Pause, Breath, Write — Judy Dodgen, LMFT

I am not likely the first nor the last to draw your attention to the importance of the pause button. Our lives are busy, we have taken multitasking to profound levels. In our drive to do it all we are inadvertently, subconsciously moving backwards. We are literally forgetting to breath.

So my challenge for you this summer (okay, second half of summer) is to take some moments to breath and reflect. I will be posting reflective questions on my facebook page for the next 40 days. My challenge to you is to take a few moments to first notice your breathing and be present with where you are in the moment, reflect on the question, and then take some time to journal your response. Ideally you could spend 10 - 20 minutes on this but what ever time you have will be beneficial.

Pause

As I mentioned we allow ourselves very little time to be present with ourselves in this busy life we live. Taking a moment to be present in the here and now. Breathing in deeply and noticing what we are experiencing in that exact moment can center us and allow us to be more grounded and capable of moving forward. This means putting the phone down, turning off the noise around us and being present. This is referred to as the practice of mindfulness. There are many websites and apps available to guide you in mindfulness training. I know I just told you to put the devices down, technology has its place in our world but its important to recognize its risks along with its benefits and be able to use it intentionally. There are also in person classes and books.

Breath

Taking a deep breath in can take 15 seconds (5 slowly in, hold for 5 and 5 slowly out). There is absolutely no reason we can’t do this. We breath anyway, it doesn’t take special equipment, it can be done anywhere in any circumstance. Taking a deep breath in enhances the pause, it brings us back to the basic truth of the fact that we are breathing and that is good. Just a few benefits of breathing deeply (aside from the obvious survival thing) include:

Releasing toxins.
Releasing tension.
Oxygenate your brain for clearer thought.
Calms nerves.
Strengthen immune system.
Improves posture.
Strengthens the heart.
Boosts energy.
Elevates mood.

It just generally helps all of YOU work better.

Write

Now this is that bonus step. The other two can be done at any time with little to no disruption to our day. If that is all you have that is okay, you have already taken a big step by simply allowing yourself this moment. Writing is the bonus round and takes more commitment but also produces more benefit. Taking pen to paper:

Slows our thoughts and helps us more intentionally process our emotions.
Builds empathy and widens our scope of emotional understanding
Boosts cognition, expanding our thought process.
Helps us track patterns in our lives to gain positive self understanding.

I hope you join me in some or all of this challenge and let me know how this process impacts you. Please, please, please do not make this a source of guilt, a "should" that you didn't get to that becomes another weight on your mind. Allow this to be simply a prompt, a suggestion, that nudges you to think different for a moment and expand your mind and heart. There is no specific order and you are welcome to skip days and start and end at any time, what ever feels right for you.