Our mental health can be a tricky thing can't it?  Some of us can show all the feelings, all the time!  Others have a smile on and seem to have it all together, secretly crumbling inside.  The rest of us fall somewhere in between.  Deepening your own self awareness can be helpful personally and professionally.  If you feel stuck or life is not where you want it to be, it might be time to reach out for professional help.  Just give it a try!  A couple of hours over the next month could be a beautiful beginning.

“When we’re frazzled, our fight-or-flight response is on overload causing a host of problems,” says Dr. Sullivan. “We can use calm, quiet moments to tap into a different part of the nervous system that helps shut down our bodies’ physical response to stress.”
That means, being still and silent can help you:

• Lower your blood pressure.
• Decrease your heart rate.
• Steady your breathing.
• Reduce muscle tension.
• Increase focus and cognition.

​

"Breathing is a perfect example of such a tool, Huberman said and he's working with colleagues to understand how different breathing patterns affect feelings of stress and tranquility.  
One breathing pattern they're studying is called "physiological sighs" -- pattern of breathing in which two inhales through the nose are followed by an extended exhale through the mouth.
Huberman explained how it works: "You have little sacks of air in the lungs, which increase the volume of air that you can bring in. Those sacks collapse over time, and as a result, oxygen levels start to go down and carbon dioxide levels go up in the bloodstream and body, and that a big part of the signaling of the stress response."

​