The Breath Letter - #6
Dear breather,
Last week we had our first “Bullerengue & Breath” session. It was unbelievable…and a great reminder that once we accept imperfection we can start to express ourselves.
Besides breathing we used all kinds of ways to interact with our experience through this North-Colombian ritual:
Dance, drums, singing, clapping, community and rhythm.
All under the skilled hands of Valeria and Esteban from Bullerengue Circle, I’d highly recommend joining one of their Ruedas.
This image was drawn, live, during the event by the crazily talented Nitesh. Can you see people dancing in a circle?
The Breath
Buzzin
Inspired by last week’s Bullerengue session and the power of the voice.
The original name for this technique is “Bhramari”, which is a pranayama technique.
In its essence all you do is make a humming sound on your exhale, just like a bee.
And though it’s very simple it has quite a lot of benefits:
Controlled breathing training: Because you are using your voice, you are also, by default, controlling your exhale which is great breathing training.
Extended Exhaling: You are also extending your exhale, which has a calming effect on the nervous system.
Vagus Nerve Activation: The vibration of the hum activates your vagus nerve, the primary nerve of your parasympathetic nervous system, which again has a calming effect.
Nitric Oxide: Studies have shown that humming increases nitric oxide in the nasal sinuses which works as a vasodilator, which has a positive effect on your cardiovascular health.
Not too bad for a bit of humming aye! Maybe that’s why practically every religion uses long, slow tones in their prayers and practices….
Not too bad for a bit of humming aye! Maybe that’s why practically every religion uses long, slow tones in their prayers and practices….
The Insights
Fulcrums
A couple of weeks ago I started my Cranio-Sacral Therapy training. One of the things we spoke about were “fulcrums”. My original response was “Eehh, what!?”
Yes, Fulcrums. Lever points. A static object around which things evolve. Think, joints, the sun, a hinge etc.
Interestingly enough, in the training they looked at the concept of fulcrums in a more holistic way. So they spoke about “Time” fulcrums; important moments in your live around which things evolve. “Emotional” fulcrums; certain emotions that are always present and consistently work with, or around.
This really got me thinking and I think it leaves us with an interesting question:
What are the fulcrums (physical, emotional, time) in my life? Do I want them to be fulcrums? Are they operating smoothly?
“Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.” - Archimedes
Understanding Quality
Another element we spent a lot of time on was “Quality” - in this particular case the quality of what you feel in another human being.
How does their body and system actually feel and can you describe it in as much detail as possible. Soft, warm, tender, stuck, agitated, restless, leathery, dynamic, emotional, rushed, (a-)symmetrical…
But you can also do this for yourself:
If I check in right now with my breath and my body, what qualities do I feel?
Give it a go and see how many words you can use to describe your own breathing!
A great way to improve your breath and self-awareness.
The Content
My favourite TED Talk
Just watch it…and hopefully you feel inspired too. I really love this man’s joy and energy.
I’ve been following Jacko for a while now and have learned a lot from him. In this video he shortly talks about breathing mechanics. Getting your breathing mechanics right is such a game changer, so maybe worth a watch if you feel like there is room for improvement.
The Deepest Breath
It’s not often you see a documentary on Netflix with the word “Breath” in the title, so I had to watch it of course. Personally I haven’t engaged in free diving bt I do know a lot of people that do, and one thing they all describe is the absolute peace they feel when they manage to relax into their breath hold.
The Experiences
25th of July @ Hackney Wick - Breathwork Session
Breathwork Odyssey is back! I found a new, bigger and beautiful, venue in Hackney Wick for this breathwork session in London. These conscious connected group sessions tend to sell out so make sure you join on time if you’re in need of a deep breathing experience.
Tickets here
27th of July @ Fire + Alchemy - Shoreditch - Breathwork Class
In this session we’ll specifically focus on Self-worth in this calming venue.
Tickets here
More coming soon for August so keep an eye out!
I’m going to be in London for the foreseeable future so if you feel like you want to get into a process together now would be the time!
Feel free to book something in:
https://calendly.com/stevenebbers/30min-checkin
Enjoy the breath!
With warmth,
Steven from Breathlife
