Alternate Nostril Breathing (Nadi Shodhana)

When Everything Feels...

...“off” but you can’t explain why…
When you’re scattered, irritable, or stuck in loops of overthinking…
When you want to reconnect with peace—but your system won’t cooperate…

There’s a powerful, ancient tool you can use—right under your nose.

It’s called Alternate Nostril Breathing (Sanskrit: Nadi Shodhana).
At Limitless Soul Journey, we teach this as both a scientific regulation tool and a spiritual re-centering practice—because it’s both.

This practice is especially supportive if:

• You’re neurodivergent, highly sensitive, or emotionally reactive

• You live with anxiety, trauma, or chronic overstimulation

• You tend to be either too foggy or too wired—but rarely balanced

• You want to develop a non-pharmaceutical coping tool

• You’re seeking a safe, simple breath practice that doesn’t require years of training

This is a go-to breathwork method for restoring balance to both brain and body.

What Is Alternate Nostril Breathing?

It’s a controlled breathing technique that involves closing off one nostril at a time while inhaling and exhaling through the other.
This back-and-forth pattern helps to:

• Regulate the autonomic nervous system

• Create balance between the left and right hemispheres of the brain

• Calm emotional reactivity and stimulate clarity

• Support your body’s natural return to homeostasis (equilibrium)

Scenario: You’re Trying to Stay Grounded…

You’ve had a long day.
You feel scattered, overwhelmed, and on edge.
You know your reactions are stronger than they should be… but you can’t quite get a grip.

You want to come back to your center—but your brain feels like a two-way traffic jam.

Nadi Shodhana: Step-by-Step

You can do this practice sitting comfortably with your spine upright.
You’ll use your right thumb and ring finger to alternate the breath.

If you’re left-handed or have limited mobility, adapt however feels natural—intention is more important than form.

Instructions:

1. Close your right nostril with your thumb.
   Inhale slowly through the left nostril.

2. Close your left nostril with your ring finger.
   Exhale slowly through the right nostril.

3. Keep your left nostril closed.
   Inhale through the right.

4. Close the right.
   Exhale through the left.

This completes one round.

Repeat for 5–10 rounds at your own pace. Keep the breath gentle and smooth—no strain, no force.

Why It Works (Science + Spirit)

Nadi Shodhana influences the sympathetic and parasympathetic branches of the nervous system, helping:

• Decrease blood pressure and heart rate

• Improve oxygenation and focus

• Restore emotional equilibrium

• Calm the limbic system (your brain’s fear center)

• Balance left-right brain activity (analytical vs. creative)

Energetically, this breathwork clears the “nadis”—or energetic pathways in the body—especially ida (feminine, intuitive) and pingala (masculine, active).

Whether you view that through a physiological or spiritual lens, the result is the same:
Clarity. Calm. Connection.

Final Words from LSJ

This is a practice of balance—not perfection.
You don’t have to feel “zen” to begin.
You just have to be willing to pause… and breathe… one side at a time.

You are not your chaos. You are the calm waiting underneath it.

In wholeness and alignment,
The LSJ Team