What do you see when you meditate? Perhaps your answer is a resounding “nothing!”–and this is perfectly okay. However, even though a state of meditation is often cultivated through the withdrawal of the senses, there are many practices that utilize mental imagery or your inner senses as the object or focus of your concentration. By practicing visualization, we can use our sense of inner-sight and imagination to help us go deeper into our meditation practice, connecting with both our subconscious and our daily lives. If you’re interested in trying out different forms of meditation and mindfulness, here are seven simple techniques to get you started!

What is visualization meditation?

Visualization is a style of meditation where the practitioner focuses their attention on a positive image, thought, feeling, or sensation. In this type of meditation, the practitioner will visualize an image or concept in their mind’s eye, and remain focused on this image during the practice. Visualization can be more engaging than regular meditation because you use your imagination to actively create images and scenes in your mind.

Some people find visualization meditation is sufficient when practiced alone, but some use it with additional practices, such as pranayama or mantra meditation, to further enhance concentration, create a feeling of deep relaxation, and prevent the mind from wandering into thoughts.

Why is visualization so powerful?

Visualization is a technique that helps us see our inner world in a different way. When we visualize, we create images in our minds that help us understand ourselves and others better. We can also use visualization to change our thoughts, feelings, emotions, and behaviors. For example, if you’re feeling anxious about something, you might imagine yourself in a safe place, surrounded by friends and family. Or if you’re feeling sad, you might imagine yourself surrounded and infused with a bright happy pink color.

Visualization meditation makes our thoughts and emotions more tangible by associating them with physical forms. It helps us see what we want to change or manifest in our lives and gives us the tools for transformation. Visualization meditation also helps us connect to our inner wisdom, which is always available to guide us toward our highest potential.

How does the practice of visualization meditation work?

When we think about something, we build a mental picture of it. The pictures we create in our heads are based on our past experiences, memories, and expectations. When we think about something we have never experienced before, we simply don’t have all the information available to create a clear picture of what it looks like. Our brains fill in the gaps with imagination, creating a mental model of what the object might look like.

Research using brain imaging suggests that visualization works because whenever we visualize something, our brains interpret the imagery in a similar way to how they would process an actual experience. When we see ourselves doing something, our brains create a neural pathway that helps us prepare our bodies to act in a way that matches what we saw in our mind’s eye. So whatever we train our minds to believe becomes our reality, and the more we do it, the more our real lives start to change and emulate what we imagined.

7 types of visualization meditation practices

There are seven main visualization meditation techniques.They can broadly be categorized into two main types. Techniques that focus on visualizing something tangible outside of the body and those that encourage us to see from the mind’s eye within. To find a visualization practice that works for you, consider one or more of the following types of meditations.

1. Yantra or Mandala

A yantra is a diagram made of geometric patterns that, I’ve explained to students, is kind of like a mantra for the eyes (In fact, most yantras are related to a mantra and deity). Commonly used in tantric practices, contemplating a yantra can be a powerful tool for focusing awareness. However, even without a specific meaning attached, any mandala can serve as an object of meditation. By visualizing symmetrical and repetitive patterns, either with our eyes open or internally, we form new pathways in the brain and stimulate a sense of balance, clarity, and relaxation.

2. Guru or Deity

Many spiritual traditions focus on visualizing either a spiritual teacher or a deity and calling upon its qualities. Keep in mind that in both Hinduism and Buddhism, gods and goddesses represent different virtues of the divine and of ourselves. By visualizing deities, we focus on embodying these qualities in our own lives, so before beginning, find a deity that you can relate to and whose traits you wish to embrace in your life.

3. Anything else that has meaning to you

If the objects above don’t resonate with your interest, experiment with visualizing a candle flame, thee imagine of a flower, the sun or moon, your favorite place, or the eyes or face of a loved one. Anything that brings you a feeling of tranquility or ease can help you to come into a place of higher self-awareness and is a suitable symbol for visualization.

4. Chakra or Energy

A common internal visualization exercise is to focus on light or energy within your body. One way to practice this is by focusing on either a specific chakra (third eye, heart, etc.) or on all of the chakras sequentially as a spectrum of light and colors. If you’re unable to see colors, you can simply imagine these energy centers as lights, flames, symbolic lotus flowers, or high-density places of spinning energy.

