Today is the Winter Solstice, the darkest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, and the ushering in of the season of the pause after the exhale. 

 

The pause after the exhale is a trickster of sorts. Even though it follows the exhale, which is mostly relaxing, the pause after the exhale mostly activates the sympathetic nervous system, which speeds up your heart rate, dilates your pupils, and widens bronchial passages. A spaciousness within the physiology that goes unseen and yet is imperative to the dynamic dance between the inner and outer worlds. 

It is also part of the breath that tends to be under-practiced in current breathing techniques. That's why on Sunday at Pitney Meadows during the Winter Solstice walk, the breathing techniques we played with accentuated the exhale's ending, the pause after the exhale, and the space in between. When the transition into the pause after the exhale is savored - take the box breath, the Wim Hof Method, a reversed 4:7:8 - breathers experience shifts in focus and awareness that remind them of their resilience. 

 

That being said, this passing of the torch from the exhale to the pause after the exhale does not feel welcoming to my nervous system. The transition resembles a bramble thick with thorns adorned with the fissures of could have beens, what ifs, and shoulds. While I want to circumvent this transition and journey around the discomfort, it is bringing my attention to the shifting of the breath, I feel the nostalgia, the grief, and the heartbreak without getting caught up in the stories of what was and wasn't. 

Let’s try it together to see what arises for you in the transition - as you come to the end of your next exhalation, welcome the pause that follows it. Allow for spaciousness here - prolong, exaggerate, and witness the transition into the pause. Not rushing through the shift. If you want to take more time to be with the transition, listen to this guided recording. 

 

Which emotions live here for you? How does the transition make your body feel, any twinges, pings, or gurggles? 

 

We will be studying the pause after the exhale more in-depth during two workshops in January and February. 

 

The Winter Breath workshop at Yoga Mandali is all about digging into the physical, emotional, and seasonal benefits of the pause after the exhale so you can understand how to utilize it to focus and cultivate emotional regulation. 

 

The Nourish Your Breath workshop is a collaboration with Heidi of Awakened Tonics where we will learn to explore nourishment through slow breathwork and playing with tonics to restore during the winter. 

Moving into the winter, Slo Breathworks will focus on bringing workshops, breath walks, and the seasons of breath framework to businesses curious about how conscious breathing can be a revolutionary, simple tool to grow creativity and resilience in their workplaces. If you know of an organization that is ready to breathe easier in 2024, take a slow breath and reply to this email.

 

May you find some playfulness amidst the transition into the pause after the exhale, 

 

Sarah 

Slo Breathworks acknowledges the unceded territory of the Haudenosaunee and Mohican from where this newsletter was written. Take a breathe and identify where you are located.