Every time you take a breath, your lungs are hugging your heart.
Isn’t this a beautiful visual for what happens in your body!?
The inspiration for this illustration came from Leila Stuart who has given a session on Embodied Anatomy at the online Embodiment Conference that’s going on right now. (If you want to listen in or get some direct experiential learning with the top people in this field, check out the website and sign up.)
When you look at a cross section of the lungs and heart, you see that the lungs are bracing the heart in a heart shape. And every single time you breath in, you are hugging your heart.
I like this image as it also gives me a sense of the dimensions of my lungs and my body.
I know many people feel constricted in their breathing and there is often this idea in our heads that the chest needs to expand greatly to breathe freely.
When you become aware of the lungs moving in all directions – also inwards – maybe it becomes easier. Want to give it a try?
If you want to experience what it’s like hugging your heart while breathing, you can listen to a guided practice here or on Soundcloud.
Feel warmly embraced,
Daniela