Mindfulness Mode
 

Mindfulness Mode

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Increase your calm, focus and happiness so you can be more relaxed, contented and satisfied with your life. For business, entrepreneurs, educators, parents. Hosted by Bruce Langford.

Episodes

Sacred Stream Wisdom; Laura Chandler

Thursday Feb 13, 2025

Thursday Feb 13, 2025

Laura Chandler is a writer, teacher, and award-winning songwriter sharing sacred stream wisdom. She co-founded and directs the Foundation of the Sacred Stream, a consciousness studies school in Berkeley, California. With a background in publishing, music, video production, and alternative therapies, her music has appeared in film and television. She has studied spiritual, therapeutic, and meditative techniques worldwide, learning from master teachers across traditions. She co-authored the newly released book Depth Hypnosis: A Path to Healing, Power and Transformation with Isa Gucciardi, Ph.D.

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Most Influential Person

Effect on Emotions

  • Mindfulness lets me take a step back from my emotions. 
    I can take a beat, take a breath, and see what's arising.
  • Rather than just becoming reactive, it gives me that pause to say where is that coming from. 
     
  • I'm not always perfect at it, and I don't think humans can be perfect at it, but mindfulness helps me not to become overwhelmed by my emotions. It gives me a tool to work with them. 

Thoughts on Breathing

  • I have a breath practice. I like to start my day by focusing on my breathing, which clears my mind. It helps me to be very present and to ground me.
  • Even if you only have 5 minutes, if you can take that 5 minutes and focus on your breath, you can have a better day. 

Bullying Story

  • I've experienced bullying quite a lot. I came to identify it. I think the more people practice compassion and mindfulness, the less bullying there will be.
  • Bullies have a wound that they haven't addressed. The thing about a bully is that they are only powerful if they are drawing power from bullying.

  Suggested Resources

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Find Love and Peace with Lovetuner; Sigmar Berg

Thursday Feb 06, 2025

Thursday Feb 06, 2025

Sigmar Berg wants to help you find love and peace with the Lovetuner. Sigmar is an entrepreneur, artist, photographer, and fashion designer. Sigmar has spent his life seeking to bring wellness and balance to the world through art, design, and conscious consumerism, which brings him to his most exciting venture yet: the Lovetuner. After years of seeking, learning, researching, and gathering knowledge from all fields of life and worldwide, Sigmar is impassioned to introduce the Lovetuner to the world. We are living in a time of great chaos, division, and instability, but also one which has created an incredible opportunity for change.

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Most Influential Person

  • My Grandmother

Effect on Emotions

  • Mindfulness has been key to helping me with my emotions. Nothing is above mindfulness. If you want to change your reaction, mindfulness is the key.

Thoughts on Breathing

  • When you play the Lovetuner, you play a long steady tone and inhale through your nose.
  • You do it six times or whatever feels good to you. Then, you stay about 20 to 30 seconds in silence afterward. It is the sound of a high-pitched C at 528 HZ. 

Bullying Story

  • Going back in time, we started our foundation programs, and we went into schools. We did it for underprivileged children, and we went into private schools.
  • We took the Lovetuner tool, and we went into the classrooms. We gave Lovetuners to children from ages 7 to 10 years old.
  • At that age, children give you the most blank response of anyone.
  • By the time we did the first tune, everybody was totally focused. It was unbelievable how much the children liked it.
  • In one semester we eliminated bullying in every classroom where the Lovetuner was being used.

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268 Unlock Self-Love With The Mindfulness Key Suggests Joie Cheng

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Healing Celebration; Master and Dr Sha

Thursday Jan 30, 2025

Thursday Jan 30, 2025

We share a healing celebration today as Dr. and Master Sha opens a new healing center in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. Previously interviewed, Healing With Dr Sha. Master Sha combines traditional Chinese medicine, the essence of Western medicine, and ancient energy and spiritual secrets from China. A medical doctor in China, Master Sha is also a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture in Canada and China. He is an expert in advanced cellular science and in breakthrough research on the effects of aligning soul, heart, mind, and body. He is an author of over 25 books with 11 New York Times bestsellers. Dr and Master Sha is a grand master of Dong Yi Gong qigong, feng shui, the I Ching, Qigong and Wu Dong tai chi. He is also a National Chinese Calligrapher Master (Shu Fa Jia) and an Honorable Research Professor (Yan Jiu Yuan), appointed by the State Ethnic Academy of Painting (Gui Jia Min Zu Hua Yuan) in Beijing, China.

