| Ancient spiritual traditions such as Buddhism and Yoga | | | | states are coextensive with physical states that can |
| recognize an intimate connection between how we | | | | cause tension and pain. Negative emotions like anger |
| breathe and our overall physical, mental and emotional | | | | and fear are always accompanied by physical tension |
| states. You will discover as you work with your | | | | and restricted breathing. Agitated mental states, like |
| breathing that this connection between mind and | | | | being unable to turn off your mind when you go to |
| body is very real. | | | | bed, or chronic worrying, always contribute to |
| When we breathe easily, we feel physically relaxed, | | | | physical tension and ultimately to pain. |
| emotionally peaceful and mentally focused and calm. | | | | Second, just as mental and emotional states translate |
| When our breathing is restricted, we feel physically | | | | directly into physical states, so too do physical states |
| tense, emotionally irritable, fearful, anxious or angry, | | | | translate directly into mental and emotional states. |
| and mentally hyperactive (our mind chatters | | | | This connection has profound implications. Because |
| non-stop) or confused. There is a one-to-one | | | | mental and emotional tension are coextensive with |
| correlation between our physical, emotional and | | | | tight muscles and restricted breathing, and because |
| mental states. This correlation can be diagrammed as | | | | mental and emotional tranquility are coextensive with |
| follows: | | | | relaxed muscles and free breathing, one of the best |
| Relaxed Breathing = Muscle Relaxation = Peaceful | | | | ways to reduce mental and emotional as well as |
| Emotions = Mental focusand | | | | physical tension is to practice breathing |
| Restricted Breathing = Muscle Tension = Negative | | | | diaphragmatically. If you can learn how to breathe |
| Emotions (fear, anger, etc.) = Mental Agitation | | | | more deeply when you are under stress, you will |
| Changing any one of the four variables of this | | | | automatically improve both your physical, your |
| equation automatically changes all the others. For | | | | emotional and your mental states! |
| example, let us say we become emotionally upset, | | | | The power that breathing has in transforming every |
| irritated or fearful. This unpleasant emotion | | | | aspect of our lives helps clarify why the breath is |
| automatically translates into physical tension. Our jaw | | | | given such a prominent role both in spiritual traditions |
| or chest tightens, our shoulders hunch, or our gut | | | | and in common parlance. In the Biblical tradition God |
| clenches. At the same time, when we are emotionally | | | | breathed life into Adam; the word spirit has the same |
| unbalanced, we lose mental focus. Our mind starts to | | | | root as the word respiration; and the word to inspire |
| race or we go into a fog, and we also begin to | | | | literally means to breathe into. In everyday language |
| breathe more shallowly. | | | | we acknowledge the importance of the breath when |
| Let us say we lose some of the calm mental focus | | | | we say a view is simply breathtaking, or that we |
| that characterizes us at our best, and we start to | | | | need room to breathe, or that someone takes our |
| obsess mentally over something. Automatically our | | | | breath away, or that at last we can breathe freely. |
| bodies tighten up, we become more angry or | | | | Every aspect of our lives is reflected in and responds |
| anxious, and breathe more shallowly. | | | | to the quality of our breathing. By influencing the |
| The implications of the one to one correlation | | | | quality of our breathing, we in turn influence every |
| between our physical, mental and emotional states | | | | aspect of our lives. |
| are profound. | | | | © 2007 Ingrid Bacci PhD All Rights Reserved |
| First, it is evident that negative mental and emotional | | | | This article is FREE if resource box is included. |