I made it! I got a job as an HGV driver, working for Frontier delivering bulk grain shipments to mills and ports across the southeast of England. It’s still early days, and the learning curve is almost vertical, so I take each day as it comes. I’ve had a few minor setbacks that have knocked my confidence a little, but I am working through it.
Meditative breathing techniques are helping, and I find that what has come to be referred to as ‘square breathing’ works for me. Here’s how to do it:
- Breathe in through your nose, filling up your belly for 4 seconds
- Hold for 4 seconds
- Exhale through your mouth for 4 seconds
- Hold for 4 seconds
- Repeat x 4
It is called box breathing because that’s an easy way to visualise this breathing technique. You are essentially breathing in a box shape by figuring each of the four seconds as one side of the box. After each round, you should have completed one box breath. This is sometimes called tactical breathing.
Well, I’m home from work for four days. I am looking forward to spending time celebrating Christmas with my loved ones. I will write a longer post at the start of the new year, so until then, Merry Christmas one and all!