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Lau Tsu and Art

  • Tau refers to calligraphy in the teachings of Lao Tzu. Tau is the ultimate creator source. Tau is the way of all life. Tau is the universal principle. Eating and sleeping in daily life is all the Tau. 

The Hands For Healing

  • Put your hands together in a prayer position. Keep a small distance between the hands. Relax and feel a little bit of warm tingling. This is cellular vibration.
  • Near hands create high density. Far hands create low density.
  • In physics, high density flows to low density.
  • When someone has a headache, place your hands 4-7 inches from the pain. The hands and the head resonate and create an energy field. Listen for more details.

Fire

  • In ancient wisdom, fire is yang and water is yin. Water can be healing and peaceful but can also kill people as in a tsunami. Fire warms people but can also kill people.

Love, Peace, Harmony

Nineteen years ago Master Sha learned a song in the Bay area, I Love My Heart So, I Love All Humanity. This started the focus on Love, Peace, Harmony. As a result, the Love Peace Harmony Charitable Foundation was born. The Love Peace Harmony Foundation generously pledged to match all donations up to $250,000 USD to support nearly 180,000 residents impacted by the Los Angeles, California wildfires. (Listen to learn more)

Suggested Resources

  • Book:  Tao Calligraphy Healing Field: An Information System with Six Sacred Tao Techniques to Empower You to Heal and Transform Your Life by Dr. and Master Sha
  • App: n/a

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Thrive With Creativity; Bruce Langford

Thursday Jan 23, 2025

Thursday Jan 23, 2025

You can thrive with creativity, and having more aspects of creativity in your life will help you prosper in surprising ways. When you remember the times in your life when everything was flowing, do you feel like creativity was an active part of your life? As a musician, some of the happiest times of my life were when I was creating and performing music.

I’m taking part in a ‘learn to paint’ program this week, and it has really helped me feel connected to a deeper part of myself. The course is with Jed Dorsey of TheLandscapeWorkshop.com. Jed is not an affiliate, I just wanted to tell you about this excellent free course he’s offered.

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Meditation can help you become more creative. I recently interviewed Jackson Kerchis – he’s passionate about helping people learn meditation and stick to it. The episode is called, How To Stick To Meditation; Jackson Kerchis. Jackson also wrote an excellent book on the topic with the same name, How To Stick To Meditation.

I can say from experience that meditation has helped me feel more creative and I have definitely benefited from the increased creativity.There are five benefit to creativity I’d like to talk about today:

1/ Boost Happiness

As a kid, I would spend hours playing the piano. I played from sheet music and made songs up. When I thought the song was ready for a performance, I’d play it for my dad, who was always eager to hear me play. He gave me great positive feedback as a result of my creativity.

The definition of creativity varies, but most experts agree it has to do with the ability to come up with new ideas, new connections between ideas, and novel solutions to problems.

You might be thinking, I’m not a musician, a dancer, or a poet. Experts say creativity lives within all of us, it’s just a matter of allowing it to come forward.

In the book called, “The Creativity Cure”, author Dr. Carrie Barron says, “It really has to do with open-mindedness.” She says creativity applies to everything from making a meal to generating a business plan.

It doesn’t matter what creativity looks like in your life. It could be cooking, skiing, singing, sketching or something else. Just remember that creativity will feed your soul and just help you feel happy.

2/ Creativity For Problem-Solving

Creativity is a skill that can be learned. You don't need to be an artist or musician to be creative, you can use your creativity everyday with things like cooking, cleaning, gardening, or organizing.

