What is it about taking a deep breath that settles everything? A deep, full-belly breath is like touching a reset button somewhere inside. When I do this, I instantly feel calmer and more relaxed.
I remember my psychology professor sister telling me once that taking deep diaphragmatic breaths stimulates the vagus nerve. My artistic self imagined this place in the body as a magical crescent moon located somewhere in the belly, like a secret cup waiting to be filled with cleansing breath … When I look at pictures and drawings of the vagus nerve I see tree roots growing down from the brain stem to the belly. It’s a truly lovely sight.
Although I can’t see the vagus nerve lighting up in my own body, I can certainly feel it. It reminds me of the way the room feels when I slowly turn on the dimmer switch of my salt lamp, and a nice calm glow fills me. I breathe in healing calm. I breathe out calmness. I breathe it in. I breathe it out. I imagine a soft glowing moon. I imagine lovely growing tree roots.
Let’s take some deep full belly-breaths today. Let’s do this together. Let’s take a nice deep breath in, filling the belly. And let’s breathe out, fully and slowly.
Remember: deep breaths. They are right there, whenever you need them.
—Angie Pierce Jennings, Prairiewoods hosted groups and hospitality coordinator