5. Guided journey creative visualizations

Typically scripted, journey-style visualization can be beneficial to those who have trouble keeping the mind focused or for those who are looking for insight into daily life. These meditations usually include a relaxation exercise followed by a walk through nature, suggested encounters of some sort, and symbolic objects or obstacles that you might find throughout your way. These practices are usually created with the intention of connecting you with different aspects of your subconscious mind.

It can also be empowering to lead yourself through a journey of your choice, especially through a difficult situation in life, in order to see yourself choosing behaviors and actions that are beneficial to you. Various theories suggest the idea that our thoughts control our realities, so visualizing real-life scenarios can serve as a powerful exercise in overcoming challenges and creating the behaviors that you want to actualize.

6. Color breathing

Take a few moments to decide on a feeling or quality that you want to bring into your life. Next, assign a color that best relates to this feeling or quality. For example, if you want to feel happy, you might choose a soothing blue or energizing orange. If you want to feel calm, you might choose green. When you’re ready, close your eyes and breathe slowly and deeply. Think about the color you’ve selected and visualize it in your mind. As you breathe in, feel the color wash over your face, arms, chest, legs, feet, hands, and fingers. Breathe in the color and feel it completely filling up your body. You can exhale and stay focused on the color or you can feel you are breathing out any negative feelings.

7. Loving-kindness meditation

Loving-kindness is a Buddhist meditation that helps you build compassion, empathy, forgiveness, and acceptance for yourself and others. This visual meditation practice involves feeling and imagining yourself sending kindness to important people in your life.

You begin by imagining someone you care about deeply. As you feel their presence, you repeat a comforting phrase like “may you be happy, may you be safe. May you be healthy, peaceful, and strong.” as you repeat these words over and over again, feel your gratitude for their presence in your life. Stay with that feeling, repeating the comforting words.

Benefits of visualization meditation

Visualization meditation is a type of meditation that helps us gain insight into our inner world. It is used to develop compassion, empathy, love, and wisdom. It is a tool to help us understand ourselves better and learn how to relate to others. It is a method of developing positive qualities such as patience, kindness, forgiveness, and tolerance.

Different types of visualization exercises offer different benefits. However, for those with wandering minds, any kind of visualization practice can offer a specific attention-grabbing focal point, along with guidance, either vague or detailed, depending on your needs.

We can use visualization exercises to help relax our bodies and minds, to get in touch with our own energy, or to connect with something greater than ourselves. Visualization also helps us to develop both creativity and concentration as we train our mind’s eye to work in new ways in order to form detailed images.

Athletes commonly use a form of visualization meditation to boost their health and althetic performance. It is a very effective technique for dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, insomnia, and many other conditions. It has been proven to reduce blood pressure, improve sleep quality, and increase feelings of wellbeing.

Visualization is also commonly used as part of reaching a state of yoga nidra, or yogic sleep, in the form of image recollection and release. By getting to know and utilizing the space behind our forehead, known as Chidakasha (which translates to “the space of consciousness”), we become attuned to different facets of our own awareness.

Finally, the visualization process can be taken over to life outside of meditation as well. In essence, we can use visualization to facilitate healing, to overcome obstacles, to promote positive feelings, and to envision leading our lives in the way that feels best.

Visualization tips

While many of us are inclined to easily visualize objects, ideas, or energy, for many of us (myself included), visualization does not come naturally. If you fall into this latter category of people, worry not! Visualization, like all meditation practices and techniques, is something that can be learned through repetition, keeping a few tips in mind:

• If you’re using an object of focus, become familiar with this image beforehand. Keep the image or object in a place where you see it often, and look at it throughout the day to memorize its details.
• With a physical object of meditation, it can also help to begin your meditation practice with open eyes and, if the image fades from your mind quickly, to take a quick glance at your object from time to time.
• If it’s still hard to “see,” use your imagination and senses to continue to practice.
• Find a comfortable position where you can remain both alert and relaxed in a place that feels nourishing to you.
• Maintain a slow, deep breath throughout the entire process.
• When you find yourself drifting off, gently return your focus back to the mental image.
• Start small and build slowly. If you’ve never meditated before, try starting with just five minutes per session. Once you feel comfortable with that length of time, increase your duration to 15 minutes, or however long you’d like to go.
• Set aside time each day to dedicate yourself to establishing a regular meditation practice.

Is visualization something that you’ve found helpful for focusing your mind or seeing different facets of yourself? Let us know if you have a favorite visualization technique from the list above. Please share your eye-opening experiences with our community!

