The winter and holiday season is an... interesting time of the year to say the least. It can be filled with fun traditions, awesome food, and good times with family & friends. It can also be stressful, dark, and overwhelming. Our bodies are adjusting to less sunlight, the winter air is becoming biting, and the holiday get-togethers begin. This time of year impacts people differently, and if you’re feeling like you need a little something to take the anxiety, stress, and emotional flooding edge off, rest assured that some good ol’ fashion breath work can help you relax.
When we become stressed out, our sympathetic nervous system kicks on and prepares us to fight, run away, appease, or shut down in the face of danger. The Fight, Flight, Fawn, or Freeze response is activated, and our body and nervous system jump into action. In order to explain how grounding and breath work can help when our sympathetic nervous system is triggered, check out this scenario.
Let’s say you’re at a family holiday get-together. There’s a lot of people crammed into a tiny house. It’s loud, children are playing, grown-ups are chit chatting, and some are getting into arguments and blow out fights. It’s a busy and chaotic scene. You may notice feeling incredibly anxious and racey. The room is small and feels like it’s getting smaller as time goes on. You want to run away, but your cousin drove you to the party and you’re unable to leave. Then your diet-culture obsessed family member comes up to you and starts making comments about your weight. “Wow, you’ve been enjoying the COVID snacking, haven’t you?!” You notice your face getting hot, you start to sweat, and you’re clenching your fists. You feel an urge to fight and argue with your family member. You waltz into another room to hang out with different people, and get away from the discomfort and that enraging conversation. Your parent comes in to give you a hard time about the look of the appetizer you brought. They are really laying into you about it! You feel shaky, and you immediately say “Oh thank you for pointing that out, I need to go fix that right away!” You scurry out of the room and appease your parent before more harm and embarrassment go on. The whirlwind of feelings is really ramping up, and you notice feeling out of body. So what should you do? Try breathing.
Breath work is an incredible grounding tool because you can use it anywhere, anytime. If you need a break from the holiday madness, sneak into the bathroom, go out to your car, step outside, or find private space to take a moment to breathe. Deep breathing activates our parasympathetic nervous system, the branch of the central nervous system that allows us to relax and feel safe. There’s a multitude of ways to breathe deep, and one of my favorite breathing techniques involves deep, belly breaths coupled with self-holding exercises.
Curious to try out this technique? Check out the video below.
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