Tag Archives: meditation

Stress Relief

Stress Relief Through Breathwork Meditation

by Kris Cassidy

Founder of Breakthrough Breathwork Meditation

If you are like most people you experience some kind of stress on a daily basis. For some the level of daily stress can be debilitating. The American Institute of Stress says that stress is America’s number one health problem. It’s been estimated that 75 – 90 percent of all visits to primary care physicians are for stress related problems. And it has been medically proven that stress has a direct impact on the immune system.

So, how can you manage the stress in your life? World-renowned cardiologist Dr. Dean Ornish says that deep breathing is the best form of stress management known to man.

As the founder of Breakthrough Breathwork Meditation, one of the questions I get asked the most is “How does Breakthrough Breathwork Meditation help with managing stress and stress related ailments such as depression, anxiety and chronic pain?

Breakthrough Breathwork Meditation is a simple and powerful way to use breathing to activate your own healing energy and life force, and to release stress on a cellular level. It supports physical, emotional and mental healing, as you simultaneously connect more to spirit. And by oxygenating your blood through breathwork you can enjoy greater vitality and the health benefits of increased detoxification.

I believe Breakthrough Breathwork Meditation is a most powerful tool for stress management. In just one 90-minute session of Breakthrough Breathwork Meditation you can experience a deep calm, and a feeling of inner peace and wellbeing. Many clients have told me that after just one session they felt the most relaxed they’d ever felt in their life.

Don’t let stress ruin your life, your health and your relationships. Find the peace and relief that you deserve and need now. To learn more about Breakthrough Breathwork Meditation, to find out about upcoming Breathworkshops in your area, or to bring a Breathworkshop to your area, visit breakthroughbreathwork.com.

And take a nice deep breath.

What Came to Me Today

“I know this. When this ends – AND IT WILL – every game will sell out, every restaurant will have a 2-hour wait, every kid will be glad to be in school, everyone will love their job, the stock market will skyrocket, every other house will get TP’d, and we’ll all embrace and shake hands. That’s gonna be a pretty good day. Hang in there, World.”

I read this quote this morning that made some inspirational sense. Hopefully this will happen, but I’d like to add some more to this, however, as I have a strong feeling and actually pray that we all may come through this challenge having learned much more about our true nature, our desire to be connected to ourselves and each other from love and not separation. That we, the people of the world, can find something within us that brings the world together in love and peace and the senseless suffering of people can stop.

My prayer has many facets. First is that I hope the world can come to realize gratitude. One of my favorite quotes is “Gratitude is the open door to abundance”. And I know that might not be easy for some as life circumstances seem rather dismal for many right now. But there is always something to be grateful for and even the tiniest thing that you find can open the door to abundance of peace, love and calm.

I hope that we all find a very deep and lasting knowing that wee are all one, the same heart, the same longings, the same desire for love. Maybe this challenge we all face right now can pour more light and love, compassion and friendship into the world. I have such a hope that maybe this pandemic, where the entire world is experiencing the same difficulty, can end with more peace. Peace within each person, peace in relationships, peace in families, peace in cities, peace in countries.

I hope that everyone can take the time right now to slow down internally. It’s an uncertain time. I hope that each of you can take time each day to sit quietly and go within and reach a space of calm. That you trust how it is you are pulled to meditate-whether it’s through breathwork, through putting on music that moves you and letting go to the music, through quiet meditation. I meditate in different ways, but now that I am not distracted by much of the outside environment while I am social distancing, I have rekindled my practices and am finding time to meditate twice a day. Sometimes it’s for 10 minutes, sometimes for an hour. I can say it is helping me stay calmer and accept what’s happening. It really is helping me when I through times of anxiety and fear of the unknown along with the deep feelings that arise in my heart that make me cry as I have concern for everyone.

I send you all love.

A quote from Jeff Foster-just read this today

“All crisis is an invitation for us to meet ourselves, and each other, in a much deeper way. To slow down and remember what’s truly important to us. To break our addiction to external distractions, and to touch life with more tenderness and curiosity.”

Important Reminder Each Day

Watchdogs of the Lake

In May of 2017, Kris and I set out on a 4 month trip in our Northstar truck camper up to Alaska. I did quite a bit of writing on that trip, and this particular piece comes to my mind often when I think about our trip. I wrote it the very first night, the beginning of our 4-month trip.

Have you ever thought about or maybe even heard the barking watchdogs of geese on a lake? Last night we arrived at a breathtaking camping spot at Saratogo Lake, Wyoming. It’s located about 30 miles south of Sinclair, tucked way back in the sprawling open fields and located on a serene lake. We camped right on the lake, where the shore is highlighted by flowing grasses and reeds, leading into the vast blue water of the lake teeming with various species of birds. This area was developed in 1992 as a sanctuary for birds and wildlife. The magnificent music of the birds singing all evening and again in the morning and afternoon was a delight. I’d say for me that one very soothing and enjoyable thing I’ve loved my whole life is to hear birds. I’ve memories of birds in the trees in the area where I grew up, but over the years the open land was developed into housing tracts along with DDT and the birds and butterflies disappeared. It’s nice to find places where birds are abundant and grace us with their symphonies.