Creativity can help with problem solving but it’s good to take step by step action.

Use Osborn’s Creative Problem Solving technique Brainstorming in between the steps to get the biggest benefit. Here are the 7 steps:

  1. Clarify and identify the problem – Pretend that the problem is not that important
  2. Research the problem
  3. Formulate creative challenges
  4. Generate ideas
  5. Combine and evaluate the ideas
  6. Draw up an action plan
  7. Do it! (implement the ideas)

I encourage you to combine your creativity with problem-solving to reach a win-win result.

3/ Creativity for Healthy Living

Does it make sense to you that creative people live longer? I think creative people are happier, and I believe it makes sense that happier people live longer.

I know in my case, I’m a lot happier when I’m doing creative activities compared to when I’m spending my time on what I would consider non-creative activities.

The topic of creativity has come up a lot in my interviews on Mindfulness Mode, and just as an observation, I’ve noticed that health and creativity seem to be aligned.

There are studies about this topic and a study from 2012 researched veteran men. The researchers, Turiano, Spiro and Mroczek, followed 1,349 veterans for over 10 years . They looked at their intellect and creativity. They rated their creativity based on these five words: creative, imaginative, artistic, innovative, and uncreative.

The researchers identified creativity with the following phrase; “a facet of openness”. They concluded that creativity was related to a reduced risk of mortality. Specifically, each standard deviation increase in creativity was associated with a 12 percent decrease in mortality risk over the 18-year follow-up period.

The study’s authors concluded, “creativity predicted mortality risk above and beyond other details like age, education, smoking, and health status.” (p.666)

I found the study interesting. Maybe you’ve read some books or read some studies on this topic. If you have, I’d love to hear from you. Send me a message bruce@mindfulnessmode.com
Turiano, N. A., Spiro III, A., & Mroczek, D. K. (2012). Openness to experience and mortality in men:    Analysis of traits and facets. Journal of Aging and Health, 25, 654-672

4/ Healthier Relationships Result From Being Creative

Creative people have better relationships for several reasons. For one, they are often more motivated compared to less creative people. Creative people tend to be more relaxed and easy-going and that quality means they are drawn to people looking for a comfortable, relaxed, non-threatening relationship 

Optimists tend to be creative. Being positive and up-beat is something that you see in creative people a lot. This up-beat nature is one of the reasons you’ll often notice these people have a lot of friends and an interesting life. 

Noticing emotions and being able to express those emotions is another quality common in creative people. People with this quality will be more sensitive to your feelings and needs than a person who is not very creative. 

People looking to make friends with others are usually looking for some of the traits we’ve talked about. 

5/ Creative People Are More Successful

Look around you. Think of the people you know. Do the more creative people seem to be more successful in your circles? Well, in my opinion, creative people tend to be more passionate about their work and I think that leads to more discoveries, more advancement, and more great relationships at work.

Creative ppl tend to ask the question ‘What if” frequently, allowing their mind to explore possibilities. From what I’ve read, I believe Nicola Tesla asked these kinds of questions and as a result became a well-known inventor. The radio, remote control and general wireless communication are credited to tesla.

Creativity reminds me of a quote by Albert Einstein. He’s known for saying, “Creativity is seeing what others see and thinking what no one else ever thought.”

It’s important for adults to continue to be creative. If we become too left brain dependent we could forget about the thrill we get from life when we allow our creativity to play an active role.

A few months ago I interviewed Keda Edwards Pierre in Toronto at the Collision Conference. Her episode is called True II Soul. As soon as I met her, I could tell that she was overflowing with creativity. She uses some of her personal expeiences to help others deal with trauma. She had a 27-year career with the Toronto Police Service and she sees herself as a renaissance woman, living her mission of personal and professional lifelong healing and development. You might want to have a listen to her episode.