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Life is a battleground, we need to keep fighting until our appointed time on earth comes. So, in this post, you will see the best of the best life tips you have never heard before. These tips are life-changing and can change you immediately. Let’s go!

1. Be independent 

Hundreds of millions of people make this mistake. We depend on people like us. “he will get it done for me, she will get it done for me”. You rely heavily on people and guess what, you are making a big mistake. 

There are a lot of people that have helped others and perhaps time changes for them, they become poor and rely on the people they have helped, guess what comes out at the end of this reliance? Disappointment, promises backed by failures, etc. 

Who are you depending on? Who is that person you can’t do without when getting things in your life done? If there is anyone, you are making a big mistake. And starting today, all you have to do is add a prefix – what if!

“What if my friend stops helping me, what if I get disappointed by people I trust with my life, what if they neglect me and turn me down”.

A man or woman that depends on people like him is equal to a feeble pillar holding the four corners of a house. What happens when the feeble pillar falls? The man’s house falls down super-flat. Your trust should only be in Jesus. Man can fail us at any time but God is always faithful till his Kingdom comes. 

2. Love your neighbor as yourself 

The gravity of this word is enough to shatter the whole earth into pieces. 

Only if the whole world just kept this simple commandment Christ Jesus gave then, there will be no murders, poverty, greediness, anger, envy, betrayal, disappointment, etc. 

Why are there such things in the world? Because we hate ourselves. As long as you are fine all is well. You care about yourself only, selfish, you have and yet you cannot give. 

Those are the characteristics of over 90% of the 7.6 billion humans on earth. Why can’t you do to others what you would have them do to you? Why can’t you help that suffering neighbor who needs food? Then, a lot of people will say 

“Go away from here beggar, what did you do with your youth, I can’t give you a dime, beggar”. Why are we so cruel? This is the best tip you must dear to your heart. 

No matter what you have, no matter how little or in whatever way you can help. Help people, show them love, love them as you love yourself. Don’t forget this, today’s beggar, uneducated, debtor, poor person, etc can later become the greatest person in the world tomorrow. 

“Don’t settle for what life gives you; make life better and build something.” — Ashton Kutcher

3. Have a growth mindset

A growth mindset is what makes one successful and go far in life. However, a fixed and stagnated mindset throws one into jeopardy of life.

A lot of people have a fixed mindset, what they believe is what they believe, nothing you say on earth can change their mindset, they are the most educated in the world so they don’t need to learn any further. Did you have a fixed or growth mindset?

A growth mindset leads to success, achievements, happiness, learning more, and becoming better. On the other hand, a fixed mindset leads to complacency, pride, lack of achievement, ignorance, the stagnancy of the mind, etc. 

Let’s see an example of someone with a fixed mindset:

Cait tells Alice: Alice stop being so proud it’s annoying. 

And Alice responds:

“How dare you say I am proud, I am not. I am the most humble woman on earth”. In the example, Alice with a fixed mindset has a fixed mindset. However, what she does not know is that she is in the darkness of her ignorance. She is ignorant of the fact that she is a proud person thus, she can’t see it. 

People with a fixed mindset are ignorant. You must never have a fixed mindset. Always be willing to learn and to grow with humility. Pride can take you nowhere. 

4. Forgive everyone and give as many second chances as you can  

A lot of people have done all they could to be happy and have peace. But, they find out that happiness is not just there and that peace of mind is absent. 

Why is that? It is because you have a lot of grudge against people that have offended you. Yes, we know, it pained you to your heart, and what next? Keep malice? But, do you know what that unforgiveness does to you?

I call it the seed of unforgiveness because it plants a seed in your heart and this seed further grows to become hatred, depression, lack of freedom, zero peace, etc. 

If in only one person’s heart are all these things, then a person like that can never know peace and happiness. For example, if you were to go to a party with your friends and you hear that perhaps the other friend that you keep malice with is coming to the same party. 

Naturally, the only thing you would think of is not going to the party anymore because you want to avoid the person at all costs. And what does that add to you? It doesn’t add instead, it subtracts from your life because you could have gone to the party, had fun, and even have new friends or even new opportunities.

If not for anything will you forgive people, forgive them for the sake of God, for the sake of Christ Jesus. Because if you cannot forget the trespass of people, don’t expect God to forgive you. Forgive everyone, give them as many second chances as possible. 

