Plunge into Calm
Happy Tuesday! I don't have anything on movement for you this week - so just keep moving. :) And enjoy these tidbits on emotional breath signatures and being a creative being.
Breathe.
π» Join me tonight (8/13) at 8:30 PM CST on Zoom for a 15-minute breathwork practice. Register ahead of time and get the zoom link here.
βEveryone has had some experience with a disruption in breathing pattern associated with pain or powerful emotions. A sob of grief, a startled gasp, and the deep trembling breaths of one in anger are familiar examples of how emotion can affect breathing. But the relationship extends beyond this, for a change in the breathing pattern can also alter an emotional state as well as effect physiological changes in the body."
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- Swami Rama, Rudolph Ballentine, MD & Alan Hymes, MD,
A reminder that the relationship between the breath and the nervous system is a two-way street. Paying attention to our breath can give us clues about how we are feeling, and with practice, we really can breathe the way we want to feel. Below are some other breath signatures of emotional states (because it is so cool!).
"In a cry, there's a rapid inhale and a staccato exhale that's typically vocalized because of stress and tension in the throat. A laugh is also a fast inhale and an interrupted exhale-think of the typical way we write a laugh as "ha ha ha." The key difference between a crying breath and a laughing breath is whether the throat is closed (crying) or open (laughing).
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In erotic emotion, you have full inhales and prolonged exhales, usually accompanied with sighing or moaning. Breathing in this way compounds the deep relaxation that allows you to have an orgasm. On the other end of the spectrum, an angry breath is a held inhaleβ you inhale and keep stacking additional rapid inhales into your upper ribs, like loading gunpowder in a barrel. The exhale is restricted, which makes your voice tight (which explains the shrill, angry voice).
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If you're in the hyper-stimulated state of panic or mania, you can't get an exhale out. You feel like the breath is trapped inside, leaving you no room for new breath to come in. It's a feeling of suffocation, which, of course, only perpetuates that heightened mental state."
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Be Human.
I just started Rick Rubin's book, The Creative Act, and I can't believe it's taken me this long to pick it up. I am loving everything about it so far - the texture and color of the cover, the simple illustration and typeface, how it is structured in 78 "areas of thought", and the quote on the first page.
"The object isn't to make art, it's to be in that wonderful state which makes art inevitable."
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- Robert Henri
Below is an excerpt from the first area of thought, "Everyone Is A Creator". As someone who has historically never identified as an artist or particularly creative, this is a welcomed reframe of what it means to be an artist.
"To live as an artist is a way of being in the world. A way of perceiving. A practice of paying attention. Refining our sensitivity to tune in to the more subtle notes. Looking for what draws us in and what pushes us away. Noticing what feeling tones arise and where they lead.
Attuned choice by attuned choice, your entire life is a form of self-expression. You exist as a creative being in a creative universe. A singular work of art."
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- Rick Rubin
Try it: And how do you practice paying attention? I think y'all probably know what I'm going to say. If you don't... meditation. π
Upcoming Events
Plunge into Calm - stay tuned!
βFree Breathes on Zoom - August 13th @ 8:30 PMβ
What I'm currently reading
βOriginal Love by Henry Shukmanβ
βThe Breathable Body by Robert Litmanβ
βThe Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubinβ
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