivate a deeper connection with Spirit, we can take a deep breath asking to let go of our frustrations and self-will as we exhale, and imagine bringing in light when we inhale. The sense of expansion and infinite love that we receive in these moments is like a healing balm.
I encourage you to use the wisdom of your breath as a powerful tool to provide balance and harmony in body, mind, and spirit.
(Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net)