Mind you, they can still mess up and make terrible mistakes all you have to do is keep forgiving them. This may not be so easy to the flesh. However, it is only The Spirit of God that can make you forgive the trespass of people. Without The Holy Spirit, it is impossible to do so. 

5. Love God

Do you love God? Are you a child of God? Do you believe in Christ Jesus? Even if the rest of the tips on these lists do not resonate with you, I want you to hold this very important to your heart which is to Love God with all your heart, soul, and strength.

And you can do that only by being a child of God. This life is too short. It is like a vapor, it is nothing. Life is more like an empty barrel that makes noise. You will grow old, your strength will leave you and you will die but, what happens after that? Where are you going to spend the rest of your eternity? 

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Humanistic therapy is known as a mental health technique that highlights the significance of being your true self to make the most of your fulfilling life. This type of therapy is based on the belief that individuals have their own perspective that affects the way they decide and make life-changing decisions.

Humanistic therapy is not an ordinary one. It involves a core principle that individuals are good in nature and can make the best and right decisions for themselves. Do you want to know more about humanistic therapy techniques? Then, keep on reading and see how it works.

How Humanistic Therapy Techniques Work?

Humanistic therapy encompasses a better understanding of how you view the world and helps each person develop their true self-acceptance.

This objective is partially accomplished through the improvement of unconditional positive regard, coming from yourself and from others. Say that when you know that other people will only respect you if you do a certain thing, you will feel that you are not enough. This is often observed if you fail to do that specific act or thing. Now, this feeling of triviality can negatively affect how you view the world around you and how you think of yourself. Take note that according to the principle of humanistic therapy, your perceptions and beliefs affect your daily actions and thoughts.

Additionally, humanistic therapy can assist you in overcoming disapproval or criticism and develop self-acceptance by offering a safe space to work that leads to personal development.

How Humanistic Therapy Differs From Other Types of Therapies?

Humanistic therapy is completely different from any other traditional therapy techniques or approaches like behavioral or psychoanalysis therapy.

Humanistic therapy concentrates more on your daily life, while most therapy types concentrate on your past experiences. It also focuses on assisting people holistically rather than treating a certain diagnosis. Trusted humanistic therapists do this through having a deep connection with their clients. They actively listen to their clients and may ask several questions to help you.

Humanistic therapists believe that you are the master of your own life, and you have the ability to overcome your life difficulties. They also support the path you take in every session and trust you to determine what you want to talk about to treat successfully.

What Are The Different Types Of Humanistic Techniques?

Humanistic therapies come in various approaches. However, there are three most common types: Gestalt therapy, existential therapy, and client-centered therapy.

Gestalt Therapy

In this type of therapy, your personal experiences are the key factors.  It is based on the theory that unresolved conflicts with others lead to distress. These conflicts may involve romantic partners, family members, and the like.

Gestalt therapy also provides a condition of “safe emergency.” It means that you can explore the things that bother you. Say, for instance, you might discover the belief that your ideas don’t matter to your family members or partner. Therapists will assist you in creating a “here and now” scene by asking what you presently know of a certain thing or how you feel toward a certain situation. They might use several techniques such as role-playing, reenacting a scenario, or exaggerating a behavior.

Existential Therapy

This therapy draws more from philosophy compared to other therapy techniques. The objective of this existential therapy is to appreciate your existence, the whole of you as a person. Existential therapists assist you in knowing and discovering your perceptions in life. With their assistance, you will understand to accept responsibility for options you make and appreciate the freedom you have. This can influence your life-changing decisions. Just like other humanistic therapy techniques, this type is concerned with the things you are currently facing compared to your past experiences.

Client-Centered Therapy

This type of therapy is also known as Rogerian or person-centered therapy. It is considered as the major type of humanistic therapy technique. This therapy approach is based on the idea that disapproval from others and gripping criticisms can alter the way you see and value yourself. This definitely hinders personal development and prevents you from living a peaceful and fulfilling life. In most cases, it will lead to mental distress and other related health problems.

Client-centered therapy also puts a lot of concentration on improving a solid client-therapist relationship. A therapist will accept you no matter what happens. They will also guide the direction of therapy while listening to your story without no judgment.

Who May Undergo Humanistic Therapy?

If you opt to make your life more fulfilling, you need humanistic therapy. It is worth considering, especially when you previously encountered building a relationship with therapists.

Studies have shown that humanistic therapies were proven effective at assisting individuals. These people show more changes compared to others with no therapies. Experts also said that client-centered techniques could be effective for people who suffer from trauma, psychosis, relationship difficulties, coping with chronic health problems, and depression. But, if you are suffering from panic disorder or anxiety, cognitive behavioral therapy is highly recommended.

