The 6-2-6 breath is a yogic breathing technique that can help calm the mind, benefitting feelings of anxiety and overwhelm.
Hello. My name is Dr. Talia Marcheggiani. I’m a naturopathic doctor and mental health professional. I focus my practice on mental health and emotional wellness. I’m just at home right now with my dog, Coco, and we’d like to show you a very quick meditation that you can do.
This is a great thing to do. It’s something I teach my patients to do when they’re feeling overwhelmed or stressed out at work. It’s a great way to combat anxiety and depression as well as a really great way to dive into a meditation practice if you don’t already have your own practice.
Encouraging patients to engage in mindful activities like meditation is indeed a valuable strategy for mitigating stress and promoting mental well-being. As individuals navigate the challenges of modern life, finding effective coping mechanisms becomes increasingly crucial in combating anxiety and depression. Moreover, incorporating meditation into daily routines not only offers a reprieve from stress but also serves as a gateway to cultivating a deeper sense of mindfulness and self-awareness.
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I also find just spending 3 to 5 minutes a day to sit and focus on the breath, especially deepening the breath, is a great way to dive into meditation and establish your own meditation practice.
So all you have to do is start by either sitting in a chair with your back straight and your feet flat on the floor or in a cross-legged position. You can put your hands on your knees, but what I like to do is tell people to start with their hands on their lower abdomen. That way we can practice moving the breath into the lower abdomen, feel the abdomen rise and fall with the breath, and thereby ensure that we’re sending our breaths down into the belly as we breathe.
It’s called the 6-2-6 Breath. It’s very simple, so all you do is breathe in for a count of 6, hold the breath for a count of 2 and breathe out for the count of 6. By lengthening our inhales and exhales we’re able to stimulate the vagus nerve, which activates the parasympathetic nervous system. This is the “rest and digest” arm of the autonomic—think “automatic”—nervous system in the body. When we’re in a state of stress, overwhelm or depression, we’re usually in a sympathetic of “fight or flight” state and by calming and deepening the breath we’re also able to calm the body, establish a sense of safety within the body, and calm the mind and emotions.
So I want everyone to just close your eyes and breathe in. Start by deepening your breaths. You should feel your hands rise and fall as you breathe.
So when you’re ready let’s begin our inhale for the count of 6. So, inhale, 3, 4, 5, 6, and pause for 2, exhale 3, 4, 5, 6. Pause, 2. And inhale 3, 4, 5, 6. Pause, 2, and exhale, 3, 4, 5, 6. Pause, 2, inhale, 3, 4, 5, 6. Pause, 2, exhale, 3, 4, 5, 6. Pause, 2, inhale, 3, 4, 5, 6, pause, 2, exhale, 3, 4, 5, 6.
So you can continue doing this breath. I recommend spending 3 minutes just settling into the breath and body. You can do this while at work. You can do it at home, you can do it before bed to calm the body down, to help with a more restful sleep. I like how it helps us move out of the space of overwhelm, stress and anxiety, centre into our body and establish more possibilities for clarity and for ways to move forward in overwhelming situations.
Let me know what you think, try it yourself and leave your comments or questions below. You can also follow my blog at taliand.com.
