Pressure Release Breath: Learning to Let Stress Go

Hey there, and welcome back. I'm Julia Cartwright, and I'm so glad you're here with me today. You know, it's early Saturday morning, and I'm betting some of you are already feeling that familiar weight settling in—that thing we're all carrying around lately. Maybe it's the week that just wrapped up, or perhaps it's what's coming next. Either way, I see you. And I'm really happy we get to do this together. So let's start by finding a comfortable spot. If you can, sit somewhere that feels safe and supported. Your couch, a chair, the floor with a pillow—honestly, anywhere you can settle your body works. And if sitting isn't your thing today, lying down is perfect too. There's no one right way to do this. Just you, right here, right now. Take a moment and feel your body making contact with whatever's holding you. Feel that support. Isn't it nice when something just holds you? That's what we're doing today—learning to hold ourselves a little better through the stress. Now, let's bring in the breath. Not forcing anything, just noticing what's already happening. In through your nose if that feels good, out through your mouth. Maybe your exhale is a little longer than your inhale. That's it. That tells your nervous system everything's okay. Keep finding that rhythm. Here's the main practice I want to share with you today. I call it the Pressure Release Breath, and it's going to feel like you're actually letting stress out of your body. Picture your stress as something physical—maybe it's a knot, maybe it's fog, maybe it's just heavy air. I don't care what it looks like to you. As you breathe in, imagine you're drawing in calm, clear oxygen. Feel it moving through your chest, your shoulders, your jaw. Then as you exhale, picture that stress releasing—like you're blowing out birthday candles, like you're fogging up a window, like you're letting something go that was never meant to stay. Breathe in calm. Breathe out release. Do this for the next couple minutes with me. There's no rush. Just in with what you need, out with what you don't. And as you come back, I want you to carry this one simple truth through your day: you don't have to hold everything so tight. Your nervous system is designed to release. You just have to let it. Thank you so much for joining me on Stress Relief today. I hope this practice gave you a little breathing room. Please subscribe so you don't miss future sessions. You deserve this. Take care. For great deals today, check out https://amzn.to/47ZqpWT