How do security and breathwork sit together I hear you ask?
Well, breathwork, the conscious awareness of your breath, can offer the chance for transformation through improved mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being. As you may know, Team UMBRA believes that emotional safety is a key pillar in the overall process of risk management, and we are on a mission to bring its benefits to a wider audience to help make the world a safer place.
Some of the benefits may include:
Breathwork is something that can have a positive impact on both your personal and professional lives. The UMBRA Secure team works with security personnel who need to stay mentally and physically grounded and alert at all times. Recognising that breath work can help with mental health, stress reduction and focus, benefits both our teams and clients immensely.
Our Secure Lifestyle Training team believes that we can all use these practices as part of our personal safety training, as well as our holistic well-being, and we wanted to share our insights with you as the day-to-day impact it can have on your life can be powerful.
1) Your breathing is far more efficient when you pay attention to your posture and relax your muscles. An upright, but not forced posture, reduces some constriction. Notice what is going on with your shoulders and abdomen now, let both relax and your breathing should become freer.
2) There are natural breathing and focused breathing techniques. The former is for general well-being, and the latter can help when involved in a specific activity, or to tap into specific skills. In training, we discuss both, as there are methods to better manage fear or build resilience.
3) When out and about, try some purposeful breathing for a better state of alertness. Don’t force the breathing, just consciously breathe with purpose.
4) A popular method used by some military personnel is box breathing, the name reflecting the fact that this breathing technique consists of four steps, each of which should take the same amount of time, usually four seconds.
Please note: such methods must be used carefully, considering a person’s medical condition and other factors. We also have for specific situations: triangle breathing, rectangular breathing and octagonal breathing. These can help with communicating, listening, and energising.
5) Discharging breath is a good exercise for when you want to shake off any negative energy you may be feeling. Stand up and breathe in comfortably, then exhale through the mouth whilst imagining the tension leaving your body through the soles of the feet. Repeat ten times.
6) When you find yourself distracted and your mind wandering, count your breaths so you are shifting your awareness. Count the length of inhale and exhale for at least a few rounds. Start by counting 1 on the slow inhale through the nose, 2 on the long exhale through the mouth, 3 on the inhale, 4 on the exhale, and 5 on the inhale and release. Observe how this affects you.
Note: These breathing exercises should be done at a safe time and not when driving or engaged in a task that requires total concentration.
There are so many more techniques and benefits to explore in this intriguing subject, so whether you want to organise some safety training, increase your confidence, or add an element of wellness to your daily routine and security practices, contact UMBRA for more information.
From all at UMBRA International, we wish you good mental health and happiness.
Contributions from Kim Garrett