Breathwork Series - Part 3 of 4
Part 1: The Hidden Power of Breath
Part 2: Breathe to Shift Stress and Cravings
Part 3: Break the Breath-Holding Habit ← you’re here
Part 4: Daily Breathwork for Calm and Control
Many of us can get halfway through the day without noticing what we're doing with our breath.
We might be writing a difficult email and suddenly realise we've been holding it. Or we get so caught up in a piece of work that we're barely breathing at all. Then the phone rings and our whole stomach tightens.
By the end of the day, we're tense and looking for something to change the feeling. And we might have no idea how much of that tension has been building while we were sitting at the computer.
Notice where it happens
For the next day or two, just notice when we catch ourselves doing it. We don't need to watch every breath. We only want to see when it normally happens.
Maybe it's while we're concentrating. Maybe it's when we're waiting for a reply we don't really want to read. I used to do it a lot at the computer without realising.
At first, we might only notice once we're already tense. That's still useful. After a while, we start catching it earlier.
Once we know where it usually happens, we can check at those times. That's enough.
Go back to normal breathing
When we catch ourselves holding our breath, there's no need to take a huge breath in.
Just breathe out, relax the stomach and let the next breath come in by itself. If breathing through the nose feels comfortable, that's fine. We don't need to force it.
Then carry on with what we were doing.
Say we're writing an email and notice we've stopped breathing. We breathe out, relax the stomach and keep typing. We don't need to close the laptop and do five minutes of breathwork. We're just letting some of the tension go before it builds any further.
And we might catch ourselves doing it again ten minutes later. That's fine. It shows how often we were doing it without noticing.
A big breath isn't better here. It can leave us feeling light-headed and turn a quick check into something more complicated than it needs to be. A normal breath is enough.
Use a couple of reminders
We could check when we first sit down at the computer. Then again after a difficult call or when we walk through the front door. Not every five minutes. Just often enough to start catching it.
A simple question is enough: "Am I holding my breath or tightening my stomach?"
If the answer's yes, breathe out and let the next breath happen normally. Then get on with the day.
Why this can matter at drinking time
If we've been holding tension for hours, of course we want some relief by the evening. And because alcohol used to change the feeling quickly, the old thought can show up: "I need a drink."
Catching ourselves holding our breath won't deal with every craving or drinking trigger. But it can stop us adding quite so much physical tension to an already difficult day.
This isn't about breathing perfectly. None of us is going to remember every time. We're just noticing it sooner and doing something small when we do.
— Brent