You’ve always been a hero

When we’re kids we’ve got that wonder about us which makes us believe that anything is possible. We’re certain that we can twirl, leap, and maybe even fly. We use our imagination without limits, and we create our understanding of the world moment by moment. Then for some of us, along the way we start to lose that sense of creation and imagination. We harden into the lines of the roles that we’re ‘supposed’ to play or we follow the path that was handed to us. But this is one thing that I love about creativity of the mind— we can access creativity at any point in our lives and creative thinking is available to everyone.

One of the best ways to bring back your sense of creative thinking is to calm the noise of the mind by slowing down the breath.

When we take pause to slow down our breathing, our thoughts begin to slow down also, and then space opens up for new ideas.

Over time, you might even begin to feel and sense new things.

To slow down your breathe and your mind, try one of the secrets of the Navy Seals— give Box breathing, also known as tactical breathing, a try. Box breathing is a four part breath that features an Inhale, Hold, Exhale, Hold pattern.

What’s so delightfully fascinating about this breathing technique is that we also honor it in the world of yoga as a reliable pranayama, or breath work technique. So Yogis and Navy Seals alike share their praise for the power of Box breathing.

I’ll record my own version of this soon, I promise! …. but for now check out this easy to access version on youtube.

Once you get comfortable with the breathing pattern, you can increase your count from 4 to 5 and on up to 8 for trained Yogis and Navy Seals! The beauty of this technique is that it’s an instant reset for your brain and body. This breathing pattern helps your nervous system drop into its parasympathetic state which is your rest and digest state, meaning you go from feeling stressed to feeling chill. The Box breath also helps activate your vagus nerve which gives your body a signal to reduce production of stress hormones like cortisol. So naturally you’ll feel more calm and relaxed and maybe just maybe you’ll start to feel those sparks of creativity, imagination and wonder you’ve always known but might have forgotten.

Stay tuned for my guided pranayama and meditation sessions coming your way soon!