Mindful Nugget: Letting Go

This Mindful Nugget is about letting go. Letting go of thoughts about the past and the future in order to be fully present in the here and now is a key principle of mindfulness.

Pranayama in Sanskrit means breath control. I always say that our number one coping mechanism is with us all of the time. We never leave home without it. It is our breath.

What does breathing have to do with letting go? Exhaling is letting go. Exhaling also regulates our relaxation response to decrease stress.

When we set an intention to release what we no longer need with each of our exhales, whether it is a thought or a feeling, suddenly our exhales become more purposeful, or full of purpose.

Research indicates that we take an average of 22,000 breaths per day. A breath is defined as one inhale and one exhale. This means that we have 11,000 opportunities to weave this intentional practice into our lives every day.

Here is a playful way to practice letting go and breathwork at the same time.

The Practice:

Set your intention at the start of the day.

Intentions are what we practice in the present moment, verses goals which are focused on the future.

For example an intention could be, “May I let go of anxiety related to the past and the future with each of my exhales.”

You can be as vague or as specific as you want. I recommend being specific in the beginning. For example, “On every exhale, may I let go of replaying the tape in my head of the conversation with my brother.”

And that is it. You do not need to keep reminding yourself of your intention. Once it is set into motion you will most likely embody it as you move throughout your day without striving to do so. Intention setting is a very powerful practice.

At the end of the day, notice if you were able to manifest your intention in some way, even if it is nuanced.