How To Find A Humanistic Therapist?

Finding the best humanistic therapist is not an easy one. If you are looking for one, your first move is to know what you opt to work on. You also need to consider the traits of your preferred therapist. Know how they value confidentiality and closeness. You may also choose a woman or man, depending on your preference. The client-therapist relationship is essential in humanistic therapy. It means that you must be comfortable with your therapist since you have to disclose your personal stories and beliefs.

When looking for effective and quality types of humanistic techniques, it is also best to check the professional rates of your preferred therapist. Some therapists ask for cheap rates, while others have high professional costs. In addition, you may also ask your friends or relatives to find the right therapist that suits your needs. Above all, you are free to visit any website online to compare a humanistic therapy technique to another. The more knowledgeable you are about these techniques, the more chances of getting the best humanistic therapy for you and for your loved ones as well.

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A few minutes of meditation is a great way to start your workday. It’s a simple yet powerful technique that has been shown to improve mental focus, reduce stress, and increase work productivity. It allows you to clear your mind, be focused on the present moment, and gain perspective on your thoughts, feelings, and actions. Meditation before work can also help you develop a deep sense of peace, calm and groundedness that will carry with you through your day. While it may be challenging to carve out a few extra minutes in your morning, the benefits of a meditation practice are well worth the effort!

Should you meditate before or after work?

Many people ask “when should I meditate?” The short answer is: you should practice meditation whenever possible in your daily schedule. However, if you have a busy schedule, it is best to meditate first thing in the morning before getting ready for the day. This ensures that your practice is completed before your day gets out of control. Plus, work can be a stressful activity and if you don’t take time out to relax and clear your mind, you will have difficulty concentrating and being productive. Meditation is an excellent way to begin your workday, and there are many specific benefits of a morning meditation practice.

How can you fit meditation into your busy morning routine?

If your morning routine is short on time, you will need to get creative on how to fit in a meditation practice. You can meditate right when you wake up, before you leave home, or when you arrive at work. You can also meditate while walking—practice walking slowly and breathing deeply as you leave your house. If you have a long commute to work, try to meditate on the train or bus. If you drive, you can take a few moments in your car before or after your commute.

How does morning meditation improve your life?

Meditation has been shown to have many positive effects on the body and mind. One of the most well-known benefits of meditation is its ability to reduce stress levels. Stress affects nearly every aspect of life, including our ability to concentrate, think clearly, sleep well, and even perform daily tasks. It helps us cope with stressful situations by helping us relax and calm our minds. When we meditate regularly, we get better at managing stress and anxiety, and we learn how to stop worrying and start living!

Besides reducing stress, meditation also improves mental clarity and memory. Studies show that meditation can increase blood flow to the brain, which helps boost cognitive function. It also helps us learn new skills and remember information better.

A regular practice of meditation increases our awareness of our thoughts, emotions, and sensations, which makes it easier to identify and change negative patterns of thinking and behavior. This awareness boosts inner strength and grit.

Meditation is a wonderful practice that helps us connect to our inner being. It helps us to become aware of our thoughts and emotions, discover the deeper meaning behind life’s events, and gain insight into ourselves. It is an opportunity to slow down, relax, and clear out our minds.

Finally, meditation can help us become more compassionate toward others. When we meditate regularly, we develop an increased sense of empathy and compassion for ourselves and others. We begin to see others as part of our own selves, rather than as objects to be judged or criticized. This creates better relationships with coworkers and clients.

What are the benefits of meditation before work?

There are many benefits of practicing meditation before you head off to work. It helps you get started on a positive note by clearing your mind from all negative emotions and thoughts. This reduces anxiety levels, which leads to improved concentration and your ability to focus on what needs to be accomplished at work. You learn how to control your emotions so they do not interfere with your ability to concentrate. The clarity of mind it produces creates a deep sense of calm and increases your creativity and problems solving skills.

Meditation has been proven to improve the quality of life in many ways. It helps reduce stress, anxiety, depression, and insomnia. It improves memory, increases happiness, reduces blood pressure, lowers cholesterol, enhances immune system functioning, decreases symptoms of depression, and even makes us live longer. It can also help you sleep better, have more energy, and feel happier overall in your daily life.

