Roller coasters are not my favorite thing. I don’t mind the small ones, like Splash Mountain or Hyper-Space Mountain, formerly Space Mountain. But the big ones, mmm, not so much. I really have an aversion to free falling. A really big aversion.
So now I’m on an airplane flying over the Andes mountain range from Lima at sea level to Cusco at 12,000 feet. It is crazy, stormy weather, which means that every minute or two it feels like the plane is dropping out from underneath me. We are free falling. It’s awful—so topsy-turvy. Adrenaline flowing, cortisol spiking.
But then I remember to breathe. Deep, belly breathes. Why? You do those kinds of breathes for 5 minutes straight and your body lets go of the fight or flight response. That’s all it takes. 5 minutes.
So I am breathing and I slowly feel myself calming down. I’m helped too by inhaling calming essential oils—lavender and wild orange. Peppermint oil is helping my tummy feel happy. It also helps me breathe deeper too.
I am no longer gripping the armrests. Nor do I feel like I’m on the verge of a panic attack. I am able to relax. The storm is still raging, the plane is still topsy-turvy, but I am calm. I just keep breathing.
Taking 5 minutes each day to do deep abdominal breathing, will reduce your stress levels. Life is stressful and more often than not many of us operate in chronic fight or flight response. This causes many health problems including weight gain, confusion, and a lowered immune system.
Calm that down with breathing exercises enhanced with peppermint oil daily.
We finally land. My 14-year-old daughter smiles across the aisle at me. “That was fun,” she says, “so much more entertaining than a boring flight.” Well, ya, it’s all relative. She loves those crazy, scary roller coaster rides.
