As my Qigong teacher says, there are many paths to the top of the mountain, but the moon from the top looks the same. In addition to the dharma, my path toward mindfulness is conscious breathing. I know many different breathing techniques, but the one I do regularly is called “cardiac coherence.” While still lying in bed, this is how I start my day. Then, throughout the day, I consciously return to this practice a few times, and I end the day with the same practice. In moments of ill health or emotional crisis, this way of breathing is like an anchor for me. It allows my mind to settle and focus on the present moment.
Cardiac coherence is a method based on conscious breathing in a diaphragmatic way. The list of scientifically proven benefits is long. After two weeks of daily practice, stress resistance and emotional balance slowly increase; intellectual capacity and decision-making increase; and overall well-being improves. All of this is the result of physiological changes, including the reduced secretion of cortisol (the stress hormone) and the increased secretion of the cortisol antagonist hormone DHEA. These are changes I have noticed in myself. Coherent breathing also increases the intensity of alpha brain waves, which have a positive impact on imagination and creativity, and this is something I hope to experience in the future.
Another advantage of conscious breathing is that it can be practiced almost any time because the breath is always with us. However, this practice method, like many others, has a flaw. It only works if you apply it, preferably 3 times a day, 6 breaths per minute for 5 minutes. I encourage you to try the breathing exercise below for at least two weeks and experience its short- and long-term results for yourself.
Exercise
- Sit or lie down in a comfortable position. Try to breathe through your nose.
- Place one hand on your chest and the other on your abdomen to check your breathing. If your abdomen lifts on the inhalation and collapses on the exhalation, you are breathing diaphragmatically. This is the goal. If, however, the top of your chest rises on the inhalation, then you are breathing with the tops of your lungs, and you should consciously make adjustments so that you are breathing diaphragmatically.
- Leaving one hand on your abdomen to make sure you are breathing diaphragmatically, count the length of your natural inhalation and exhalation.
- Gradually increase your inhalations and exhalations to five seconds each. If you can, lengthen both breaths to six seconds. The breath should be unforced, not too deep.
- Try to maintain this rhythm for at least five minutes, and repeat several times a day. You can use a timer or a metronome app to measure the length of your breaths.
- During each session of the exercise, it’s a good idea to scan your body and relax areas that are holding tension.
Alicja Bardin has been a student of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche since 2017. In addition to her interest in the dharma, she is a Pashto language translator and a facilitator of Social Emotional Ethical Learning (SEE Learning), and she works with Afghan refugees. She is also interested in Daoism and practices Qigong and various breathing techniques.
