The One Thing That Actually Helped With My Anxiety

After meeting ​Gisele Bündchen for the first time earlier this year, it was very clear to me that she was one of “us” — a true wellness warrior, someone whose life mission was to make the world a better, healthier, and happier place, someone who truly understood that mental, physical, spiritual, emotional, and environmental well-being were all connected. I’m honored to call her a friend and a supporter of mindbodygreen—and the newest member of the mbg Collective. In her just-released, must-read book, Lessons: My Path To A Meaningful Life, she shares her struggle with extreme anxiety that threatened to take over her life.  “I had trouble breathing, and that I was afraid to get on my own elevator, so I walked nine flights of stairs instead, and that I was really scared I was going to die,” she writes. She sought out holistic treatments for these feelings, eventually finding practices that, ultimately, changed her life. In this exclusive excerpt, she shares the breathing trick that made the biggest difference. And please stay tuned for her exclusive interview on the mbg podcast airing on 10/9. – Jason Wachob, Founder & CEO, mindbodygreen

My mother always looked for natural alternatives to cure any and all of our ailments when my sisters and I were growing up. She used to make teas for our sore throats or colds, and put cold towels on our foreheads and necks when one of us had a fever. Her methods had always worked, too.

So I knew I wanted handle my anxiety in the way I was most comfortable. I continue to follow my inner voice, and always encourage every person to listen to their own. Mine kept pointing me to yoga. So the next morning I started to look for an instructor. I also went online and began reading everything I could about yoga. Not just about the postures, but about the underlying philosophy.

I was too busy. Even if you had the time, why would you bother? When I first met Amy, my new yoga instructor, she emanated a strong sense of serenity and trustworthiness as she walked into my apartment. First, we rearranged a few pieces of furniture and then we sat on the floor using a mat. I told Amy that I had trouble breathing, and that I was afraid to get on my own elevator, so I walked nine flights of stairs instead, and that I was really scared that I was going to die. Amy started telling me about pranayama breathing. She asked me to press one finger against the middle of my forehead and use my thumb to seal my right nostril. Breathe in, she said. Now breathe out through your left. Now do it with your left nostril.

Breathe in. Now breathe out through your right. She explained that the purpose of alternate-nostril breathing, as it’s known, is to balance the left and right sides of the brain, which helps you relax and get centered. She then showed me a few yoga postures.

Many people in the West think of yoga as physical—a form of exercise focused around asanas or postures. In fact, the entire purpose behind practicing asanas is to stretch and open up our bodies to prepare them for meditation. With Amy as my teacher, I began doing alternate-nostril breathing every morning right as the sun was coming up. It got easier with practice. Meditation helps to cultivate the feeling of being present. Presents means gifts, and for me presence was the most amazing gift I could have received.

Even after only one meeting with Amy, I felt a difference. I wasn't so on edge anymore. It wasn't a miracle cure—I was still in pretty bad shape, and I had a long way to go—but Amy and I set up another meeting the next morning, and the next, and the next. I can't credit yoga entirely with the changes that took place in my life, but it helped a lot. It is still central to the life I lead today.