With the UK property market amid a mini-boom and new data released today showing no signs of things letting up, some people’s stress levels will be skyrocketing. Breath Coach Rebecca Dennis offers some handy tips to make the whole process far less taxing on your nerves.

Moving house is one of the biggest decisions you’ll ever make and can feel like an enormous task. In fact, a new Purplebricks study of 2,000 adults found that more than one in five buyers (22 per cent) have considered pulling out of a house purchase because they found it such a stressful experience, while 62 per cent said the main contributor to the strain is when things are beyond their control.

Purplebricks estate agent has therefore teamed up with Breath Coach, Rebecca Dennis, the founder of Breathing Tree, to create the Moving Meditations, a series of three guided meditations designed to help ease some of the most challenging stages of a house move. To listen to these visit http://bit.ly/MovingMeditation1.

Alternatively, here are Rebecca’s breathing exercises that you can practice anywhere – at home or at work – to help you through the anxiety of moving house, or any other stressful situation:

Breathing Through Anxiety – Abdominal breathing technique

Anxiety often stops us in our tracks. Our body can sense it before we can, it tenses up, and our breathing pattern changes. This technique will help to ground and centre you bringing you back to the present moment.

  1. Sit up straight and relax your shoulders. Feel your feet connecting to the ground.
  2. First, be aware of the feelings and sensations in your body. Track them and get curious. Where do you feel them?
  3. Notice your breathing pattern, is it rapid, is it shallow, does it feel restricted?
  4. Place one hand on your chest and the other on your belly. Take a deep breath in through your nose, allowing your diaphragm (not your chest) to inflate with enough air to create a slight stretching sensation in your lungs. Slowly exhale.
  5. Now continue to breathe deeply into the diaphragm, allow the belly and rib cage to expand as you inhale and contract as you exhale. Place your hands on your lower abdomen and breathe into here. As you inhale the belly expands like a balloon.
  6. Notice the feelings and greet them like an old friend.
  7. Connect your feet on the ground and imagine that they are growing roots. As you breathe in and out imagine the breath is coming all the way down to your feet.
  8. Be aware of the sensations in your body as you breathe in and breathe out. Try not to fight the sensations or push them away; just notice them as they eventually dissipate.
  9. Breathe through the sensations in your body and as you breathe in and out use affirmations in your mind: ‘I let go.’
  10. Continue to breathe deeply into the belly inhaling and exhaling and stay present with your breath.

Nadi Shodhana or “Alternate nostril breathing” technique

This technique helps refocus and re-energise your mind to make big decisions with clarity.

  1. Start by sitting comfortably on a chair or cross-legged on the floor.
  2. Hold out your right hand and press the tips of your pointer and middle fingers into your palm, leaving your ring finger, pinky finger, and thumb extended.
  3. Bring your hand up in front of your face and press your thumb on the outside of one nostril. Inhale deeply through your open nostril.
  4. At the peak of your inhalation, release your thumb, press your ring finger on the outside of your other nostril, and exhale.
  5. Continue this pattern for 1–2 minutes before switching sides so that you inhale through the nostril that you originally used to exhale, and vice versa. Spend equal amounts of time inhaling and exhaling through both nostrils.

Rebecca said: “Moving house is one of the biggest life decisions you’ll make, with many worries at different stages of the process. The way we breathe has a powerful effect on how stressed we feel, and meditation can help to relieve that stress. By asking the body to relax each time we inhale, we unwind stored tension. By connecting with your own breath, you can reset the mind and body when stress or anxiety start to creep in.”

Angela Wallace, Divisional Sales Director at Purplebricks, added: “Buying and selling a home is a major milestone in anyone’s life, so it’s understandable people feel the strain every now and then. However, you don’t move very often in a lifetime, so try to be in the moment and enjoy making these life-changing decisions. If there are areas of the journey that feel a bit of a challenge, hopefully, our Moving Meditations can offer something unique to help buyers and sellers through.”

Read more property-related guides and articles in our dedicated section here.