Studies have shown that a daily breath and meditation practice can have a profound and positive impact on mental and physical health. A few breaths can return you to a state of calm. Learning this skill has never been more important.
This teachable moment refers to 27:21 to 29:07 from the film.
About This Lesson
Milton is upset as he comes home from school, he goes upstairs to his bedroom and lies on his bed. He remembers the meditation teaching from the other night and he hears his voice in his head and he connects with and becomes aware of his breath. As he lies in his bed, he closes his eyes and he practices and this is how he begins to realize that there is another way to meet life. Everybody breathes all the time. When you breath consciously, it’s a totally different matter. Conscious breathing doesn’t necessarily mean that you change your breathing, you just become aware that you are breathing. As you become conscious that it is happening your attention goes out of your head and into your body.
Family Activity
As a family, review the focused breathing activity learned in Chapter 3:
- Inhale deeply through your nose.
- Notice the belly go out, the expanding of the chest cavity and raising of the rib cage.
- Bring the breath to the top of the lungs by raising the collarbones and the shoulder blades.
- Exhale through your mouth.
If your mind wanders, focus back on your breath. If possible, practice this technique for 1-3 minutes, three times a day. This is so that the practice of focused breathing can become easier to do when faced with stressful situations and thoughts.
Once your family feels comfortable practicing this focused breathing exercise, explore these additional breathing exercises:
Rhythmic breathing: This breathing exercise involves inhaling and exhaling to a steady equal rhythm. Example: Inhale for a count of two and then exhale for a count of two. Repeat for a minimum of ten breaths each time.
Ratio Breathing: This breathing exercise involves breathing in and then exhaling to the count of a pre-determined ratio. There are two possible scenarios for this:
- The inhale is longer than the exhale.
- The exhale is longer than the inhale.
In general, it is better to start with shorter counts and then gradually increase the lengths of the ratios as you become more proficient at breathing. Example: Inhale for a count of one, and then exhale to a count of two. Repeat for a minimum of ten breaths each time.
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