One of the key objectives of The Breathe Key is to provide a pathway for those new to mindfulness and meditation, to learn from the very beginning, in a simple and approachable way. To achieve this, I provide a basic tool kit of the "10 Keys Tool Kit", (10 KTK), which is made up of the first 10 Blog Keys here. With each blog building on the last and each holding a specific blog key for you to remember and to take away, these ten blogs are the foundations needed to start your journey into mindfulness and meditation. Alongside these, are corresponding and complimentary Keycasts, (podcasts), to help bolster the learning found in the Blog Keys.
So here in Blog Key 9, I am going to briefly bring together everything we've learnt so far, in a nutshell, and then build a bridge to the final Blog Key 10, "Your First Key Space". This will complete the 10 KTK. This will become my foundation for you to enter a wonderful world of mindfulness and meditation. You can then come back to these anytime you need a refresher. You can also share the knowledge with your friends and family, or with anyone you think or know would benefit from learning how to do mindful breathing, letting them know about the 10 KTK pathway. And now, The Breath Key can be found on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Soundcloud and Spotify, so you can follow on any one of these platforms.
If you would like to go even further, then why not become a site member by logging in on the Blog Key page or subscribe and get yourself access to the member-only page and discover lots more help and advice and tips and tools to doing more with your quiet times. This will include first access to some blogs, podcasts, interviews and even videos, plus helpful insights into mindfulness, meditation and more.
Our Journey So Far
I must say, in going through all the previous Blog Keys we have covered a lot! And if you've got this far, then you've read over 15,000 words! So well done you.
Here is the overview.
1. Are you breathing?
Blog Key - Mindfulness is rooted in conscious living.
We set the stage by understanding that mindfulness begins with a conscious breath.
2. Are you breathing correctly?
Blog Key - The importance of learning conscious, mindful, diaphragmatic breathing.
Now we look at diaphragmatic breathing. We also looked at 10 health benefits to diaphragmatic breathing for your body and mind.
3. Bye, bye stress, hello new life!
Blog Key - Breathing in, activates your sympathetic nervous system. While breathing out, activates your parasympathetic nervous system.
We introduced the autonomic nervous system, the concept of a controlled environment, and the PFC and primal brain. Lightly touched on introverts and extroverts, and then set you up for your first breathing exercises.
4. Let's Start Breathing.
Blog Key - Repeat, repeat, repeat. Then repeat, repeat, repeat.
We introduced your first breathing techniques, with corresponding keycasts. Provided 10 top tips for your breathing sessions, and look at going beyond your controlled environment.
5. What is visualisation?
Blog key - Visualisation is realisation.
The incredible world of visualisation opens here as we looked at its importance to mindfulness and meditation, to inner healing, building on the knowledge built from the previous blogs. You even got your first intro visualisation to do.
6. Moving from breathing to mindfulness
Blog Key - You have the power and permission (to change your life for the better).
We delved deeper into mindfulness, into compassion and self-compassion, separating emotions from situations and learning to control them, decentering, connecting to the moment and learning to build regular habits of mindful breathing.
7. key Spaces - An Introduction
Blog Key - Your safe space is your Key Space and your Key Space is your space.
A look into the Key Space and its importance to MB. The placebo effect, how to trick the brain through visualisation, and what neuroplasticity has to do with it. Connecting everything you learnt about controlled environments and mindful breathing.
8. The Voices Inside Us
Blog Key - HAL is your friend.
A look at how to identify, manage and navigate the head voice and heart voice. How the key of Hearing, Acknowledging and Letting go, (HAL), will help. How this builds on what you learnt in past blogs, whilst building a platform for what will come in Blog Key 11, "Affirmation Meditation".
And there we have it, a brief walkthrough everything we've learnt so far. A lot isn't it! Well, to complete the 10 KTK, there is only one more Blog Key after this, which is number 10 - Your First Key Space. This will also come with a complimentary keycast. The Keycast will be in the form of a guided meditation.
So, in a large nutshell, we breathe deeply and consciously, using our breathing techniques, to do mindful breathing, which, through controlled environments, opens the door to mindful and meditation sessions. In these, you can use visualisation to go into your Key Spaces and do a whole manner of things - body scanning, light healing, aura manifestation, affirmation meditation, checking in with your inner heart/soul/voice and much more. All this, while being aware of the effects on your autonomic nervous system and physiology. This is why the 10 Key Tool Kit is a great foundation, as it will give you the tools required to move into a whole new world with more confidence than when you started the journey in Blog Key 1.
The Key of Blog Key 4 - repeat, repeat, repeat, is such an important one. Without visiting your controlled environment regularly, you will not progress. Just like if you learn the piano without practising - are you really learning the piano?
Use the guided breathing technique meditations in the Keycasts, (the 3:3:6 in particular), to get yourself used to doing it by yourself in your controlled environment. Guided meditations are useful if you are struggling to build in some form of discipline. Also, it will help to re-read the blogs through to cement your learning. The slightly longer Blog Keys will become Keycasts so keep an eye out for those if you prefer listening to podcasts.
You are now all set up for Blog Key 10. Remember, if you want to go further, subscribe or login and become a site member and you'll get access to other member-only pages.
I hope you have enjoyed the journey so far and that you'll continue onto the member pages and beyond. I will leave you with a couple of inspirational quotes for inspiration.
If you can’t fly, then run, if you can’t walk run, then walk, if you can’t walk, then crawl, but by all means keep moving.
– Martin Luther King Jr.
The only impossible journey is the one you never begin.
– Tony Robbins
The key to realizing a dream is to focus not on success but significance, and then even the small steps and little victories along your path will take on greater meaning.
– Oprah Winfrey
Comments