Up next in 10
How to Create Space Between Trigger and Reaction
2K views
May 5, 2025
Our brains often respond to triggers based on past experiences not the present moment. In this clip from Adaptable | Behavior Explained, we explore how breathwork and mindfulness can help calm your nervous system and expand the space between stimulus and response. Just a few minutes a day can help you respond more intentionally and with more control. #Mindfulness #BreathingTechniques #EmotionalRegulation #AdaptablePodcast #RespondNotReact
View Video Transcript
0:00
but we as humans we don't respond the
0:02
same way we remember that data we encode
0:05
it maladaptively oftentimes and then we
0:07
go we can't come here because it's a
0:09
dangerous place and so how do we expand
0:11
that space so that we can gain more
0:14
control over our reactions so today I'm
0:16
going to give you some practical tips
0:18
and techniques that are designed to help
0:20
us bring down that space bring down our
0:24
prefrontal cortex and increase the space
0:26
between that stimulus and our reaction
0:28
so that we can have a more adult
0:30
response so the first thing I'm going to
0:32
talk about is 478 breathing so we're
0:36
going to breathe in and and breathing
0:38
and all breath interventions are really
0:40
effective because they're always
0:42
available to us they don't cost us any
0:44
money they can help us change states
0:46
within like one minute and so everybody
0:48
has a minute to shift states and so 478
0:51
breath we're going to breathe in for
0:53
four seconds and we're going to have the
0:55
tip of our tongue to the back of our
0:57
teeth when we breathe in and we're going
0:58
to breathe in through our nose so we're
0:59
breathing in for four and then we're
1:02
holding for
1:03
seven and then we're exhaling for eight
1:07
and that eight count really needs to be
1:09
a deep breath out your mouth all the way
1:11
from your belly and your diaphragm and
1:13
exhale for eight so the first one is 478
1:16
breathing in for four hold for seven
1:18
exhale out the mouth for eight the next
1:21
type of breathing is box breathing or
1:23
full square breathing and it's simple
1:25
and effective and it helps calm our
1:26
nervous system just like 478 breathing
1:29
so I want you to try them both and see
1:30
which one you like better i like 478
1:32
better because we only need three cycles
1:34
and then we're in that in about a minute
1:36
and then we're good to go so but with a
1:39
box breathing we're going to inhale
1:40
slowly through our nose for 4 seconds
1:42
we're going to hold our breath for a
1:44
count of four and then we're going to
1:46
exhale slowly again out your mouth for a
1:48
count of four and then you hold your
1:50
breath again for a count of four so you
1:52
go through the cycle like a box and then
1:55
you're going to repeat that cycle
1:56
several times again all breathing
1:58
techniques help us regulate our breath
2:01
reduce stress change our nervous system
2:03
reaction now the next thing that takes a
2:06
little bit more practice is mindfulness
2:08
meditation mindfulness and meditation
2:11
are huge buzzwords these days but a lot
2:14
of times people require they add
2:16
stimulus even in their their meditation
2:18
practices with apps and things like that
2:20
and I'm not saying that's a bad thing
2:22
but you're really doing well when you
2:24
can meditate or be mindful with
2:26
meditation without any interruptions and
2:29
you're able to just be in the present
2:31
moment without judging it without
2:33
evaluating it and you're able to just
2:35
practice a mindful meditative practice
2:38
and a formal practice really ought to be
2:40
adopted so that you can check yourself
2:43
in between the stimulus and the response
2:45
and it changes the brain there are
2:46
several things that change the brain
2:48
meditation is one yoga is another and in
2:51
EMDR therapy we know changes the way the
2:53
brain fires data and fires reactivity so
2:56
with meditation I'm just going to walk
2:58
you through this a lot of people figure
3:00
that meditation is about there's a lot
3:02
of supposed to it's about emptying your
3:05
mind and that's just not the truth so
3:07
you're going to find a quiet place to
3:08
sit or lie or stand you're going to
3:11
close your eyes and just take a few deep
3:13
breaths and then you're going to focus
3:15
on your breath you're going to notice
3:16
the sensation of your breath think about
3:19
the air entering and leaving your body
3:22
and if your mind wanders because minds
3:24
wander you're going to just gently bring
3:25
your focus back to your breath and
3:27
you're going to practice for like 5 to
3:29
10 minutes daily most people have 5 to
3:32
10 minutes daily you know you have 5 or
3:34
10 minutes in your life to put down your
3:36
phone to stop scrolling to stop watching
3:38
so much TV and tune in to yourself it
3:41
just doesn't take that much to create
3:43
those beautiful changes in the brain so
3:45
the regular practice or a formal
3:47
practice of meditation helps to increase
3:49
awareness again if I know that I'm
3:51
triggered then I have more space between
3:54
that stimulus and reaction to respond
3:56
instead of react
#Anxiety & Stress
#Mental Health
#Self-Help & Motivational