When our emotions become too intense (i.e., beyond our current capacity to stay present with) our nervous system increasingly reacts, which makes it even harder to work through our emotions in the moment. So having ways we can calm the body enables us to stay with our emotions longer. And we need to stay with our emotions (especially uncomfortable ones) in order to actually integrate our experiences and keep them from becoming (or staying) trauma. What we cannot yet stay present to will haunt our lives, usually with increasing intensity and disruptiveness. Breath—long exhales—is a great somatic tool for helping your body to release tension, lower your heart rate and help your nervous system feel safer. ~Chapters~ 1:16 - Caveat: This Is to Help You Stay With Your Emotions Longer, Not to Make Them Go Away 3:00 - Brief Introduction to the Window of Tolerance (Window of Presence) 6:29 - The Key to Using Breath: Lengthen Your Exhale! 10:55 - The Benefits of Belly Breathing 14:05 - The 4-6 Breath (Starter Breath) 16:24 - The 4-7-8 Breath (More Advanced Breath) The 4-6 Breath: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpZnXEqyeFo The 4-7-8 Breath: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jiP-9QIFzc ~About~ I'm Sean Slevin, a Licensed Professional Counselor, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a Certified Sensorimotor Psychotherapist. I love engaging with questions about life, relationships and being human. If you have a question for Ask Sean you can send it anonymously at: https://AskSean.org/ ~Resources~ Obviously, I cannot know if a given book or resource is right for you, so please use your own judgment. But the following relate to some of the themes I touch on in this video: https://sensorimotorpsychotherapy.org/ Resources, Books, Quizzes, etc.: https://mft.cc/resources If you are in need of a counselor I've written a guide to assist you in choosing a counselor and evaluating if they are a good fit for you: https://mft.cc/choosecounselor Affiliate Disclosure: When you buy through links to Amazon, etc. provided here (or on my website) I may receive a commission on your purchase (at no cost to you). ~Like, Share and Subscribe to Help Others Discover Ask Sean~ If you found this video helpful you can facilitate more people encountering Ask Sean by Liking this video, Subscribing to the channel, and Sharing this video/channel with others. Below is an easy-to-share address that redirects to the channel: https://AskSean.org/YouTube #AskSeanSlevin #sensorimotorpsychotherapy #somatictherapy #breathwork #calm #nervoussystem #nervoussystemregulation #AskSeanSlevinTherapist #AskSeanSlevinCounselor