How to Train Your Mindful Dragon: Discover the Dragon

By Kayla Reetz, published July 2025

Photo courtesy of https://smilesinthesky.wordpress.com/2017/08/28/how-to-train-your-dragon-free-sheet-music-beginning-piano/

Breathe in through the nose to the count of 4…exhale audibly through the mouth to the count of 8…

In some yoga sessions, we practice a breath such as the one described above.  In schools with Challenge to Change’s Mindful Education programming, we call this Lion’s Breath or even Dragon’s Breath. Kids love it when they can stick out their tongue and pretend to breathe fire. Little do they know this dragon breath practice also aids the brain and body.

The dragon we speak of, lies within.  Have you ever reacted to a situation without thinking and regretted what happened after?  Maybe it was a small reaction- like snapping at the kids, a loved one or a coworker- or a much larger one. Maybe a situation that started small but then you felt you had to double down and it became much larger. Yeah. I think we can all think of something like that happening in our life. Please remind yourself you are not alone and give yourself a little grace too. 

Now take time to consider why it happened. I am no doctor and I know enough to know I don’t know everything, but I wonder if it came from a place that was made to do just that- react out of safety in perceived danger. If so, that’s just your nervous system doing its job. Well, one of them.

Don't mind the plaque...

The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) is a part of the body that has an autonomic response. This means the response is often involuntary or automatic and is often a response to an environmental factor, but not always. Think of the involuntary response to seeing or smelling something alarming, how the body responds to these factors- maybe it's an audible sound, a jerk of a part or even the whole body, or a scrunching of the nose. Or, internally, when experiencing a panic attack, one may experience shortness of breath, heightened heart rate and even a difference in body temperature. This is the Sympathetic Nervous System.  The SNS is mainly responsible for the fight, flight, freeze, and fawn response. These responses are meant to act as a protection of the body and mind in moments of perceived danger.

But there’s another part, a counterpart.  The parasympathetic nervous system or PNS. This part of the system plays a large part in the relaxation and resting functions of the body.  To put it more simply, the part of the nervous system that allows the body to access a sense of calm and safety. When working together, the two systems are supposed to keep the balance, or achieve homeostasis.

What does this have to do with the dragon within? Well, how often does your body and mind feel in balance?  How often are you able to access calm?  How often are you able to respond before the dragon reacts? Are you able to respond to most situations calmly, even if your body functions feel otherwise?

I know...cute little guy, right!? Thank you Canva!

More than likely, you answered with a guffaw or something similar, and you’re not alone.  Everyone has a similar response- even those considered to be “experts”.  That’s why simple practice like Lion’s or Dragon’s Breath are important- especially for children. It allows for two things to happen: an extended exhale activates the parasympathetic part of the nervous system and stimulation of the vagus nerve, causing the body to feel more relaxed and in balance. It practices noticing the moment after the feeling/instinct, and the before the reaction. Wanna know how long that space is? On average, 6 seconds.

I know, I know. All this work to notice 6 measly seconds?!? Yep. Because those 6 seconds can make or break a moment, as we discussed earlier.  For this week, strive to simply notice those 6 seconds in your life. Notice when the dragon reacts and you wish things happened differently and when you were able to respond with intention. Remember: nobody's perfect.  If it was easy, everyone would do it and, well, I’ll let current reality speak to that.

Stay tuned for the second half of this discussion in it’s follow up: How to Train Your Mindful Dragon: Training Begins and find out opportunities at Safe Harbor Yoga to help train your mindful dragon within to do what you WANT, not what it feels it HAS to do.

May you find peace in your mind, peace in your heart, and peace in each day moving forward.