Table 4.

Three-minute breathing space.

Three-Minute Breathing Space
Step 1: Becoming Aware
Begin by deliberately adopting an erect and dignified posture.
Close your eyes. Then, bringing your awareness to your inner experience, ask: What is my experience right now?
−What thoughts are going through the mind? Notice them as passing mental events. −What feelings are here? Turn your attention in particular toward any emotional discomfort or unpleasant feelings. −What body sensations are here right now? Scan the body quickly to notice any tightness or bracing.
[PAUSE]
Step 2: Gathering
Bring your attention to the breath. Notice the belly rising on an in-breath and falling on the out-breath. Try to follow it closely for a few cycles to further bring your attention into the present.
[PAUSE]
Step 3: Expanding
Now expand your awareness beyond your breath to take in a sense of your body as a whole, including your posture and facial expression. Notice and breathe into any areas of tension, and let go of the tension with each out-breath. Allow your body to soften and open. You might suggest to yourself, “It’s okay… whatever it is, it’s already here: let me feel it”.
As best you can, bring this accepting awareness into the next moments of the day.
Adapted from Williams et al. [101].