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Breathing for Connection: Partner & Heart Breathing

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This month’s AIR Breathing Practice is a 2-for-1: Breathing for Connection.

We’ll explore one technique to practice with a partner and one technique to practice with yourself, both intended to cultivate a sense of connection, compassion, appreciation, and love.

So how does it go???

Let’s begin with our own personal practice of heart-centered, self-love:

  1. Begin in a safe & comfortable space and in a relaxed position. You can be sitting or lying down.

  2. Close your eyes or soften your gaze and bring one hand to rest over your heart and one hand to rest over your belly.

  3. Gently slow down your breathing so that your inhale and exhale are about equal length. As you inhale, sense your breath filling up the container of your torso, from belly to chest. And as you exhale, feel your breath releasing from your chest down to your belly.

  4. Continue this pattern, noticing your ability to effortlessly take in what you need and to just as easily let go of anything that you don’t.

  5. Maybe you even add a mantra/affirmation to your breath. For example: Inhale, I am breathing in compassion. Exhale, I’m releasing self-doubt.

  6. Continue for 5-10 minutes, then slowly let your breath return to normal and notice how you feel. Finish by telling yourself “Thank you, I love you!”.

**This personal breathwork can also be paired quite nicely with a Metta Meditation!

Now, a partner practice for companionship and connection, boosting that feel-good, love hormone of oxytocin:

  1. For this one, you’ll both be sitting on the floor, maybe on folded blankets or on similar-size cushions.

  2. Begin by coming to sit back-to-back so that you can each lean into the support of the other.

  3. Close your eyes or soften your gaze and begin to slow down your breathing.

  4. Take a few breaths and, (preferably) without verbal communication, see if you can begin to match your breathing rhythm with each other.

  5. Spend a few minutes breathing slowly and steadily together. Allow yourself to lean into that sense of support and connection while also recognizing that you too are providing that support for your partner as well.

  6. When you’re complete, pause for a moment to check in and notice how you’re feeling internally. Then finish with a hug and a “Thank you, I love/appreciate you!”.