Dr. Wendy Suzuki

It really is that simple.

That is why breath work is the oldest form of meditation.

Those monks were smart.

They knew that just breathing in and out in a patterned, slow way, it's like, oh, my heart rate is going down.

I suddenly feel more calm.

I have two go-tos for kind of dissipating the fight or flight, and it depends on the situation.

First one is take a good walk.

10 minutes of walking has been shown to decrease levels of anxiety and depression immediately.

You don't even have to change your shoes.

Go out, walk on the street, go walk around the parking lot for 10 minutes.

Sometimes you can't do that.

Sometimes you're in the situation, maybe you're asking me really, really hard questions and I'm starting to sweat.

There, without you even knowing, I am doing boxed breathing, which is inhaling for four seconds,

holding it for four seconds, exhaling it for four seconds, hold it for four seconds.

And I love that because you don't even know what I'm doing.

I'm calming myself, getting myself ready as I'm listening to your deep diving questions to me.

I'm not sure I know the answer.

But those two are my go-tos.

And in fact, the last third of the book, Good Anxiety, is a toolbox for all the different techniques that you could practice and have in your back pocket to decrease that stress and anxiety feeling.

Why does movement have such a powerful effect on your brain?