A really great book related to creativity is the book called, Squircle – that word came from combining the word Circle, which represents creativity or right brain thinking, and the word Square, which represents left brain thinking. The author of this book is Francis Cholle, and I interviewed him in February of this year. I highly recommend his book and the interview as well. It’s called, A New Way To Think For A New World, by Francis Cholle .

Here are some things Francis recommends in his book to help develop your creative side. He says, change your routine in the morning, explore new foods for breakfast or other meals. Search for a new route to travel to work or school. Listen to different radio shows, podcasts, or audio books.

He also suggests you talk to other creative friends and ask them what they do to spark and express their creativity. In short, invite change and new ideas into your life.

One of the things I’ve concluded from what I’ve read and the people I’ve interviewed is that people who have creative personalities tend to have a lot of perseverance and they actually look for things in their life that will create interest and make their lives more fun. Individuals with these traits are more satisfied with their lives than less creative people.

It’s important to remember that people are the most creative when they’re in a good mood, possibly because they don’t fixate on individual pieces of information and they can think more broadly and more positively. You’ve seen others thrive with creativity, now it’s your turn. Chose a specific way you can increase creativity in your life. It could be dance, woodworking, drawing, music, or painting like I mentioned at the top of the show. Take action. Get ready to thrive in a brand new way!

Suggested Resources

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A New Way To Think For A New World - Francis Cholle

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True II Soul - Keda Edwards Pierre

 

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The Better Brain Solution; Dr. Steven Masley

Thursday Jan 16, 2025

Thursday Jan 16, 2025

Dr. Steven Masley motivates people to become healthier, starting with heart and brain health. He's a physician, nutritionist, best-selling author, and the creator of the number one health program for public television called, 'Thirty Days To A Younger Heart.' Dr. Masley's book, 'The Better Brain Solution", is the first book to show how the brain can become insulin resistant through diet and lifestyle. It also clarifies the link between diet, cognitive decline, and memory loss.

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Most Influential Person

  • My stepfather, Chuck. He had a procedure, and had a massive stroke. I learned what dementia was. It wasn't necessary; he didn't need it. I feel bad to this day that I didn't do more for him earlier on. He said, 'don't let this happen to others'.

Effect on Emotions

  • Mindfulness is calming on my emotions. It feels like love and stability in my life when I'm more mindful. When I'm not, I tend to be more anxious and depressed.
  • I'd much rather feel loved and focused than anxious and depressed. That's a lack of mindfulness, is anxiety.

Thoughts on Breathing

  • I like taking a deep breath and filling myself with spirit. I even like to, after I stretch and workout in the morning, I like to take a deep breath.
  • I feel like green energy pours into my body when I'm taking a deep breath. When I blow out, I'm just blowing out tension.
  • I use my breath to help me in a kind of meditative, processing way of being more calm and focused. Breath to me is like breathing in spirit.

Suggested Resources

Bullying Story

  • I got bullied as a kid. I got beaten up. I got kicked around. It was not pleasant.
  • I can completely sympathize with anyone who has been bullied before. Part of it was just being susceptible. I wasn't being mindful; I wasn't being confident. It wasn't moving with purpose. Predators picked on me.

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How To Forgive; Dara McKinley

Thursday Jan 09, 2025

Thursday Jan 09, 2025

Dara McKinley teaches how to forgive. After studying psychology and spirituality for most of her life, an unlikely turn of events pointed Dara toward the forgiveness path. Upon searching online for a forgiveness how-to, Dara only found information about why one should forgive. Needing directions to follow, she decided to make her own forgiveness step-by-step, which, upon completion, left her feeling peaceful for the first time in three years. Impressed by the effectiveness of forgiveness, she quickly became a devotee and now changes lives by teaching participants about her practical spiritual process that restores inner peace.

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Most Influential Person

Effect on Emotions

  •  Mindfulness helped me to see and love my emotional world and see it as a separate system that requires my care. 
  • My emotions now work for me instead of against me.

Thoughts on Breathing

  • I am big into movement, and moving in a really organic way. 
  • Moving in an instinctual and intuitive way that allows us to breathe.

