Breathe for your Gut + Brain
The Gut x Mind Connection, Positive Thought Practices, Breathing Techniques to Reduce Stress, Ritual for Better Digestion
Our thoughts and words hold immense meaning. The negative thoughts that we repeat over and over, we begin to believe. The same goes with positive, the more we believe in our abilities, our achievements, our success, even our HEALING, the more that will manifest.
This is why gratitude is such an important practice, because it gives us space for our mind to focus on the positive things in our life, and when we practice that over and over, our mind begins to filter life to see more of the positives subconsciously.
The brain and the gut communicate, and when this communication is out of whack, this causes digestion issues, weight problems, mood imbalances (depression & anxiety), food intolerance, dysbiosis, food sensitivities, chronic fatigue and more.
Physical manifestations of the brain and gut connection include:
How you get queasy or get “anxiety poops” when you’re nervous
When you make a big life decision based on a “gut feeling”
How you get butterflies in your stomach when you’re excited or nervous
“Imposter syndrome” is one of the many negative feedback loop thoughts within our minds that try to hold us back from achieving ultimate success. We all experience it. It is like our brain is trying to self sabotage us. It is okay to feel this way, but it is another thing to reinforce that thought and begin to believe it.
It is incredibly fascinating how if you ask some of the most successful people in the world how they started out, you will often hear that everyone around them thought they were delusional. They believed in themselves more than anything, and everyone around them doubted their abilities, but that didn’t stop them. If anything, they let doubt and negativity fuel them into being the best version of themselves… and look who’s laughing now. I think we can all learn a little something from that.
Breathing Practices and Journal Prompts for a Calm + Positive Mind
Breathing is one of the incredible ways that we can tap into our parasympathetic nervous system (rest + digest) and calm our mind. We can also use breathing to tap into our sympathetic nervous system (fight + flight) for performance… but that is for another time.
Our bodies are more often than not in this chronic fight of flight state, which causes our body to over-produce cortisol. Cortisol and stress in a normal amount is good for us! However, too much cortisol cortisol, means more inflammation, and more chronic fatigue (sometimes the cause for why you wake up feeling exhausted and brain foggy in the morning).
Next week, I will dive into the impact of sleep and our circadian rhythm to regulate cortisol.
The number one thing you can do to target this is minimize sources of stress in daily life (I know I know, easier said than done). My favorite way to do this is through breathing exercises.
Nose Breathing. First, let’s talk about every day breathing. Many of us have the habit of breathing through our mouth instead of our nose, which can cause a plethora of issues (more details here). In contrast, nasal breathing can actually increase longevity and decrease overall stress. I recommend first starting to become aware of your breathing throughout the day. Consciously work to close your mouth and focus on breathing through your nose. At night, consider mouth taping to train your body to breath through your nose. You may notice a better nights sleep, a more refreshed morning, a clearer mind, less stress, and even brighter eyes and a stronger jawline!
Box Breathing. Box breathing is a breathing technique meant to decrease stress and increase relaxation.
Through your nose, inhale for 4 seconds
Hold for 4 seconds
Exhale out your nose for 4 seconds
Hold at the end of the exhale for 4 seconds
Repeat.
4-7-8 Method: I love this breathing method to do as soon as I wake up, before I go to bed, and throughout the day. It really helps to center my mind and decrease stress and anxiety.
Through your nose, inhale for 4 seconds
Hold for 7 seconds
Exhale out your mouth for 8 seconds
Repeat.
Diaphragmatic Breathing (or deep belly breathing). This helps to oxygenate your blood and bring air deep into your lungs and diaphragm to encourage relaxation. This is the breath I choose to do before a meal to really relax my body and help me digest my food properly! Do at least three of these breaths pre-meal time*.
Sit or lie comfortably and place one hand on your belly, one on your chest
Breath in through your nose slowly, and target the air to your lower belly, feeling it rise underneath your hand while your chest stays flat
As you exhale through your nose or mouth feel your belly flatten underneath your hand
Repeat.
Alternate Nostril Breathing. This type of breathing can help you relax and decrease stress levels, and may also help to improve brain function.
Press your thumb on your right nostril and breath in deeply through your left nostril
Use another finger to hold left nostril shut and breath out through your right nostril
Breathe in deeply through right nostril
Use thumb to cover right nostril and then release left nostril and breathe out
Repeat.
Something FASCINATING I have learned is that breathing through your left nostril only can help to activate your right brain (for analytical and methodical tasks) and vis versa, breathing through you right nostril can help to activate your left brain (for creative and artistic tasks) - cool right?
*My Pre-Meal or Snack Ritual
Listen to my body + quiet my mind: Am I hungry?
Eat exactly what I am craving, trust my body
Take either digestive enzymes or bitters 30 minutes prior
Avoid drinking a lot of liquid before during or right after
Take at least 3 deep belly diaphragmatic breaths prior to eating
Eat in a calm, present state (non distracted)
IF I CAN: eat outside, better nutrient absorption and vitamin D synthesis
Chew each bite thoroughly (around 30 times)
Relax for at least 10 minutes after finishing eating