A Deep Breathing Exercise
Join James S. Gordon, MD, for a four minute deep-breathing exercise. Dr. Gordon presents “Soft Belly,” an evidence-based mind-body medicine technique for relaxation.
Dr. Gordon shared this technique as as part of the Veterans Health Administration’s STAR Well-Kit: Tools for Healing. The STAR Well-Kit is a “web-based toolkit for learning about wellness practices and Integrative Medicine tools for Veterans.” Care for our nation’s veterans remains critical, with more troops than ever returning home with the burden of post-traumatic stress. Since 2007, CMBM has trained over 800 clinicians and peer counselors to work with veterans and active duty military. By teaching mind-body skills and providing support, they create the conditions of possibility for trauma recovery and resilience.
At The Center for Mind-Body Medicine, each training, exercise, and even meeting begins with this simple and powerful mind-body medicine. By breathing slowly in through your nose and out through your mouth, you relax and ground yourself in the present. Soft-belly breathing increases the possibility for stress relief and healing by calming the sympathetic nervous system and awakening the parasympathetic nervous system.
Using this simple technique for just a few minutes several times a day can help recalibrate and defragment your mind-body connection, reviving your ability to cope with stress and to be ready to thrive no matter what life brings.
