A shared practice
Soft Belly Breathing to Reduce Stress
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Created bySean Fargo
From Sean's breathing collection — recorded in his own voice.
In Sean Fargo’s own voice8 min
Read along — the full script
Welcome. I'm Sean Fargo. To reduce stress and anxiety, let's take a moment to relax the body by finding a posture that feels relaxed and alert. Inviting a sense of ease into the body as you relax your breathing and drop your shoulders.
Loosen the muscles of the face and jaw, and gently close your eyes or look downward, and rest your hands in an easy, effortless way. Noticing predominant sensations in the body and wherever possible, see if you can soften and release any obvious areas of physical tension. And relax your breath, your inhale and your exhale.
And breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. This may be a little unfamiliar, but it can be very natural and easy. It can be a very relaxing way to breathe. Breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth.
Breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth. In through your nose and out through your mouth. Let your belly be soft. Softening your belly allows more oxygen to the lungs for better oxygen exchange. Allowing oxygen to permeate through the cells in your body and in your brain for the nourishment you need.
Breathing in through your nose, out through your mouth. Softening your belly. Activating the vagus nerve in your body that wanders up through the abdomen and chest to the central nervous system in the brain, promoting relaxation to decrease stress.
So breathing deeply, activating this vagus nerve helps relaxation to come. And as the belly is soft, other muscles in your body will begin to relax as well, and you can feel that now. Some people like thinking of the word soft as they breathe in and belly as they breathe out.
See what that feels like for you. Soft as you breathe in, belly as you breathe out. Soft as you breathe in through the nose, and belly as you breathe out through the mouth. If thoughts come, let them go and gently bring your mind back to soft on the inhale, belly on the exhale.
Soft as you breathe in, and belly as you breathe out. Soft as you breathe in through the nose, and belly as you breathe out through the mouth.
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