How do we become more present? There is a lot of information about being in the present: books, podcasts, everybody talks about that.
Everybody has a different recipe for how to get into that state. And for me, an excellent tool to become present and find presence in everything we do is through breathing.
One of the things that I have learned that shocked me the most is that everywhere you go, a yoga class or even some breathwork workshops, the first thing they do is try to bend or change or tell you that your breathing is not correct.
We have to understand that our body is doing the best it can for us every step of the way. Sometimes an illness, a pain in any part of our bodies, is nothing but an alarm telling us what’s wrong and that needs our assistance. There is lots of meaning in the body, and for me, it is the most sophisticated machine to bring you back into the present when you breathe.
Breathe at your rhythm. Put your hands over your stomach and breathe. When you pay attention to your breath with your eyes closed, you will immediately notice that your body will start to relax; for this, you can focus on your belly and breathe.
You will see that the way that you’re breathing changes because you’re telling your body, I’m here, I’m paying attention, I’m listening. What do you have to say?
At that moment, when you are in your body, you become present. You are in the here and now.
And if you thought that going out running after a shit day was the best choice, maybe your body is telling you, I don’t need to go out running right now. What I need is a bath. I don’t need to go running out right now. What I need is to drink tea and go to bed. But sometimes society, the matrix, all the social convention, everything that we watch on TV, everything that we hear from people from our surroundings points towards “you must be productive.”
That type of “being productive” usually translates into the belief of being incapable of stopping. If you stop, you lose. If you continue running, running, running, doing, doing, doing, doing, you win. Well, I’m telling you, I did the running, I did the going ahead, I did the non-stop thing, and I got sick.
I ended up in the hospital, and my whole life changed because of that. And I’m grateful because I never listened to my body. My body had been telling me for a long time already that there was something wrong. My body was already telling me then. And right now, I can say that if it weren’t for that rude awakening, I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing. Working with other professionals like me to reconnect with spirituality, so always listen to your body.
It starts relaxing. It gets stronger, and you are more energized. Always listen to that ache, always pay attention to how you’re breathing, Don’t force it; observe, and when you observe, your body is grateful.
The more you are in your mind, the more you disconnect from your body. And as human beings, we are here to achieve balance. We are the universe experimenting with itself in many different ways and forms.
And why not create the best experience possible for our life? For us. First. And for everyone and everything we love.