Bullying Story

  • When people are in emotionally healthy environments, they don't act out on others as much. 
  • When somebody isn't taking care of their emotional side, they often toss it onto somebody else. 
  • Forgiveness is a huge key to emotional health. I look forward to a more emotionally attuned world. 
  • I think people are really seeing the consequences of pathologizing vulnerability. 
  • At the core of Buddhism is the tender heart of sadness. I love the fact that Buddhism names it.

  Suggested Resources

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Tune Into Happiness; Janice Kaplan

Thursday Jan 02, 2025

Thursday Jan 02, 2025

Janice Kaplan is the guest of Tune Into Happiness, today’s MIndfulness Mode episode. She is a journalist, TV producer, and the author of fifteen popular books, including the New York Times bestseller The Gratitude Diaries. Her upcoming book, What Your Body Knows About Happiness: How to Use Your Body to Change Your Mind, releasing January 7, 2025, explores the groundbreaking connection between body and mind in creating joy. A former editor-in-chief of Parade magazine, Janice has produced over thirty primetime TV specials and appeared frequently on national TV shows. With her signature humor and storytelling, she brings science to life, empowering readers to use their bodies to unlock creativity, positivity, and everyday happiness.

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Most Influential Person

Effect on Emotions

  • I have been able to deal with my emotions differently as a result of my research. 
  • That started with The Gratitude Diaries because I realize that we can control the way we feel about things. Classically, we can't control the things that happen but we can control how we deal with them.

Thoughts on Breathing

  • I don't personally have a breath-work practice but I know it can help enormously. 
  • I was with some folks the other day who had two little kids, a 4-year-old and a 2-year-old. The kids were running around and the parents stopped the children and ask them to breathe in 1,2,3 and breathe out 1,2,3. The kids had obviously done this before. The 4-year-old said, no Daddy, we breathe in for 4 counts.

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Happiness and Your Body

Thursday Dec 26, 2024

Thursday Dec 26, 2024

Happiness and Your Body is today’s episode. I am sharing a short review of the book, What Your Body Knows About Happiness by Janice Kaplan. I will interview Janice Kaplan in a few days, about her new book,  What Your Body Knows About Happiness. I received her book and am so impressed that I decided to share some key ideas with you today. 

What Your Body Knows About Happiness

The central idea at the heart of her book is that happiness isn’t just a state of mind but also a state of body. Kaplan challenges the traditional notion that happiness stems solely from our thoughts or circumstances. Instead, she reveals that our physical bodies play a profound role in shaping how we experience joy. 

Your Body Leads, Your Brain Follows

Have you ever noticed how standing tall and confident makes you feel more self-assured? Or how forcing a smile, even on a bad day, can lighten your mood? According to Kaplan, these are not coincidences but examples of how our bodies often lead the way in creating our emotions. While we’ve long been taught that the brain is the command center, issuing orders for the body to follow, new research flips this idea on its head

The Joy of Your Senses

Kaplan’s book delves deeply into the role our senses play in shaping our happiness. Think about the last time you stopped to smell freshly baked cookies or marveled at a sunset. Those sensory experiences didn’t just feel good—they actively boosted your mood. Kaplan shows how engaging with our senses can bring joy into everyday life.

Moving Toward Happiness

Exercise and movement are other key components of happiness that Kaplan explores. It’s no secret that physical activity boosts endorphins, the feel-good chemicals in your brain. But Kaplan goes beyond the usual “exercise makes you happy” mantra to show how the type of movement you choose can make a difference. Dancing and activities like yoga stretch your muscles, calm your mind, and center your emotions.

Kaplan’s insights remind us that our bodies are not just vehicles for our brains but active participants in creating happiness. When you move with intention—whether it’s through a workout, a hike, or even just a walk around the block—you’re giving your body the tools to generate joy from the inside out.

