A friend noticed that I literally held my breath all throughout the day.  I was amazed!   Just knowing you have a problem, or owning it, as Dr. Phil says, does not solve it. She suggested I try yoga.

 I bought a tape and popped it in one morning.    A woman with the kindest eyes I have ever seen, whose face actually glowed, cordially greeted me.   "Welcome friend, I have been waiting for you!"  Her voice was soothing, like a hot bath, and I felt as if she was talking directly to me. All throughout the tape she repeated, ARE YOU BREATHING?  How did she know? This serene being spent the next few minutes discussing the correct way to inhale and exhale.

She said we all needed to be patient, persistent and positive.  Before moving on, she spent quite a bit of time making sure I was breathing properly. Was my stomach supposed to go in or out? I was totally confused. Until that very moment, all my breaths were shallow, so none of my body parts moved.  She said if I hummed I might train my muscles to respond naturally by combining movement with sound.  My brain needed rewiring to create new pathways between mind and body.  How did I get by all these years without mastering this technique?  

I guess those deep cleansing breaths I had been taking were not all that cleansing after all.  Even with her gentle guidance, I was astonished at the amount of effort and concentration it took to do it right.   I felt like a person with two left feet in a dance class trying to figure out where to step.   The only way to wrap my brain around the concept was to visualize a balloon filling with air and then deflating.   Finally, after a week of practice I began to see my stomach muscles do their job and it literally changed my disposition.

 I now begin each day with my yoga tape.  I am constantly reminded to remember to remember to breathe.  I stretch, yawn and sigh and break out in a great big grin every time I realize it took me 50 years to get this right.    My new best friend said I could take a minute vacation any time I wanted without anyone ever knowing.