Page 8 - Booklet -online

CHAPTER FOUR

TAKE A DEEP BREATH: THE TRUTH BEHIND THIS

MEANINGLESS CLICHÉ

Exercising is one of the three mandatory components for getting fit and maximizing our
potential to be the healthiest version of ourselves. However, as discussed earlier, exercising should not
solely consist of tangibles like physical performance and the like. It should also focus on the intangibles
like our mind and our emotional intelligence.

One component of emotional intelligence is emotional
regulation or the ability to control how we react to various TAKE A BREATH…
stressors to have the optimal emotional disposition. This
became my starting point to revamping my life, changing my Did you know, there is a reciprocal
perception of the things in and around my life, and re- relationship between Emotional
establishing a culture I once had and thrived in that centered Intelligence and physical activity?
When optimally utilized, both elicit
around a holistic composition of health, wellness, and fitness.
the use of the parasympathetic
Various emotions, like anger, fear, despair, frustration, nervous system, the system
shame, and jealousy, can cause us to stress eat. During this era responsible for our hearts being in
of COVID-19, I have been hearing and reading that the most the resting phase. The common
common feelings people ascribe to themselves and people they denominator is breathing.
know are fear and despair. Fear of the unknown, and of the Both physical and emotional stressors
uncertainly of their jobs, income, health, and the health of their can increase your heart rate
loved ones. For many people, these fears became realities, as significantly, activating the
they and or their loved ones have fallen victim to COVID, lost sympathetic nervous system, a system
their job, or in many cases, have had their incomes significantly responsible for releasing the hormone
reduced. I fell victim to the latter. However, that did not bother epinephrine--the fear/flight
me as much as it might others because I knew I had the mental hormone. Being in this heightened
grit and determination to do whatever it took to make ends state too long can cause damage to
meet for my family. the heart.

While I knew that I possessed the determination Taking deep breaths, or diaphragmic
necessary to make it through the pandemic, I was still breathing, activates the
emotionally impacted by it all. There were significant bouts of parasympathetic nerves, many of
despair which stemmed from not being able to see the light at which are in the lobes of the lungs,
the end of the tunnel or an end to the pandemic. The rules for thereby causing the heart to enter a
new social norms and the understanding of this virus's resting phase. Such breathing allows
illusiveness were so fluid that it felt virtually impossible to keep for the sustainability of various forms
a grip on things mentally. It was difficult to find a sense of of physical activity as well as enable
us to optimally regulate our emotions
to respond to various stressors
appropriately. So, take a breath!
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