Got a bit bogged down in handling stress so am giving myself a refresher course in effective breathing. I am a great ‘breath holder’ when emotional so need to remind myself to reclaim the natural deep breaths that we have at birth. You wouldn’t think we would need to do this but acquired habits like chest breathing or poor posture or a combination of both can interfere with normal breathing. Conscious Breathing by Gay Hendricks, Never Get A Tattoo by Richard Carson and Spontaneous Healing by Andrew Weiler were my major guides when I started searching for information on how to breathe effectively many years ago. I dip into them again. And once you start to breathe from the diaphragm again, a return to shallow breathing is most unpleasant. But it can be a short lived event: you know you have the tools. It is quite an adventure. And when you experience the body breathing you – whew and wow!