As adults, being caught up in the world full of fury, we silently hope for fairies to wave their wands and create magic for us. Take away all the tension, stress and the pressure of adulating and let happiness, calmness rein for all times. Well, this magic can be created instantly, if not by fairies than by fierce hearted humans. Just take a good deep breath in, and exhale out. Did you feel a bit lighter? Now, that’s the self created magic I am talking about. We humans, have the innate power to heal ourselves by as simple as harnessing breathing techniques. Doctors, mental health professionals as well as yogis, all are flag bearers of recommending deep breathing exercises in order to improve and maintain good health.
Types of Breathing
There are four categories of breathing that we engage from time to time:-
- Eupnoea: If you’re reading this, you’re probably breathing in this way right now. Eupnoea is when you are not conscious of your breathing. It is also known as silent breathing where both the external intercostals muscles and diaphragm contract.
- Diaphragmatic Breathing: Also referred to as deep breathing, requires contraction of the diaphragm muscle. Passive exhalation occurs as the muscle contracts.
- Costal Breathing: Commonly referred to as “shallow breathing,” makes use of your intercostals muscles, which are located between your ribs. Your lungs let out the air as these muscles unwind. If you are under stress, you may already be breathing in this manner (or even unconsciously holding your breath).
- Hyperpnoea: Also known as forced breathing, this condition causes muscular contractions to make inhalation and exhalation active rather than passive.
Benefits of Deep Breathing
Each of these breathing techniques has its merits, but deep breathing is a big shot and has numerous health advantages. Deep breathing techniques can help depression and anxiety, manage stress, improves concentration, sleep and quicker recovery after physical effort or exercise.
Now, you might be curious as to why “simply” breathing can have such an excellent impact on your health and wellbeing. The parasympathetic nerve system, generally known as the “rest and digest” system, is activated by slow breathing. Its responsibility is to store energy for use in biological functions including digestion and urine. The vagus nerve, the parasympathetic nervous system’s boss and the regulator of everything like mood, digestion, and heart rate, is also activated by deep breathing. As a result more oxygen will be delivered to your brain and other organs. However, if you feel dizzy after doing deep breathing, take a pause and let the sensation fade away. If you still continue to feel dizzy, don’t indulge in the activity and contact your physician. Additionally, if you already have anxiety, it could occasionally exacerbate it. So be careful and practice under supervision.
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How to Practice Deep Breathing
Here are a handful of the methods and exercises available for your reference. They all have the repeating quality, which has the extra benefit of assisting you in entering a meditative state. Before starting any deep breathing exercises, it is important to consult your doctor if you have asthma or any other respiratory problems.
- Diaphragmatic Breathing
The diaphragm is a little muscle situated immediately underneath your lungs. It will contract and migrate downward if you’re breathing “properly” so that your lungs may expand and take in fresh air. The opposite occurs on exhalation; it relaxes and moves up your chest cavity even more.
- To Breathe through the Diaphragm:
Start by placing one hand over your belly and one over your heart. Let the air fill your belly as you take a deep breath in through your nose. Keep your hands on your heart and stomach, and notice how the stomach one moves while the heart one should remain stationary. Exhale as if blowing out birthday candles, drawing your navel toward your spine. Feel as the hand that was on your tummy slips back down to where it was. Start by doing this three to five times, notice how you feel after each repetition.
- Breathing: 4-8-7
In this exercise, inhale for four seconds, hold your breath for seven, and then exhale for eight seconds:
As with the diaphragmatic breathing technique, begin by placing one hand on your heart and the other on your abdomen. As you feel your diaphragm descend, inhale slowly and deeply from your abdomen. As you take a breath, count to four. Hold your breath while you count to seven. Exhale via your lips for eight counts, totally emptying your lungs. In order to feel more at ease, repeat three to five times.
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Tips to breathe
The following advice can help you as you work on deep breathing exercises.
Allot Time for Long Breaths – Setting a timer or alarm to breathe may seem bit absurd, but it can help you make sure that you consistently experience the wonderful advantages of deep breathing. When your alarm goes off, consider performing a few rounds of these breathing techniques.
Do it before and during times of high stress – The best thing about breathing is that it can be done anywhere and at any time without anyone noticing. You probably have specific locations or circumstances that you know will make you anxious, such as before meetings or interviews. Before anything, take a moment to give your brain some of that delicious, sweet oxygen and let yourself calm down.
Along with breathing exercises, our mental Wellness Experts at Ganeshaspeaks.com can equip you with quite a few skills to deal with the day to day stressors.