Why did I ask if you had ever heard the watchdogs of the lake? Because last evening, as we strolled the lakeshore we spotted two geese also basking in the grasses along the lake. When they saw and heard us coming close, they started honking, flew into the water and for at least 10 minutes they continued to honk, (which sounds like barking) until we were far away from them. Had me think that these geese were on alert, like the dogs in our neighborhood who bark and protect their area when the see or smell something foreign. So I labeled these geese as “the watchdogs of the lake”.

Peace is Fundamental

Peace if Fundamental

You can have love without peace

You can have clarity without peace

You can have compassion without peace

You can have wisdom without peace

But, instrinsic to peace is love, clarity, compassion and wisdom.

These qualities of our true Nature can arise naturally from peace itself.

And then they are pure, untainted.

Peace is fundamental to all of them.

Written by Kris

Light at the end of the tunnel

Just Breathe

Each Full Breath We Take

I am continually in awe of the benefits and impact conscious breathing and breathwork offers to humanity. Hope you enjoy this article from Jim Morningstar’s “The Complete Breath” by Jessica Dibb, Co-director of the International Breathwork Training Alliance and the Chair of the IBTA Ethics Committee.

Each full breath we take has a beneficial impact. If we take that full breath consciously, with awareness, the benefits are exponentially increased. We can develop a practice of breathing this way. We can even cultivate skill in the way we allow our breath to be modulated by our experiences, and the ways that we encourage a full deep breath in every moment – in the presence of all of the vicissitudes of a human life. We can come to understand and experience that within each breath we breathe dwells the possibility for greater health, healing and wellness, personal growth and development, creativity, developing intelligence and wisdom, accessing intuition, and evolving and building a healthy world together.

When we are in the womb we feel, we sense, and we grow. What makes it possible for us to feel, sense and grow outside of the womb is breath. It is the most critical physiological function for life. Breath is one of the most transformative forces for life and one of the most powerful medicines on the planet.

Right now you and I are sharing the same experience – that our life began with a single breath, that our life is maintained by a series of breaths, and that the last thing that we do in this life is to take a breath. Right now you and I are sharing the air that we breathe. This air has been breathed over time by trillions and trillions of creatures, human and non-human, including all the people that humanity most admires for having helped make the world a better place.

And right now you and I have the same experience that without any conscious effort on our part we are breathing. And that breath is supporting the efficacy and vigor with which every cell in our body functions, and it is animating every moment of our life. Simultaneously this most critical, essential, and powerful physiological function can be affected in its rate, depth and more by our conscious volition. The implications of the meeting of the unconscious and conscious aspects of breathing, the effortless and efforting dimensions of breathing, for regulating a healthy and harmonious relationship between the sympathetic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system, and for creating opening and flow between the conscious and unconscious mind are thrilling and promising.

At the beginning of the 21st century there is expanding recognition that the source of much illness and disease is lack of oxygenation. How fortunate we are that there is wisdom from ancient times to today that can teach and guide us in consciously harnessing the full benefits of our breath. It is our most potent nutrient, and our most potentiated vehicle for awareness and self-actualization – and it is free and available every moment. From the simplest of breathing techniques that encourage relaxation and stress-reduction, to progressively enhanced techniques that promote cortisone regulation, stimulate immune functioning and hormonal regulation, to neural regulation and integration, and finally to intensive breathing techniques that help humans to penetrate the deepest parts of themselves, access their greatest gifts and fully flower as a being – breath is a surprising, delightful and awesome blessing.

Envision a world in which every baby is so loved and supported that there is little or no restriction or constriction, or holding of the breath due to anxiety, fear or unnecessary suffering. Envision that these relaxed, breathing childrenʼs bodies are then taught early in life about the significance, power and potential of deep and healthy breathing. Imagine a world in which these children are taught to breathe optimally and even expand their knowledge and capacity to breathe. Imagine a world in which all adults are supported and guided in retraining their bodies to breathe fully. Could we, as a species, as individuals, be healthy? Could we then meet each other with more relaxation, confidence, and awareness of the other? Could we then work together to keep our air, earth and water clean and vibrant? Could we then recognize our common humanity- and need to love and be loved? Could we build a healthy world that we can collectively relish together?

Breath Moves Consciousness

By taking the time to meditate and open up to your true nature you not only give to yourself but you are also bringing more love, light and healing to so many others.

We’d like to share some words we recently read from Wayne Dyer on using one’s breath to move consciousness.

“The breath has the capacity to ease pain and soften tension. When you concentrate on breathing, your mind is able to gather together all its scattered energies. Your mind becomes much more focused, quiet, and clear. In fact, when you focus on your breathing, you are in the present, in the here and now. You are able to truly shift from one state of consciousness to another.

Some great thinkers have actually said that the breath has the power to actually move matter and consciousness to new states of being. The breath is the life force. When you focus on breathing, you focus on directing the life force within you. This focuses and quiets your mind and helps you move energy. That’s why it’s so powerful to breathe into your difficulties. It moves them, shifts them, and transforms them.”