“Breathe deeply, until sweet air extinguishes the burn of fear in your lungs and every breath is a beautiful refusal to become anything less than infinite.”

– D. Antoinette Foy

As the world become more uncertain on a daily basis and our anxieties go through the roof, we believe it is crucial to address the topic of stress, anxiety and how our breathing is affected by both.

Breathing is a necessity of life that takes place without much thought to it. 

Improper breathing can upset the oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange and contribute to anxiety, panic attacks, fatigue, and other physical and emotional disturbances.

During an emergency, our breathing rate and pattern change. Instead of breathing slowly from our lower lungs, we begin to breathe rapidly and shallowly from our upper lungs. This leads to a phenomenon known as “hyperventilation” which causes many uncomfortable symptoms of panicking such as shortness of breath, dizziness, nausea and tingling in your body’s extremes.

To calm the body and brain down, we must shift such breathing rates and patterns from emergency responses to calming responses. We have also collaborated with Yogi Sara Abdelmoneim for a series of breathing and calming techniques that you can find at our IGTV here. 

We’ve compiled a list of the two most famous breathing techniques that are helpful in such stressful situations and benefit the body generally when done on a regular basis.

1.     Belly breathing

Probably the easiest breathing technique of them all. Diaphragmatic breathing, or deep breathing, is breathing that is done by contracting the diaphragm, a muscle located horizontally between the thoracic cavity and abdominal cavity. If you are not used to using you diaphragm to breathe, you might feel a bit exhausted but it will get easier with practice and you will notice the benefits of it quickly.  Try doing this daily for it to become an automatic way of breathing as it relaxes the body and relieves stress effectively.  

Firstly, sit or lie flat in a comfortable position then put one hand on your stomach just below the ribs and the other hand on your chest.

Inhale deeply through your nose and allow your belly to push your hand outwards while keeping your chest still. 

Breathe out through pursed lips as if you were whistling. Feel the hand on your belly go in and use it to push all the air out.

Repeat several times while taking your time with each breath for the best results. 

2.     4-7-8 breathing

The 4-7-8 breathing technique requires a person to focus on taking a long, deep breath in and out. Rhythmic breathing is a core part of many meditation and yoga practices as it promotes relaxation and eases the mind. This specific technique has proven to significantly reduce anxiety, aid in sleep patterns and control or reduce anger responses. This exercise can be done sitting or lying down and work as follows: 

Firstly, put one hand on your belly and the other on your chest then take a deep, slow breathe and silently count to 4 as you breath in. 

Hold your breath and silently count from 1 to 7

Breathe out completely as you silently count from 1 to 8 while working to get all the air out of your lungs as you exhale. 

Repeat 3 to 7 times or until you feel calm.

Taking care of our mental health is crucial for a healthy lifestyle so whenever you’re stressed or having a tough time, try one of these breathing exercises for a quick and efficient way to calm down and destress for even a few minutes! 

For more information on our balancing and wellness services at Mazeej White, click here.