When your plans get turned upside down, how do you handle the stress?

How well you respond to plans not going your way, depends on your training.

For a practical application of how to use your breath to handle stress and a how-to video, keep reading!  

My plan for a corporate presentation didn’t go as planned!  

What should have lasted 10 minutes to print out some handouts before the presentation, was taking 40 minutes.  

The copier would not take the file format at the printing place. I tried everything I could think of to get it to work. The person on duty at the center couldn’t help me and I couldn’t access the internet at their facility.

Running out of time, I started to breathe long full breaths, which is a tool to help with stress.

A solution pops into my head, (often the result of calming and committing to your breath) and it worked!

With great appreciation for solving this problem I was on my way.  My plan to arrive 30 minutes early to the presentation, was narrowed down to getting there just in time to start, per the GPS.  Instead of worrying during the whole half hour drive, here’s what happened:

During the drive, I am starting to notice my breath becoming  longer and more rhythmic.  It is as if I am this beautiful turtle swimming calmy and intently to my destination.  A traffic miracle occurs, with a clear opening on the freeway, including no slow down’s during the 30 minute drive.  

Arriving 9 minutes ahead of the presentation, (without speeding) I am calm and focused.

The automatic long, full breath that my body remembered was a result of my daily breath and awareness practices.

When the turtle is upright and in it’s element, it syncs up with it’s environment and it is skilled in swimming in tumultuous waves.  

When we sync up with the instrument of our breath in moving through  stress, we can handle a challenging situation with greater ease.  

I’ve included a breath practice for you below, to get started building a tool that helps you be resilient in the face of stress!

Enjoy your practice!

Copy and paste this video link or click the title above for the video: https://youtu.be/olkCUpST8_4