Breathe - Consciously

While you might perceive your breath as only a means of providing your body with oxygen, there is another seldom acknowledged purpose. Your breath is also a powerful tool that can be used to become more cognizant (breathing consciously) of what you are doing.

From birth to death, you breathe, no matter where you are or what you are doing. Your breath defines your life and supports your body and spirit. In addition to being the key to life, ever-present, and connected to the spirit, breathing involves a noticeable complex set of physical sensations.

When you are caught up in the moment, your mind can become scattered and preoccupied. Since your breathing is rhythmic adjusting your breathing to become slower and measured lets your mind slow down and more readily perceive what you are doing at the moment. This in turn allows you to work with greater awareness. Checking in with yourself by using your breath allows you to stop, take stock in what you are doing, and set positive goals to accomplish your tasks.

You can set the intention to do your work mindfully and with attention to detail by using breath awareness as a tool to help you. As you go about your tasks notice your breath and how you are breathing. If your breath is shallow, for example, it may be an indication that you need to focus on slowing down and becoming more careful. A simple awareness-raising exercise such as this could make it easier to attend to the more important aspects of your work.

The practice of breath awareness was widely embraced by our ancestors in spiritual pursuit. It is long believed Buddha was engaged in breath awareness as his primary practice at the time of his enlightenment. The Christian Desert Fathers, Hindu Yogis, and Islamic Sufis employed variations of breath awareness in their spiritual practices.

Dorothy M. Neddermeyer, PhD, Life Coach, Hypnotherapist, Author, "101 Great Ways To Improve Your Life." Dr. Dorothy has the unique gift of connecting people with a broad range of profound principles that resonate in the deepest part of their being. She brings awareness to concepts not typically obvious to one's daily thoughts and feelings. http://www.drdorothy.net