Dealing with Pain and Finding Happiness Anyway

Pain, both physical and emotional, can feel like the ultimate happiness blocker. However, Kaplan argues that understanding how the body processes pain can help us find moments of joy even in difficult times. She explains that the brain doesn’t just passively receive pain signals; it actively interprets them. By changing our environment or reframing our mindset, we can shift our experience of pain.

Creativity: A Happiness Superpower

Kaplan discusses the link between creativity and happiness. Whether painting, writing, cooking, or gardening, creative activities engage the mind and body, offering a unique pathway to joy. Kaplan explains that creativity isn’t about being perfect or producing masterpieces. It’s about the process—the act of making something new and expressing yourself. This creative flow can quiet the mind, energize the body, and leave you feeling more fulfilled.

A Daily Happiness Plan

Kaplan concludes her book with a practical, seven-day happiness plan—a roadmap for incorporating her insights into daily life. Each day focuses on a different theme, from engaging your senses to exploring your creativity. By the end of the week, you’ll have a deeper understanding of how your body contributes to your happiness and how to nurture that connection.

Listening to Your Body’s Wisdom

Kaplan’s What Your Body Knows About Happiness is more than a book; it’s an invitation to tune in to your body and discover its incredible capacity for joy. Happiness isn’t just something you think about; it’s something you feel, experience, and create through your physical self.

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Discover Reflective Awareness; Dr. John Demartini

Thursday Dec 19, 2024

Thursday Dec 19, 2024

Dr. John Demartini believes when we have reflective awareness and don't have the noise that judgments bring, we can be present with our own reflections. Dr. Demartini is a human behavior specialist, International best-selling author, educator, founder of the Demartini Institute, and the author of 40 books translated into 38 languages. He has presented alongside Sir Richard Branson, Donald Trump, Stephen Covey, Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer, Steve Wozniak, and many others. He has been a welcomed guest on Larry King Live, CNN, and CNBC and is a contributor to Oprah Magazine and hundreds of other magazines.

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Most Influential Person

  • Paul Bragg, John's Yoga Instructor

Effect on Emotions

  • “It has allowed me to be aware of the illusions that my emotions are distracted by and allows me to calm them down and center themselves.
  • “Without mindfulness, I might not have developed the Demartini Method.”

Thoughts on Breathing

  • “When the breath wanders, so does the mind. And as the mind wanders, so as the breath. One can govern their breath, can govern their mind, and one can govern their mind can govern their life.”

Suggested Resources

Bullying Story

  • I was 12, and I was going to ride a bus to school. I sat there on the bus, and this boy said he owns my seat and I didn't know what to do. He eventually punched me in the face and I just basically humbled myself.
  • He inspired me to learn body-building and martial arts and it got me in shape. I started attracting girls, and this bully eventually became my friend.

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How To Stick To Meditation; Jackson Kerchis

Thursday Dec 12, 2024

Thursday Dec 12, 2024

Jackson Kerchis teaches how to stick to meditation. He is a former operations leader, startup executive, and Zen monk. He's a co-founder and partner at Happiness Means Business and Warrior Leader Training Companies, where he helps business and military leaders solve their people problems. Notable clients include the Army National Guard and Young's Commercial (the largest produce hauler in the US). He created the world’s first major in happiness studies and taught the first course on happiness at the University of Alabama. He is the author of How to Stick to Meditation: The Science of Habit Meets the Art of Mindfulness.

 

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Most Influential Person

Effect on Emotions

  • Awareness, awareness, awareness. Once you are aware of an emotion and label it as an emotion, you see it as an emotion. It's kind of like magic. All of a sudden it doesn't push and pull you around.
  • The emotions then serve you rather than you serve them.

Thoughts on Breathing

  • I've come to think of breathing for me as a really powerful way to pull myself into a state of awareness.
  • I often start my morning practice by breathing to a count of 4 seconds and then a slow and controlled exhalation. When you have a longer, more pronounced exhalation, it causes a down-regulating effect on the nervous system.
  • In other words, it is a calming and centering sensation. I've leaned into doing more breath work and more focused breathing types of meditation practice.
 

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