How just 3 seconds of calm can help improve your day

A deep calm foundation and peaceful inner self connection can really support you with your daily mental health and overall well-being as it has the power to help you be more present to enjoy and experience each moment of your day. 

The great news is that you can actually start strengthening your calm foundations and inner peace, here and now, with some super simple three-second practices.

So let's begin with one of my favourites – a gentle three-second breathing practice. I love it because you can use it anywhere to help soothe away any tiny feelings of old frustration or stress that you notice beginning to build up with ease and great efficiency.

3-second calming breath practice

If you choose to do so, breathe in for the count of one and breathe out for the count of two.

To help you keep the 1:2 breathing ratio, you can (if you choose to do so) silently say to yourself on your breath in "one smooth pink petal". Then on your breath out, if you choose to do so, you can silently say to yourself "two smooth pink petals, three smooth pink petals".

Each smooth pink petal takes roughly one second to say which results in a super simple three-second breathing activity.

This simple three-second breathing routine is also a great tool to call on as no one will even know that you're doing it (unless you want to share the practice with them too), as we're all breathing anyway.

How to make the most of it

For me, it's most effective to start using it often even when you're feeling OK or relatively calm so that it becomes like second nature for you. That way whenever you need to call on it to help calm yourself, you'll naturally remember to use it.

A simple way to start adding it into your daily routine is to practice it as soon as you wake up. By calling on its three-second calming benefits, you can get your day off to a good start and be prepared for whatever delights the day has in store.

I've noticed that when we begin our day with a sense of calm peaceful inner self connection it's often easier to enjoy the day.

You can of course return to its calming comfort with a gentle breath in and longer soft exhalation at any time to help easily, effortlessly and naturally bring you back to a state of calm.

As a parent, daughter, sister and business owner, I've found it very effective to help me calm myself in a tricky conversation or situation.

Sometimes if I need a little extra calm support, I'll gently and safely step either slightly or fully away from a challenging moment. I'll then practice my calming three-second breathing until I feel calm enough to continue and then return to the conversation or situation refreshed and with a renewed peaceful inner self-connection.

3-second calming breath practice variation

Alternatively, you can choose to add in some green space descriptive language such as "one green forest tree" on your inhale and then "two green forest trees, three green forest trees" on your exhale.

This will support you to enjoy the additional natural green space calming effects that the phrase "green forest tree" offers.

Green spaces have the power to calm us by bringing to mind images, feelings, textures, sounds and tastes from our time out in nature. They offer us the chance to recall previous lived or imagined experiences even with just the three short words, "green forest tree".

More calming resources

If you're interested in discovering more about how green spaces can improve our mental health and well-being, including a live demonstration of this three-second breathing practice, then please feel free to check out my TEDx talk Green Means Calm. It also shares some extra quick and simple ways that we can support everyone to enjoy the calming mental health benefits of green spaces wherever they are.

This is such a great calming practice because it's so compact and easy to enjoy anywhere at any time without anyone even knowing that you're calling on it.

And it works because the longer out breath helps to activate your parasympathetic nervous activity to naturally gently move you into a calmer more relaxed emotional state.

To help make the most out of this calming powerful breathing routine, it's a great idea to practice it regularly. Then whenever you notice that you're feeling a little old stress, frustration or tension starting to build, you will naturally be able to choose to call on it as it's become a natural part of your calming tool kit and personal relaxation resources.

Smile to create ripples of calm

Another calming three-second favourite activity of mine is to share a smile either with yourself in a mirror or selfie, or with someone else.

When you physically smile, you naturally release endorphins which helps to calm you, naturally moving you into a more peaceful emotional state. In addition, when you see a smile either in your reflection or on someone else's face, you get an extra boost of feel-good hormones that support you to move into a more positive calm frame of mind.

This is a great activity to practice with yourself when you're brushing your teeth, or doing your hair or makeup.

Whilst you can, practice sharing your beautiful smile with anyone that you meet and notice how you begin to brighten up those moments of calm connection for you both.

An added bonus here is that sharing your own unique smile is also a great way to start building up your inner confidence, connection, communication and relationship skills, too.

I'm hoping that you enjoyed these simple three-second calming practices and that they'll support you and your loved ones today and into the future.