When Laughter Occurs, Choosing Joy, and a New Favorite Passage

1. This May Be My New Favorite Passage on Mindfulness

“Cultivating mindfulness is a way to pour energy in the form of attention, awareness, and acceptance into what is already right with you, what is already whole, as a complement to, not a substitute for, whatever help and support and treatments you may be receiving or need—if you need any at all—and see what happens.”

- Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D., The Healing Power of Mindfulness

I could read that all day. And I can think of no better motivation for practicing mindfulness than that passage 👏

2. When Laughter Occurs…

“When laughter occurs, respiratory exchange processes are enhanced, blood pressure is reduced, and the body produces endorphins which act not only as mood enhancers, but also as a natural pain killer. Psychological enhancements include reduced anxiety and stress as well as increased self-esteem and self-efficacy”

- Brett Bartholomew, Conscious Coaching

Just a reminder to laugh a little bit today…it’s the most therapeutic breathing exercise : )

3. How Breathing Impacts Whole-Body Energy

“The nose, trachea (windpipe), lungs, circulatory system, and their attendant muscles all act to transport or modify oxygen from the surrounding air to make it readily available to individual cells. Each of these organs plays a crucial role in determining oxygen supply, and therefore energy availability, to cells at various levels within the body. Consequently, a change in functioning in any one of these systems could potentially alter the course of energy production within the entire body.”

- Alan Hymes, MD, Science of Breath

Sometimes, it seems crazy that breathing can have such a profound influence on our bodies and minds. Then, you read a passage like this from an MD and realize it’s not so crazy after all.

Because our breathing determines oxygen supply (and therefore energy availability), any change we make “could potentially alter the course of energy production within the entire body.” 👏

4. Choose Joy to Make It Effortless

“Almost anything can be made pleasurable if we don’t tell ourselves we have to do it. When we make it fun, trying becomes unnecessary. Consider how odd it sounds to try to eat something you like eating or do something you like doing. ... If we enjoy doing something, it will feel effortless. When we’re mindfully engaged, we don’t notice the presence or absence of effort.”

- Ellen Langer, Ph.D., The Mindful Body

This is a nice reminder that if we find a way to make our breathing/mindfulness/(whichever wellness practice you do) more enjoyable, it will become effortless. And if it’s effortless & enjoyable, we’ll be more consistent, and we’ll get much more out of it.

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"You didn’t come into this world. You came out of it, like a wave from the ocean. You are not a stranger here."

— — Alan Watts

Category: Oxygen Transport

Answer: Approximately this percentage of total oxygen transported in the blood is carried by hemoglobin, with the remaining dissolved directly in the plasma.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

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Question: What is 98%?

1 Spots Left

I have 1 spots left in October for my 8-week program for overcoming stressful life setbacks. Email [email protected] with subject line “breath” to learn more.

In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”

P.S. hey sorry i overreacted

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