Take A Deep Breath
Part of my recovery story is recovering from burnout, hustle culture and doing more.
When I moved to Oakland in 2011, I started working at the best salon in the East Bay and began building my clientele. I also joined a business networking group where I became the educational coordinator and later the president. I attended early morning breakfasts and after work happy hours with the Chamber of Commerce, and I taught yoga and fitness at a studio where I was also the retail specialist. On top of all that, I worked in an acupuncturist's office. Needless to say, I was hustling!
The culture of hustle was ingrained in the environment, even at the yoga studio with slogans like "yoga every damn day" that felt more like a competition. The same could be said for the salon where I worked. Space was at a premium in the Bay Area, and I needed to earn my spot. I had daily targets for the number of clients, services, products sold, and rebooking, and my livelihood was on the line. My sleep was terrible. I used Ambien for over a year until my short-term memory was so bad that one day, after working at the salon, I had no recollection of my drive to work that morning and couldn't remember where my car was parked. I walked around circling the blocks until I finally came around to where I had parked. That experience scared me.
When I returned to Washington, a nutritionist diagnosed me with adrenal fatigue, a condition caused by prolonged stress that overworks the adrenal glands. I followed the suggested supplement regimen, but even though I was no longer living in a fast-paced urban area, building up my clientele again was still stressful, and I began to drink more alcohol. Despite the abundance of outdoor and athletic activities in the Gorge, there is a prevalent drinking culture that seems at odds with these healthy pursuits. There are several wineries, micro-breweries, and distilleries in this rather small area. Furthermore, the legal use of marijuana in both Oregon and Washington is also woven into this culture, and dispensaries are abundant. I found it very easy and acceptable to drink and vape marijuana every day.
Now at the beginning of my second year of sobriety, I'm feeling much more balanced. My sleep is better than ever, and I'm exploring new practices to add to my routine. This month, I'm participating in a pranayama and koshas workshop at Flow yoga studio in Hood River, OR. After attending the first two sessions of the workshop, I've learned a great deal, and I'm excited to share the practices I'm adding to my routine.
Pranayama is a Sanskrit word composed of prana (vital life force, energy, breath) and ayama (expansion, extension, breadth, control). It should be noted that Sanskrit words usually have more than one translation.
Koshas, also known as the "five sheaths," are a concept from ancient Indian philosophy and yoga that describe the layers of our being, including the physical body, energy body, mind, intellect, and spirit.
One of the quickest and most effective ways to promote a sense of calm, reduce stress, and elicit a positive response from the autonomic nervous system (the control center of our body that manages things without us even thinking about them) is through breathing techniques. By consciously regulating the breath, we can influence the body's physiological response, such as lowering heart rate and blood pressure, and increasing feelings of relaxation and well-being.
The first step in improving your breathing is simply to pay attention to it. I like to close my eyes and listen to the sound of my breathing. Try to make the sound of your breath louder and more pronounced. Ujjayi breath is a deep breath taken through the nose that produces a sound similar to the ocean or a white noise machine. Now, try to lengthen your exhales. By purposefully extending the exhale, we strengthen our breathing muscles. When we reach the end of a long exhale, we encounter resistance, which exercises our diaphragmatic muscles. Practicing this technique regularly can help us become better breathers even when we're not actively thinking about our breath.
A recently published Stanford study found certain types of breathwork to be more effective than meditation in calming the nervous system. Some interesting highlights from the study are that cyclic sighing is most effective at improving mood and reducing respiratory rate, and breathwork improves mood and physiological (inside-the-body) arousal more than mindfulness meditation. Reducing our respiratory rate is essential because many of us tend to over-breathe, taking short, shallow breaths that can make us feel anxious and stressed, while also decreasing oxygen uptake to our brains by 30-40%. Breathing also controls brain excitability, which is something I'm addressing in my own recovery and a significant reason why I’m no longer on Instagram. My brain thinks Instagram is a casino and it’s not relaxing.
Cyclic sighing is done by taking a double inhale through the nose followed by a long, audible exhale through the mouth. Our sitting posture affects our energetic state, so it's important to sit with a straight spine, head over shoulders, and shoulders over hips. To practice cyclic sighing, take a long, steady inhale through the nose, expanding the chest, ribs, and belly. Then, add a second short inhale at the top before opening your mouth to make an audible exhale. The audible sound can help extend the length of an exhale by ten times. Just one round of cyclic sighing is the fastest physiological way we know of to reintroduce calm and reduce stress, creating a positive autonomic response. This study has also shown around-the-clock benefits.
One breath. I can do that and I’m certain that you can too. It's good to start with small steps and build up gradually. Over time, you'll develop a stronger connection with your breath, and it will become a valuable tool for managing stress and promoting well-being.
Thank you for reading this. I hope you'll come back. I'll be over here.
