Grounding & Breath Awareness Practice

• A simple 5-minute practice for the start of your day, before bed, or anytime you want to drop into present awareness.

• 1. Sit comfortably, feet on the floor, back upright.

• 2. Bring your attention to the contact points your feet have with the floor. Notice the sensations.

• 3. Move attention to your thighs, buttocks, and back — feel the contact with the chair.

• 4. Allow the floor and chair to fully hold and support you. Rest into that support.

• 5. Shift attention to your nostrils. Feel the breath flowing in and out.

• 6. Do not control the breath. Notice the cool air entering, the warmer air leaving.

• 7. Notice other places in your body where you sense the breath — shoulders, chest, ribs, back, abdomen.

• 8. Complete with one slow breath with a longer exhale.

Resilience is the capacity to prepare for, recover from and adapt in the face of stress, challenge or adversity.

Mindfulness is maintaining a non-judgmental awareness of what is happening within and around you moment by moment.

The idea of incorporating mindfulness into daily routines is not new to policing; in fact, the profession is directed to be mindful in many areas of your work.

The Law Enforcement Code of Ethics states:

I will maintain courageous calm in the face of danger, scorn or ridicule; develop self-restraint; and be constantly mindful of the welfare of others.

In the Cannons of Police Ethics there are several directives for officers to be mindful.

Article 4: Utilization of Proper Means to Gain Proper Ends

The law enforcement officer shall be mindful of his responsibility to pay strict attention to the selection of means in discharging the duties of his office.

Article 6: Private Conduct

Then law enforcement officer shall be mindful of his special identification by the public as an upholder of the law.

Article 7: Conduct Toward the Public

The law enforcement officer, mindful of his responsibility to the whole community, shall deal with individuals of the community in a manner calculated to instill respect for its laws and its police service.

Our Austin Police Department General Orders calls for mindful conduct in specific instances.

Officer Response to Calls

400.1 Purpose and Scope

The Department has a responsibility to protect life and property and to provide service to the residents of Austin. To fulfill this obligation, it must provide an appropriate response to calls. Officers should be ever mindful that they have a responsibility to use caution, good judgement, and due care when operating vehicles in an emergency capacity to ensure the safety of motorists and pedestrians.

420.2.1 Initial Interview with the Victim

(c) Officers shall conduct the interview of the victim with dignity and respect, being mindful that the victim has experienced a traumatic event.

(f) … Officers should be mindful that there are multiple crime scenes in a majority of sexual assaults; the victim, the suspect and the actual scene itself.

Functional breathing is the #1 pillar of health.

Dysfunctional breathing describes a pattern of breathing that is inefficient and does not effectively meet the body’s needs. It is a learned habit that can be developed gradually over time in response to stress, illness, anxiety or lifestyle factors.

The most common and extensively studied breathing pattern disorder is chronic hyperventilation, which means over-breathing, and it can happen when we habitually breathe too fast and take in too much air.

Unaddressed dysfunctional breathing patterns or chronic hyperventilation might impact you or your classmates during your time in the academy in the following ways:

• lower PT endurance & performance

• slower recovery between drills, scenarios, and fitness assessments

• impaired concentration during classroom instruction and evaluations

• heightened anxiety and stress reactivity during high-stakes testing and scenarios

• poor sleep quality leading to reduced learning consolidation and mood regulation

To shift out of dysfunctional/disordered breathing patterns and improve the BOLT score, it starts with changing your everyday breathing patterns so they become more functional.

If you have sub-optimal breathing in your normal everyday, those patterns are not going to suddenly fix themselves when you are doing physical training, or out on duty taking a stressful call for service.

Physical training will not train your breathing. But if you train your breathing, it will enhance your physical training.

According to research, the optimum breathing rate for humans is between 4.5 and 6.5 breaths per minute.

At 12 breaths per minute, the volume of air that reaches the alveoli is 4.2 liters. At 6 breaths per minute, it increases to 5.1 liters. This represents a 20% increase in breathing efficiency, meaning increasing blood oxygenation.

Our hearts respond to every breath we take. Small shifts in breathing speed, depth, rhythm and route (mouth or nose) can either increase cardiovascular strain or help the heart work more efficiently with less effort. Our breathing patterns influence nervous system balance, blood chemistry, and circulation, all of which shape how efficiently the heart performs its function.

