“Between stimulus and response there is always a space. In that space is the power to choose our response. In our response, lies our growth and our freedom.”
Day 5 Morning Scorecard and Breathing Self-Reflection:
Vagus Nerve: The Nerve You Never Knew You Always Wanted
Inside of each and every one of us is the key to calming down, but so few of us choose to use it. The vagus nerve wanders through your entire body and its sole purpose is to help you shift moods, from all worked up to calm and collected. The easiest way to activate the vagus nerve is through your breath. When you go so far as to actively engage and hear the sound of your breath, your vagus nerve will activate the "rest and digest" system in your body. We tend on average to take about 20,000 breaths per day, but the vast majority of those are not conscious (intentional) breaths. The more we "choose" to breath the more relaxed our brains become. It is often said that if you "steady the breath. you steady the mind." Knowing this information, however, isn’t enough you have to practice it regularly. So the best gift you can give your body is to put little reminders up around your house or workplace that remind you to take a moment and "breathe."
FACT: You have 500 million avaloi at the base of your lungs, these tubes connect your lungs to your bloodstream.
TAKEAWAY: Most of us take shallow chest breathes, but taking a deep belly breath is way more effective in cleaning out our system. Chest breaths have to pick up our rib cage so your lungs have to work harder. So next time you take a deep breath, focus your breath towards the base of your lungs because that is where all the important stuff happens.
Breath Work
You have probably been told since you were a wee little person that breathing helps calm you down. So you may even have tried taking a deep breath in a moment of anger, only to find one deep breath didn’t quite do the trick. Disappointed with not having immediate results, we often forget to stick with the breath a little longer until its benefits can kick in. The brain, especially when it is in full freak out mode, doesn't care about small stimuli and will quickly disregard one breath. The brain does, however, care about stimuli that stick around and your brain will eventually start to pay attention to that snarky breath if you keep it up long enough. So to truly have your breath help get you out of a jam, it's important to consistently practice using your breath as an anchoring point in many different situations. If you practice controlled breathing when you’re calm or under a slight stressor, the brain is much more likely to use that skill automatically when the stakes get higher.
FACT: The receptors in your nose run directly to your amygdala (the fear center of your brain), this is the only sense that has this direct path to your fight or flight system.
TAKEAWAY: The breath is the easiest way to give your brain a “neutral” stimuli that will calm it down in a stressful situation. If your mind is freaking out, a calm steady breath tells it that the outside world is safe and it can calm down.
“Make Every Breath Count”