Thank you very much for the encouragement and the advice about the intention. Not to sound defensive, but I have addressed why it makes me anxious many times and I continue to work with it. It started when I was a kid and I'm almost 60 now.

I did practice a form of qigong for 12 years called Zhineng qigong that healed me from a life threatening illness. And there was no emphasis on the breathing - as I relaxed into the form and into the universe, my breathing just sort of took care of itself. I would be breathing deeply and slowly with no effort on my part. But it is the right time for me to try something new for lots of reasons and maybe the emphasis on conscious breathing, although I don't think I like it, will end up helping me more than anything else. It's worth a try.

Thanks again,
Mimi