How we breathe can make a difference. Conscious breathing - turning our awareness to our breath - allows the mind to quiet and is transformative. Even though I had experienced the transformative power of the breath, I still found there were times that breathing just didn’t seem to be enough to move through some emotions or aspects that would arise. After an experience in a Tobias’Aspectology™ School, I gained a deeper understanding and experience of the breath. Since conscious breathing and creating a Safe Space are keys to aspect integration, understanding how to breathe is crucial.

“Belly Breathing is the Breath of Integration,” I heard Norma say in the workshop. I began to consider how Belly Breathing might have a different effect than the way I had been breathing. So, I tried an experiment. When I got triggered by an emotion of fear or anxiety (an aspect) and my breath became shallow, I began taking full deep breaths as I normally would and noticed how I felt. I then began Belly Breathing (a slightly different focus) and I immediately felt more calm and centered. I felt safe! Ah, creating the Safe Space.

Belly Breathing is not some complex technique to learn. It is a natural way of breathing. As babies we belly breathe, until we learn to suck in our stomachs! As adults we have “unlearned” this way of breathing and it may not seem natural at first. So the first thing to remember is how it feels.

Begin by lying down on your back and getting comfortable, legs outstretched and relaxed. You may want to place a support under your knees if it helps your back to be more comfortable, and perhaps a small neck support. Keep the most natural position of the body, aligning the spine with its natural curvature. Place your hands on your belly in a comfortable position, generally with fingertips toward the leg creases and thumbs toward each other near the navel. Once Belly Breathing is experienced, it is not essential to lie down but it does help. Sitting tends to constrict the stomach and makes it a little more difficult to really feel.

Once you are lying comfortably, just begin to notice your breath. Observe it without judgment. Is your breath shallow in your chest? On your inhale, does your belly tend to rise or fall? Is your inhale or your exhale longer? Just notice.

Now begin to inhale through your nose, filling your lower lungs first and allowing your belly to rise. Exhale through your nose and allow your belly to fall. At first you may feel that you have to use muscle energy to get your belly to rise. With practice it will rise effortlessly. Just continue to breathe. Focus on inhaling fully into your belly as if you are blowing up a balloon. Exhale completely as if you are letting the air out of the balloon. Continue following your breath, inhaling and exhaling the same length of time, allowing a rhythm to come to the breath. Allow your stomach to relax and move with the rhythm and flow of your breath. Feel your hands rise and fall with the flow as if on the surface of a gently rolling sea. Continue to breathe and notice how you feel.

To create a Safe Space for ourSelves, it is important to be comfortable with Belly Breathing. This is fundamental to the teachings of the Aspectology and Sexual Energies Schools. Since I have begun to use belly breathing, I find it is much easier for me to maintain a Safe Space or move quickly into that Space when I am triggered by an emotion or aspect. I like to start and end my day with Belly Breathing and bring awareness to my breath as much as possible throughout my day.

In my experience the benefits of Belly Breathing go far beyond creating a Safe Space. It is an invitation to your soul to join you. I love the feeling that this conscious flowing rhythm of breath is a continuing dialog with my soul, inviting her in to have tea and conversation. You may not “hear” anything while you are consciously breathing -it tends to be a quiet experience. But you might find that insights just come to you at other times. Experience it for yourself. The breath truly can transform your life.

Enjoy the Breath.

Deb is a certified SES teacher and NES facilitator. When she is not out playing she finds respite in a little mountain cabin in the foothills west of Denver, Colorado. Deb can be contacted by email at [email protected].