Embrace what you have pranayama practice
During challenging times, our brains tend to focus on things that are lacking in our lives right now, which can lead to agitation, worry, and endless mental spinning. The yogis have a phrase to describe that mental vortex – “chitta vrtti,” which is also an expression they used to describe the goal of yoga. According to Yoga Sutra 1.2, “Yogah chitta vrtti nirodhaha”, which means that yoga is about settling the vortex of the mind.
There are many ways to “settle the vortex of the mind.” Two of the most effective ways are focused breathing and anchoring one’s attention. This is exactly what we do in the short breathing practice below. We use a specific yogic technique called Krama Exhale, and a symbolic gesture of letting go to metaphorically release your anxious thoughts. Afterward, we use another symbolic gesture called “Hands full of flowers” to embrace things in your life that give you joy and comfort. Give this practice a try and see how it feels.
It’s a pretty well-known fact that breath regulation is the most obvious way to control our sympathetic (“fight-and-flight) and parasympathetic (“rest-and-digest”) balance, which directly impacts our stress response, sleep patterns, and energy levels.
