A breathing practice to beat fatigue combining breath consciousness and taoist body part visualization and stimulation. Do this practice regularly if you have any chronic illness that causes a lot of fatigue.
Here at Breathvision, I promote a form of breathwork that combines breath consciousness with therapeutic sensory awareness using taoist principles. Taoist practitioners worked with a detailed body map of energy centres, channels and manipulation points. Sensory awareness and visualization of these parts of the body synchronized with mostly unforced breathing can do wonders for your health and wellbeing.
This breathing practice to beat fatigue is not a quick fix. Done regularly, it will promote health enhancing sense impressions that will do away with physical and mental imprints of tiredness and reprogram your system to keep fatigue at bay.
The Practice
Sit comfortably, if possible with your back supported. You can sit cross-legged on a cushion on the floor or on your bed. Inhale deeply and exhale fully for a few breaths, breathing from your belly and become aware of your breathing. Continue breathing in an unforced manner and literally ‘look’ at your breath. Sensing the air moving past your nostrils, moving your chest and expanding your belly. While you breathe gently, ask yourself where the breath comes from. Do you actually know? Just pose this question. Don’t search for an answer and continue breathing, feeling the air moving in and out.
To continue with this breathing practice to beat fatigue, now visualize your nose connected to a channel that runs upto a balloon situated in your belly, at the level of your navel extending below it. Visualize the balloon inflating and pushing out your abdomen as you breathe in and collapsing as you breathe out. This visualization helps promote belly breathing. Don’t try to explain this connection between the nose and the balloon in the belly. Just keep visualizing the filling up of the balloon with the inhale and the deflation with the exhale. Try it even if your mind tells you that such a connection is not possible and see how it feels! Do this, breathing naturally for 5 minutes.
There is an acupuncture point located at the tip of the little finger that is part of the pericardium channel. The pericardium channel is one of the meridians thought to influence energy and vitality in chinese medicine. There are other channels/meridians such as the liver channel, the heart channel etc. These channels are thought to relay energy throughout the body and if functioning without blocks, give rise to vitality and longevity. For about a minute, apply strong pressure on these points with the thumb of each hand. Feel the sensation of pressure flowing into your awareness.
Now visualize these points on both your little fingers, as your hands are placed on your lap. Feel them opening up as you breathe. Visualize that you are breathing in and out through these points. Do this for a 2 minutes opening up to any sensations or even thoughts arising in your awareness. Keep your breathing unforced and gentle.
Next, focus on a point in between your shoulder blades, at the level of your heart. Again, be open to any sensations arising at this point. Visualize, this point ( about the size of a small coin) opening up, filling with energy. As you breathe gently, visualize the breath touching this point, and then actually coming in and going out through this point. Do this in a relaxed, easy manner without tightening or excessively narrowing your focus. Do this for about 2 minutes.
Now place your hands on your knees. Breathe naturally for a few moments, just relaxing. Next, slowly raise your hands, palms facing each other as you inhale, in an arc till they are above your head. Hold them above your head for a few moments as you breathe a few times. While holding them above your head, visualize a line joining the points on your little fingers and between the shoulder blades, running through the back of your hands and back. Now, while exhaling bring your arms to a horizontal position. Again, while slowly inhaling raise your arms slowly to above your head. As you do this maneuver, feel your arms moving, open up to any sensations arising in your arms and back.
When your arms reach above your head with an inhale, allow them to rest there and visualize the line between the little fingers and your back. Breathe gently in and out for a few moments visualizing the breath flowing along this line. Repeat the arm raise with an inhale, the hold while breathing through the line, and the arm lowering to horizontal with an exhale. Remember to keep your movements and your breathing gentle and unforced. Feel energy and the breath flowing through your arms and back, the points mentioned opening up.
After a few cycles, rest your hands again on your lap and return your attention wholly to your breathing. Do this for a few minutes as you rest.
Conclusion
Regularly doing this breathing practice to beat fatigue will benefit you in many ways. It will condition your body and mind to focus on your breathing and on specific points and parts of your body each time tiredness sets in. And this in turn will send rest-relax-repair signals to your brain when your body-mind starts to get fatigued. Endurance will increase and you will feel refreshed and light after doing the exercise. For best results keep each exercise session to about 30 minutes.
I hope you enjoy doing this exercise. Check out our breathwork modules, and get in touch if you would like to make breathwork a regular part of your life!