Coping With Anxiety? Try A Breathing Exercise

Breathe With Me, Revisited

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about meditation and a meditation workshop I had attended.  I had good intentions about meditating everyday.  But we all know what happens sometimes with good intentions.  I have meditated some days, but it hasn't become a regular routine.  It is very difficult to establish new habits, as we all know.

I love the website sipandom.com.  The moderator, Mary Meckley offers daily meditation podcasts that I have found quite useful.  She also has a private Facebook page called The Daily Meditation Podcast that you can request to join.  I am going to continue working on trying to establish this as a daily habit, but in the meantime I'm trying something else as well--deep breathing.

I have been dealing with a lot of anxiety about my health, parenting issues, and just life in general. Cancer is a lot to deal with, and so is being a parent of three teens and tweens, and I'm trying to focus on myself too and do things that restore my soul and work towards goals.  It can all be overwhelming at times.

Similar to meditation, deep breathing exercises are useful in helping reduce anxiety.  For now, I am going to take a minute, five times a day, and breathe deeply, in and out, through my nostrils for one minute.  I am using my phone's timer to time myself.  And I am keeping a journal to keep track of the breathing sessions and also my mood and anxiety levels throughout the day.  I will also record if and when I meditate.  In order to remember to do this, I am going to tie the breathing sessions to something I already do.  I will do it when I take my vitamins in the morning.  When I eat lunch. When I have a cup of tea in the afternoon.  When I take my vitamins after dinner,  And before I go to bed.

If anyone else is having anxiety issues, why not try this along with me.  Let me know in the comments section how it is working for you.  I'll report again in a few weeks about my progress.

Let's Begin!