From Panting to Pawsing – The Track that leads from Stress to Bliss
The breath is closely related to the mind. When we are stressed, we take short, shallow breaths ‘into our chest’. When we are relaxed we take long, deep breaths ‘into our belly’. This is the way we breathe when we are babies, when we are in deep sleep and when we are relaxed. When you look at a baby or a relaxed dog you can still see that movement of the belly. When this deep breathing happens, the body is automatically relaxed. Over time, as we get conditioned, the breathing pattern changes accordingly; this happens uncounsciously. As we feel more overwhelmed with life’s demands and responsibilities, it causes stress, which changes our breathing pattern. When we are stressed our body naturally will prepare itself for flight or fight by producing adrenaline. This causes more stress, not just mentally but in the body as well. This in turn affects our breathing pattern – thus the vicious cyle is being sustained. When we change our breathing pattern, we change the movement of the mind. Becoming aware of our breathing pattern is one of the most profound meditation techniques we can do.
During this meditation you will be taken on a journey of breath awareness with your dog. This is a great exercise to practice with your dog to eliminate stress from your life and walk from stress to bliss, to move from worries to wags!
"Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are." -
Chinese Proverb
Do you like this meditation? Visit our events page and see when the next meditation series takes place so you can experience the meditations in a pack of fellow meditators!
