Oh the Exhilaration of Oxygen!

SERIOUSLY...JUST BREATHE I hope all you mother’s of this world were well spoilt on Mother’s Day. I personally don’t have any offspring but always feel blessed to be taking care of the child inside all of us with my work as a Kinesiologist & Life Strategist. And I simply relish this role! Thank you to all you big kids out there that allow me to work with you and share the light. Always such an honour and such a privilege. Every year I host mother’s day at my place by cooking up my mum & sister’s favourite dish, Lecho. It’s kind of like ratatouille, but even simpler with a concoction of tomatoes, onion, zuchinni, powdered Hungarian sweet paprika and yellow peppers. My mother and older sister simply relish it! I love to gather the family around, put on ambient tunes and share the love and update one another of our full lives. But the ultimate thing I love is the walk after we’ve eaten and cleared the table. I’m blessed enough to live on the Mornington Peninsula with the most beautiful scenery around me. God’s playground I call my region. My back door, as the crow flies is about 1.5ks to the beautiful bay beaches and my front door opens to foothill views of the magnificent Arthur’s Seat. And this is just where we walked yesterday. Up, up and up the hill until the whole view of the Peninsula opened up before us and we could see Melbourne city in the distance and the heads of Portsea and Queenscliff. Oh so spoilt. I call this view BREATH TAKING. I do, I literally gasp for a moment and then take in the biggest breath with such love and adoration at the beauty that lays before me. My 10 year old nephew came along for the walk, hesitantly I might add. I listened to him complain a little as we trudged up the hill and he lagged behind with his 83 year old grandfather who took the lead. “Turn and look at the view” I told him. He did and I watched his face change. He too got lost in the beauty and took big deep breaths of the crisp Autumn air. His cheeks roseyed up and I knew he was truly oxygenated and truly alive. The oxygen invigorated him and by the time we reached our summit and turned to go down, he was so full of glee and presence in the wonderful surroundings, that he decided to roll his whole body down past the golf course. The fresh outdoor air changed him... Such a simple thing. Such a simple gift this breath thing....yet many of us forget to open right up. Have you ever noticed when someone hurts themselves, the first t

hing they do is pull in air and hold their breath. Or when someone is raging they go red in the face from so much exertion of air to spray out a tirade of angry words. These are obvious expressions we can see clearly when they happen in front of us. But have you ever noticed what happens to your breath when you are sad or stressed? Yes, you guessed it, your breath becomes uneven. When a person becomes really sad and goes into a state of depression, their whole body composition changes. They bow their head, roll their shoulders in and spend more time with their head hanging and gazing towards the ground they walk on than the glorious sky above them. And of course whilst this is their disposition, they tend to breathe out more than in.

A super quick way to shift this discomfort is to have them raise their head, tilt their head to the sky, throw their arms up in the air and take a few long deep breaths right into the core of their belly. Immediately their state will change. They will feel lighter and momentarily lift out of their sadness. Now this is a beginning, walking up a hill with breathtaking views is a sure way to be present and find joy and peace and listen to your pulse quicken.

As a Kineisology practitioner, one of the major things I notice with clients as we discuss certain issues, is that their breath changes. If we’re talking about unpleasant memories or issues, a client tends to hold their breath as their thoughts ponder on the topic. Even now, as you read this, if by now you haven’t, I bet you’ve clocked your rhythm of breath and taken a moment to straighten your posture and take a big deep breath. If not, try it now. And before you do, become aware how you feel in your body. Whether your mind is chatty or you’re feeling restless or rushed or tired... And then take a few very deep breaths in and re-assess the difference that deep breath made to you.