Focused
Breathing
“Of
course, thinking is important, but quite a lot of our thinking is
useless. It is as if, in our head, each of us has a cassette tape
that is always running, day and night.”
Thich Nhat
Hanh (Peace is Every Step, p.11)
When my sons were young,
they passed through many pet stages. At various times we had a snake,
a guinea pig, a hamster, even a big frog, in addition to whatever
cats and dogs were with us at the time. The guinea pig bit—especially
me—and the hamster sometimes escaped his cage at night. We
suspected our big black lab, Czar, was complicit in those escapes,
but could never prove it. At any rate, the hamster would come up a
flight of stairs, into our bedroom, and wake me up by scratching on
the pillow beside my head. Truly, it was quite unnerving. The only
thing that spared that hamster's life was the cuteness of watching
him run in a clear plastic ball. For as long as we let him, he
careened around the house at top speed, bumping into furniture and
bouncing over thresholds. I could relate, simply because that is what
my brain did all day and all night. It ran, unchecked.
I wonder whether you have
this affliction, too. Don't get me wrong, I love fully functioning
brains. Brains that can parse ideas, appreciate nuance, dissect
complex problems and find solutions are truly nice to have—or so
I've heard. Brains are good. But a brain that never shuts off, never
rests, is a curse. A brain that talks and talks and never stops
talking, and when it can't talk-talk, endlessly sings lines from
songs, or repeats one word over and over—believe me, that brain is
a problem. It creates stress and guarantees that we will not sleep
well—or sometimes, not sleep at all.
We can help ourselves
with “hamster wheel brain” by learning to breathe consciously.
When we are present in our body, focused in the moment, and paying
attention to breath-in and breath-out, we do not think thoughts. We
simply feel. It gives our brain a break, and relaxes our body. It
helps us to be more aware of details in our surroundings—not by
thinking about them, but by engaging our senses—by actually seeing
them, hearing them, touching them. In other words, it allows us to be
fully engaged in life—rather than just thinking about
life.
Some of us, especially we
who are introverted by nature, spend a lot of time inside our heads.
We ponder, and consider, we turn things in forty different directions
to get at every possible facet. It's important to train ourselves to
take breaks—to go outside and experience the world, instead of
sitting in solitary thinking. Conscious breathing, and mindfulness
will teach your body/mind how to disengage from repetitive
hamster-ball running. It takes a while, so stick with it and be gentle with yourself. Whenever
you feel frustrated by the yakking inside your head, try focused
breathing. Remember that every breath in and every breath out is a
mini-miracle that will give you comfort and joy.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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