The best before work meditation techniques

There are many types of meditation to choose for your morning practice. The goal is to find which technique works best for your personality to create a calm mind.

1. Vipassana (Insight) Meditation. This is a Buddhist style of mindfulness meditation, which focuses the mind on the present sensations arising in the body.
2. Inner Peace Meditation. This is a simple visualization and breath awareness technique to reduce stress, tension and anxiety and to promote a calm and tranquil mind.
3. Mantra Meditation. This is one of the easiest forms of meditation, which can also cultivate specific qualities, intentions, and energies in your life.
4. Meta Meditation. This Buddhist practice focuses on cultivating compassion and forgiveness for yourself and others.
5. Root Chakra Meditation. This technique activates the first chakra center and is strongly grounding to the mind and emotions.
6. Guided Meditation. This is an excellent option for beginners. In this technique, verbal instructions support and guide you through the practice.

Meditation before work Tips

• Be patient. It may take several days or weeks before you start to see the benefits of meditating before work. Don’t be discouraged if it takes some time to get into a routine that works well for you. Keep practicing until you reach the point where you can easily sit down and meditate whenever you want.
• Set aside a specific time when you will meditate in the morning. Make sure you stick with the time—set an alarm if needed. Consider giving yourself small rewards for being disciplined with your practice.
• Remove distractions. Turn off cell phones and other devices. Make sure you are not hungry or thirsty. If there are distractions you can’t avoid, try using headphones with some gentle meditative music.
• Avoid using caffeine or sugar prior to meditating. These substances make it harder to relax and clear your mind.
• Make sure you are sitting comfortably upright in a chair or on a meditation cushion. Try different seated positions to find what works best for you.
• Try aromatherapy. There are several essential oils that can reduce stress and tension, boost your focus and concentration, deepen your breathing, and help eliminate negative thoughts. You can use these individually or in a blend to make your meditation time more effective and enjoyable.
• Add a longer session during the week. If you have more time available during your workday, try meditating for 20 or 30 minutes at least once per week. This should give you enough time to focus completely on yourself without feeling rushed.

Conclusion

A consistent morning mediation practice can improve your health and wellness, moods, productivity, and relationships. In conclusion, a consistent morning mediation practice can improve your health and well-being, boost your productivity, strengthen your relationships, and give you a sense of purpose. Focusing on your breath, slowing down your thoughts, and being mindful of your emotions can help you cope with stress, stay focused throughout the day, and enjoy your life. It’s something that everyone can benefit from, regardless of age, gender, race, religion, or socioeconomic status. Fitting it into the morning routine can be challenging, yet doing so will reap benefits for your entire life.

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It can be a challenge to get the right amount of sleep, especially during a busy school or work week, or in times of stressful life changes. If you want to improve the quality and length of your sleep, you may want to consider an evening pranayama breathing practice. Taking a few minutes to practice a calming and soothing breathing exercise can be a simple yet powerful way to help calm your mind, soothe your anxiety, and relax your body to improve your sleep. Yoga offers several different breathing methods that can help you slip into a deep and restful state of relaxation to prepare the body and mind for sleep.

How breathing affects sleep

The breath is one of the most fundamental ways we regulate our bodies and emotions, and is a key ingredient in our health and well-being. It’s so important that our bodies even have a self-regulating mechanism for it—the respiratory system automatically adjusts the rate and depth of the breath in response to external stimuli, such as sleepiness, stress, exercise, and even emotional states.

Breathing is a critical component of yoga and has been used to change the flow of energy in the body for hundreds of years. Pranayama harnesses the connection between the breath and our autonomic nervous system to alter our mental, emotional, and energetic states.

Mouth vs. nose breathing

Mouth breathing and nasal breathing have very different energetic and emotional effects. Exhaling through the mouth helps release pent-up emotions and stress and has a cooling effect on the body. Breathing through the nose is most commonly used in yoga as it is calming and focusing. Mouth breathing is generally avoided as it can increase your heart rate and blood pressure and trigger a stress response.

Belly breathing

Abdominal breathing is the foundation for all of the practices of pranayama. Breathing into the belly engage is the diaphragm and activates the parasympathetic nervous system and the natural relaxation response. Chest breathing requires more physical effort and is associated with the “fight or flight” stress response.

Likewise shallow breathing agitates the mind and fuels anxiety. Slow deep breaths are calming, soothing and nourishing. Slow diaphragmatic breathing calms your mind, lowers your heart rate, and relaxes the body which helps you to destress and fall asleep faster. Yoga breathing exercises can also help you improve your sleep by resetting your default breathing pattern so that you use abdominal breathing throughout the night.

