I'm Trying Deep Breathing, But Does It Work?

When I first gave guided meditation a try at school, it was mainly two things: imagining the positive and focusing on your breath. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale...ZZZZZZ, Oh thank goodness we’re done!

Yes, okay, I did fall asleep, but that’s everyone when they start meditating, right? Meditation wasn’t my thing back then, yet my mom loves it, and has been encouraging me to try it for a while. I kept responding, “What’s the point?”, “I’m not a fan of meditation.”, stuff like that.

But overtime, my mom had taught me more about what meditation really is. Then I learnt (thanks to Jay Shetty) that figuring out how to change by realizing the bad things you’ve done counts as meditation. So there were times in my life where I have meditated, but didn’t know I was meditating.

There are many definitions (or forms) of meditation. The one I’m going to use today is (*inhale*) “doing some heavy breathing while trying not to overwhelm yourself with negativity” (*exhale*). It’s something I’ve decided to add to my routine recently. Here’s the story.

I was taking this university-level online course about data structures in coding. After getting a bunch of errors running a Heap Sort program in Golang, I felt stressed and confused trying to make my program work. I needed a break (without the Kit-Kat).

The next day, I was browsing Apple News and found an article about some tips Camila Cabello shared on her Instagram. I just had to click it, ‘cause Camila is one of my favourite popstars, ever (Also, I don’t have IG, unlike other girls my age).

The 22-year-old singer recommends taking deep breaths (in the nose, out the mouth) for 5 minutes at a time, 3 times a day. The article also mentions that Camila doesn’t necessarily like social media, but feels that her presence on it helps lift up others. She likes to keep it real, as opposed to the typical gal on IG who posts pics of their so-called “perfect” life and lets people down. Comments on social media also let people down, but Camila says that she tries to avoid reading negative comments about herself. In my opinion, otherwise, it’s all a matter of let go and move on (deep breath in, deep breath out).

Camila has really come a long way as an artist (and person). Even I was surprised that she was starting to get more spiritual (like my mom did a couple years ago when she stopped watching Real Housewives). It must have been something, or someone. Her mom, Oprah, both? Either way, I can say, for the past seven years of her music career (BTW, she was in Fifth Harmony for those first four-and-a-half years), Camila Cabello has grown up, a lot.

After sharing the article with my mom, I decided to give Camila’s

advice a try, but start off by only doing it once a day. I wanted to make this an experiment and see if this deep-breathing thing really does work. Being a teenager, on the verge of growing up, this may also help prepare my mentality in advance, just so I can easily overcome the burdens of adulthood. (Stay woke with Jay Shetty’s Youtube channel, and overcome the burdens of adulthood yourself! From Weekly Wisdom to interviews with your favourite influencers, get all the motivation and edu-tainment you need to seize the day. My mom approves it and so will the younger generation!)

My mom once told me that deep breathing can also help relieve pain. That makes sense for athletes, they breathe a lot. No joke.

The explanation is the body lessens pain when exposed to oxygen. No wonder this substance is part of the substance that nourishes our bodies: water. (The O in H2O is for oxygen. Water hasn’t been officially claimed a pain reliever, so ask your doctor if it’s right for you. This ad has been brought to you by Citizens Against Painkillers. JK, it’s sponsored by NO ONE ‘cause I made it up.)

So, can I officially say that I’m a fan of meditation yet? No, it’s a conscious thing that will later on become subconscious (see previous post from August 2019). In the meantime, I can say I’m a fan of someone who recommends a certain form of meditation. I mean, it’s not that much of an endorsement, right?

*Camila Cabello, if you are reading this, I think you have killer vocals, and I think your tip is a great idea, but don’t DM me ‘cause I’m not on social media. Leave a comment on this post letting us know you read it, and not if I got anything incorrect about you. This isn’t an order, just a suggestion. Bye, or as they say in Spanish, Adios!*