Box Breathing to Ease the Mind and Body
 
Box breathing is a form of meditation that is useful when one is feeling stressed, overwhelmed, or just needs a minute to reset their thought process.  Studies have shown that box breathing can help reduce stress by relaxing the body and lowering the stress hormone, cortisol.  Box breathing can also be effective when practicing mindfulness. It helps bring the person out of a state of frustration or feeling of being overwhelmed.  The breathing technique can bring a person to a state of calmness and help them become more present in the moment.  The beauty of box breathing is that it can be used at anytime and anywhere.  Below is a diagram of how to perform the box breathing technique.  

Here is how to do box breathing:  Close your eyes and either sit up right with your feet grounded or lie down.  Image a box in your head.  Starting at the top left-hand corner of the box, breathe in slowly, filling your lungs for four seconds, and imagine your breath is drawing a line going across the top of the box.  Once you get to the top right corner of the box, hold your breath for four seconds and imagine holding that breath and drawing a line down to the right bottom corner of your box.  Once you get to the right bottom corner of your box, slowly let your breath out for four seconds as you draw a line in your mind across the bottom part of the box.  Lastly, once you get to the left corner of your box, hold that exhale for four seconds as you draw that last line of the box up to the top of the left corner.  Repeat this breathing technique for three or four rounds and then check in with yourself to see how you feel.  Are you calmer?  Is your body feeling more relaxed?  Are you feeling less stressed and able to put more focus into the task at hand? If not, repeat the breathing technique till you start to feel the benefits of it. 

If you would like to learn a little more about box breathing, here is a great article that was written by Cleveland Clinic health essentials:
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/box-breathing-benefits
 
Article written by Lisa Fisher, Certified Health Coach, Personal Trainer, and Fitness Nutrition Specialist.