Counting with breathing

Rhythmic breathing exercises are a common part of many yoga practices. Many people claim that counting their breath cycles with specific timed rations improves their sleep because it makes your mind focus on the counting process. The main explanation of this is that having an extended exhale, or the exhalation longer than the inhalation, is calming and stress reducing. The most popular of these techniques is the 4-7-8 breath ratio, which we explain below. You can also see a chart of all the different breathing ratios on our main pranayama page.

Breathing exercises for sleep

The following seven breathing exercises can all be done easily on your own to help encourage your body and mind to relax and make sleep easier. These pranayamas can be practiced at any time, but they will be most effective when used right before sleep. The best time to practice is about 30 minutes to one hour before you go to sleep.

The below exercises are most effective for acute insomnia and temporary disruptions to sleep. While yoga breathing can be helpful for chronic insomnia, anxiety attacks, and other sleep disorders, it is not a substitute for professional medical care or help from a qualified sleep specialist.

Diaphragmatic Breathing

The diaphragmatic breath is the fundamental relaxed breathing exercise for beginners to learn and practice. Also known as belly breathing, as the belly will rise and fall while the chest remains mostly still when taking deep breaths in this method. This meditative breath reduces stress, promotes relaxation and increases lung capacity and efficiency.

Three-Part Breathing

Perfect for beginners, the three-part breathing method is traditionally known as Dirga Pranayama and builds on the diaphragmatic breath. It’s considered one of the most calming breathing techniques as it allows you to clear your mind by focusing all of your attention on how your breath moves through the abdomen and chest. Many people believe is possible to relieve chronic stress and prevent panic attacks with the regular practice of this breathing technique.

4-7-8 Breathing Technique

The 4-7-8 breathing exercise, popularized by Andrew Weil, uses a counting ratio with diaphragmatic breathing and breath retention. There are many people who believe this 4-7-8 breathing exercise is a natural tranquilizer and the best way to relax and quickly fall asleep. To practice, use the belly breath or three-part breathing technique and inhale for a count of 4, hold the breath in for a count of 7, and exhale for 8 counts. Repeat for four cycles and slowly build up to a longer practice.

Box Breathing or square breathing

Another a counting ratio method with diaphragmatic breathing and breath retention is Sama Vritti Pranayama. It is known as Box, square or equal breathing as it uses a 4-4-4-4 ratio. This pranayama practice equalizes, harmonizes and balances the prana flowing through the body’s nadis or energy channels. This four-part breathing technique is primarily practiced for calming and balancing the mind and body to reduce mental stress and worry. Sama Vritti can also help slow down the heart rate, increase oxygen to the brain, and reduce anxiety.

Alternate Nostril Breathing

Nadi Sodhana Pranayama or alternate nostril breathing uses your fingers to close one nostril and breath out the other. Alternate nostril breathing is calming and balancing and brings your body to a much more relaxed state in preparation for sleep. It will be difficult to practice this technique if you’re sick or if you have a cold.

Bhramari Pranayama

Bhramari Pranayama which means “bee breath,” uses a humming sound on the exhale. This type of slow deep breathing can reduce external distractions and help lower the heart rate and blood pressure, readying the body for sleep.

Mantra or affirmation

A mantra is a sacred Sanskrit sound used in japa, or mantra meditation. An affirmation is a short positive phrase that is used to reduce negative thought patterns, similar to a repetitive prayer. Both of these can be used with the diaphragmatic or three-part breath to create a deeper sense of calm and inner peace. If you go to bed and find your mind racing with thoughts, practice repeating a mantra or affirmation using deep breaths for a few minutes.

Yoga Nidra

Yoga Nidra is a mindful body scan where you visualize different parts of your body relaxing with each inhale and exhale. This progressive relaxation technique is a great way to release deeply held levels of anxiety, stress and tension and prepare the body to fall asleep. You can find free Yoga Nidra videos on YouTube ranging from 10 to 30 minutes long.

How long does it take to get results?

It depends on a couple of factors, and it can be very different for different people. You should notice some results after a few days, but it could take you weeks, months, or even years before you see progress. The most important thing is to keep practicing. Like most things, the more you do it, the more quickly you’ll see results.