As we breathe in, our heart rate naturally speeds up. As we breathe out, it slows down. This normal rhythm, called respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) is controlled by the vagus nerve.

When this rhythm is strong and flexible, it shows the nervous system is working well and the heart can adapt and change. When breathing is fast, shallow and irregular, this rhythm weakens and puts more strain on the heart.

Breathing is a power switch to our vast inner network called the autonomic nervous system.

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is the part of the nervous system that controls the body’s internal functions, including heart rate, gastrointestinal tract and secretions of many glands. The ANS also controls many other vital activities such as respiration, and it interacts with immune and hormonal system functions. It is well known that mental and emotional states directly affect activity in the ANS.

The ANS has two branches. The sympathetic branch is our gas pedal -- fast and shallow breathing mobilizes energy, speeds us up, prepares us for action.

The parasympathetic branch is our brake pedal. With lighter, slower and deeper breaths, and longer exhales, we can activate the PSN and slow our body down to conserve energy and shift us into rest and recovery.

Our bodies are built to stay in a state of heightened sympathetic alert only for short bursts, and only on occasion.

The foundation of functional breathing is breathing in and out through your nose -- not just during daily activities and sleep, but also during a large portion of physical training.

Our bodies were designed to breathe through our noses. Breathing through the mouth (especially inhaling), chronic hyperventilation, heavy snoring/sleep apnea and other dysfunctional breathing patterns can lead to major health problems.

The nose is your immune system's first line of defense -- it filters the air and exposes it to immune cells in the nasal mucosa.

When you breathe through your nose, your sinuses produce a molecule called nitric oxide. When you inhale nasally, that nitric oxide is carried into the lungs where it helps redistribute blood more evenly, regulates inflammation in the airways, and defends against airborne pathogens.

The nose is your body's built-in regulator -- it allows adequate oxygen in and prevents too much carbon dioxide from being exhaled, maintaining a delicate balance of oxygen, carbon dioxide, and pH.

And nasal breathing warms and moisturizes the air, and recaptures moisture on the exhale, with 40% less water loss than mouth breathing.

Nose Unblocking (decongesting) Exercise

*Not suitable during pregnancy or with a serious medical condition.

* It is important no to force nasal breathing. If you feel quite uncomfortable after doing this exercise there may be a structural issue affecting airflow. If nasal breathing continues to feel difficult despite regular practice, it might be worth consulting an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist to check for any anatomical obstructions.

• 1. Sit upright.

• 2. Take a small, light breath in through your nose (or through the corner of your mouth if needed). Take a small breath out through your nose.

• 3. After exhaling, pinch your nose closed. Keep lips sealed.

• 4. Gently nod your head or rock your body until you feel a relatively strong need for air.

• 5. Release your nose and breathe in gently through it. Avoid taking a deep breath — keep your breathing calm. Tell yourself "relax and breathe less."

• 6. Continue breathing gently through the nose.

Rest with normal breathing for 30 to 60 seconds and then repeat up to 5 times if your nose isn't fully clear. With regular practice and improved breathing patterns, your nose will likely stay clearer.

Upon the foundation of inhaling and exhaling through the nose, there are three dimensions of functional breathing -- light, slow, and deep.

Light breathing -- taking in less air -- trains your body's chemistry and improves oxygen delivery to your brain and organs.

Slow breathing - calms the nervous system, eases emotional reactions, and shifts you out of fight-or-flight into a more balanced and focused state.

Deep breathing -- which does NOT mean a large volume of air -- means breathing low, with good recruitment of the diaphragm. It improves core stability, supports the spine, and increases lung capacity.

Sleep deprivation has very real health consequences. It contributes to chronic disease, hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, and early death.

Most people require around eight hours of sleep to function optimally. When you consistently don't sleep well, your memory, moral judgment, and decision-making can be severely compromised.

For improved sleep quality, your breathing during sleep needs to be through the nose -- slow and low.

If you wake up with a dry mouth in the morning, you were mouth breathing -- and that's disrupting your sleep quality and your physical training recovery.

You might utilize some of the following resources to aid you in retraining your breathing during sleep:

- MyoTape: https://myotape.com/

- Nasal dilator: https://oxygenadvantage.com/products/nasal-dilator-for-sports

- Sleep Health Hub (includes guided audio practices for breathing exercises in English and Spanish): https://buteykoclinic.com/pages/sleep-health-hub