I've been reading a book by the name of Grow Up. While aimed toward men, one practice it describes has been genuinely useful: simply noticing your breathing throughout your day.

Most of us walk around with a low-level stress response and don't even realize it. When you're talking to a coworker, driving in traffic, looking at your credit card statements, whenever.

If you are stressed, your breathing will be shallower, faster, irregular, or you will hold your breath longer than normal. Muscles around your chest, shoulders, and stomach will be tighter, and your breathing will be constricted. These physical changes help the body deliver oxygen to muscles for a physical response, but they also create something of a loop.

This changed breathing signals 'danger' to the brain. Cortisol and adrenaline flow, and heart rate increases. In modern life, this happens with no real or present physical danger.

We don't even realize this up and down fight-or-flight response is part of what causes fatigue. But it's not our brain's fault; it's doing its part to keep you alive. Every now and then we just need to remind it that it’s okay.

So check your breath throughout your day. If you find you've stalled, relax and make a conscious effort to breathe deeply into your stomach. This tells your nervous system that you're not in physical danger.

Take this time to recognize what emotions you're feeling and identify what thoughts or things caused you to lose your normal breathing.

I’ve found this surprisingly effective, especially when I’m trying to stay present, and the more I practice it, the more I realize how much low-grade tension I carry. I think you'll be surprised, too.

If this post resonated with you, would you consider forwarding it to another writer or reader? I don't use social media, so word of mouth from readers like you is how my work spreads. Thank you.

~ J.R. Warden