How to choose the right breathing technique for you

There are so many types of breathing techniques that are available, making it difficult to know which are the best. When it comes to breathing, there is no one right technique that will work for everyone. Various breathing techniques have different benefits and can help you achieve different things. Starting with the breathing technique that feels the most natural for you. Note how each exercise makes you feel mentally, physically, and emotionally. Use a journal or other means to track which techniques have the strongest effect on your sleep.

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Everyone starts out with the best of intentions. Yet, how often do we forget to focus on our priorities? The answer is that even top performers can have their focus yanked away. The good news is that there are some quick tricks anyone can use to stop forgetting their priorities.

The Priority Pyramid Exercise

We all know that top performers are practically addicted to meditation. But did you know that you can use meditation to remember your top priorities better? Here’s how:

• Of all the things you need to get done, pick just three. Ideally, these will be truly deserving of attention.
• While seated or performing a walking meditation, arrange these priorities mentally in the form of a pyramid.
• Mentally rotate them in your mind to “test” the level of priority

For example, let’s say your three priorities have been boiled down to writing for an hour, making some business outreach calls and publishing a new video. You would mentally rotate these priorities and ask each time a task reached the top position if it really needs to be done first.

This exercise relates to what scientists call cognitive switching, and it has been shown to improve critical thinking skills. The best part? If you practice this consistently over 90-days, it will likely become a permanent habit. You won’t have to remember to do it because you’ll be positively addicted to the exercise. 

As a result, you’ll be trained to focus on testing your priorities frequently. We know just how powerful testing can be for improving results, so enjoy the renewed success this practice brings.

“The first step to success is knowing your priorities.” – Aspesh

The To-Do List Memory Palace

Of course, all priorities come with a list of individual steps to complete. To help make it easy and fun, I suggest an ancient memory technique called the Memory Palace. Simply put, to use this mnemonic device, you take any room you’re familiar with and bring it to your imagination.

It can be any room you choose. In fact, it doesn’t have to be a whole room. You can easily just use the desk in your home office. Once you’ve chosen something, you place associations in this room that help you remember the things you need to do.

Let’s say that you decide your top priority is to publish a new video. The steps are:

• Record the video and upload to YouTube
• Add title and tags
• Write description 
• Add to your blog and press publish

To remember these steps, you could just jot them down. But that robs you of some beneficial memory exercise. Plus, it won’t help you train your procedural memory to improve so you keep taking consistent action, almost on autopilot. This technique has also been proven to increase focus and concentration, so using it is a win-win.

For that reason, I highly recommend placing associations in a Memory Palace around your work space. Like this:

In this example, I’ve used the walls and corners of the desk to attach some associations. 

• The YouTube logo floating on the corner makes it easy to remember shooting and uploading the video
• The image of adding a sticky note to a computer screen helps recall adding a title and tags
• A typewriter on another part of the wall helps trigger the need to write a description
• An image of the WordPress interface helps with remembering the final publishing step

To make these associations memorable, you want to exaggerate them a little. It can also help to have them interact with each other. For example, the YouTube logo can be beating like a heart and expressing love for the sticky notes. The typewriter can have its keys falling off and clattering onto the WordPress screen. 

By elaborating the images in this way, you form a chain between the associations that makes each part even more memorable. This is essentially how people have been using the Memory Palace technique for thousands of years. Now you know how to do it for crushing your goals too.

Obviously, this technique works for both simple and complex, multi-step tasks. The trick is to get started and practice it consistently enough so that you can develop habits of memory and associate those new skills with taking action.

“If it’s a priority you’ll find a way. If it isn’t, you’ll find an excuse.” – Jim Rohn

Combining Skills of Implementation Over the Long Term

Nothing happens overnight, and many people are not used to operating their minds as I’ve just suggested. It’s normal to be rusty when using exercises and processes like these. To help loosen up, I suggest keeping a journal for the first 90-days. That way you aren’t juggling everything in your mind. You can also use the journal to draw your Memory Palace as a simple square. This helps develop more advanced abilities with spatial memory. 

There’s no cookie-cutter advice on how exactly to keep a journal, so it’s best to experiment. That way you’re also giving yourself the gift of exploring something new and discovering exactly what approaches work best for you. This form of self-optimization is always deeply personal, even if the brain science behind it is fundamentally the same for everyone.

Finally, consider using these skills as a marathon, not a race. Before you know it, you’ll realize that you’ve developed incredible endurance. You’ll be glad that you trained your imagination and memory to help you with consistency along the way.

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