Mindful breathing – How deep is your breath?

Who hasn’t been told this before?
You are experiencing some sort of stress, fear, or anger and someone tells you to:
“… Just try & take deep breaths and try to relax…!”

Well does that even help?
Does one actually relax when trying to breathe more deeper?
Can breathing deeper improve our health?

For a very long time, I was not able to breathe correctly!
About a year ago; I was at a retreat where I had taken about 6 days for myself to recover from burn out & some stress that placed tremendous pressure on my wellbeing.

At the retreat, I was in a yoga class, and the instructor had asked the class to sit upright and breath into our chests , filling up our diaphragm and lower abdomen with a full breath- almost as if we were inflating a balloon.

Sounds easy right? …

Yeah right! I really battled! I felt immense pain in my lower back. I just could not do it! How difficult was it to just breathe? I thought… Then it hit me, my body didn’t even know how to breathe, yet alone how to relax!

One would think you are born with an instinctive nature to be able to breathe deeply and expand and fill our lungs as deeply as possible. What we actually find is that so many adults breathe very short & shallow breaths ( known as shallow chest breathing); and when we actively try to take fuller breaths, we feel discomfort in our bodies in the form of:

Pain in the lower back: due to the back muscles which are weak.
Shoulder & Neck pain: Breathing through our chests, we use the muscles in our shoulders – which may result in an increased risk of injury.
Headaches: Not enough oxygen reaching our brains and cells, which is required for vital bodily functions and cell regeneration.
Yoga, meditation and other relaxation techniques place emphasis on focusing our awareness on the breath. There are many benefits of meditation and proper breathing is an important part of learning how to calm the mind and body.

What causes us not to breathe in deep enough?

Many of us have become shallow chesty, or thoracic, breathers—inhaling through our mouth, holding our breath and taking in less air. Over time our breathing patterns have shifted and adapted to such breathing – as a reaction to environmental stressors, like temperature, pollution, noise, and other causes of anxiety. Cultural expectations, such as the desire to have a flat stomach, encourage holding our breath and sucking in our stomachs, further tightening our muscles.1   When we breathe in a shallow way, the body remains in a cyclical state of stress or fight or flight mode. This sets off the sympathetic nervous system, the branch of the autonomic nervous system that primes us for activity and response (or Flight or Fight mode).2   We have conditioned our bodies to breathe in a chest-like manner and we need to unlearn this habit or try to mindfully change our breathing patterns over time. Starting with breathing exercises, and intentional deep breathing.   What Is Deep Breathing? A form of breathing, also known as yogic breathing.  Deep breathing is the voluntary regulation of breath by consciously and actively using the diaphragm to increase the inflow and outflow of air, as well as to decrease the frequency of each breathing cycle (Varvogli & Darvini, 2011)3   Breath: the vital life force energy Eastern traditions, such as Taoism and Hinduism have long considered the breath as the manifestation of vital energy residing in the body. The breath does not just begin or support life, the breath is the totality of life4.   In yoga, breath is a key element of the practice. The ancient text The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali considers pranayama as one of the eight limbs of yoga. Pranayama, or breath regulation, refers to the extension of the vital energy through the breath (Saraswati, 2013)5   From a scientific perspective, breathing also encompasses a vital force. Oxygen enables cells to undertake chemical processes to produce energy to allow for our bodily functioning (Romas & Sharma, 2017)6.   The role of deep breathing in combating disease  There is a significant amount of new research focusing on and highlighting the role in which active deep breathing has on diseases, some highlighted research in :   Cardiovascular diseases. Deep breathing can be effective in reducing high blood pressure (Brandani et al., 2017)7 and heart rate (Saoji, Raghavendra, & Manjunath, 2019)8 in hypertensive individuals.   Stress. There is certain evidence that points out to the effectiveness of deep breathing exercises for improving psychological and physiological stress (Hopper, Murray, Ferrara, & Singleton, 2019)9.   Anxiety and depression. Deep breathing can reduce anxiety and depressive symptoms according to Jerath, Crawford, Barnes, & Harden, 201510.   Respiratory diseases. Deep breathing can help in the treatment of asthma and tuberculosis, as well as contribute to cigarette withdrawal (Saoji et al., 2019)11.   Diabetes. Breathing techniques can enhance the quality of life and improve sympathetic responses in people with diabetes when combined with traditional treatments (Saoji et al., 2019).   Cancer. Deep breathing techniques can improve fatigue, quality of life, sleep, and anxiety when combined with chemotherapy or radiotherapy in cancer patients (Saoji et al., 2019).

So , how will deep breathing actually help me? 

More calm. When you become stressed or anxious, your brain releases cortisol, the “stress hormone.” By taking deep breaths, your heart rate slows, and more oxygen enters our bloodstream and ultimately communicates with the brain to relax. Deep breathing also ups your endorphins, the “feel good” chemical. Relieves pain. Deep breathing triggers the release of endorphins, which can help with compacting pain. Stimulates the lymphatic system(Detoxifies the body). Breathing releases carbon monoxide, which is important to fully release. Actually, breathing is in charge of 70% of cleansing the body of toxins (the other 30% is through the bladder and bowels.) If you do not breathe fully, your body must work overtime to release these toxins. Improves immunity. When your blood is fully oxygenated, it carries and absorbs nutrients and vitamins more efficiently. Essentially, the cleaner the blood, the harder it is for illnesses to stay put in your system.  Increases energy. The more oxygen that is in the blood, the better our body functions. It also improves our stamina. Lowers blood pressure. As your muscles relax, this allows your blood vessels to dilate, which improves circulation and lowers blood pressure. Deep breathing also slows and regulates the heart rate, which also helps with lowering your BP. Improves digestion. The more you breathe deep, the more healthier blood flow you will produce, which in turn promotes your organs to function more effectively, including your intestines. Helps support correct posture. Next time you breathe in, notice that you simultaneously lengthen and straighten your spine. In order to take a deep breath in, your lungs take up maximum space, and your diaphragm pulls down, so in turn, your torso straightens in order for this to be possible.

Want to try a Breathing exercise?

A common practice in my yoga classes is where I use- Alternate nostril breathing also known as Nadi shodana pranayama, today I am providing you with a short video to show you how to do this breathing exercise at home.

You can follow these instructions or watch my latest video:

This is one cycle. Continue for 8 rounds. Always complete the practice by finishing with an exhale on the left side.

Click the below link to watch the Video on how to practice this!
Hope you find peace and calm and remember to practice deep breathing…

All my Love Tam

xxx

References: