What is Deep Breathing?

Deep breathing techniques are a sure fire way to conquer stress and distribute oxygen around the body more efficiently. When we talk about deep breathing, we speak of the act of taking the air right down into your diaphragm, rather than shallowly breathing into the rib cage. This technique is also known as “belly breathing” or “diaphragmatic breathing,” as the expansion of the abdomen occurs as the air is taken in.

If you are in an extremely stressful situation and you are unable to practice deep breathing, it could lead to hyperventilation syndrome.

How does it work?

Imagine your lungs as an accordion – there is a set of muscles at each end of the rib cage that helps pull air into and out of the lungs. Using only the muscles at the upper chest, you can’t get much air to the lungs. Yet by using the diaphragm muscle at the bottom, abdominal organs are pushed aside, resulting in up to 30% more air getting into the lungs with each breath.

How to practise this technique:

First of all, it is useful to establish whether you are a chest breather or a diaphragmatic breather: Let the air out of your lungs, then count to three. At three, inhale as quickly and as deeply as you can. Hold it. Note the following:

Did you breathe mostly through your mouth or nose?
Did your shoulders go up?
Does it feel tight around your neck and throat?
Does it feel as if the upper parts of your lungs are especially full?
If so, you probably tend to breathe more with the upper part of your lungs.
If, however, when you breathed quickly, your belt or waist band got tight, your stomach pushed out, and you felt fullness in the lower part of your chest or abdomen, your diaphragm was doing most of the work.

Try the quick breath a couple more times, noticing more closely your automatic pattern.
 
Try this exercise when you feel stressed:

1. Sit or lie comfortably. Avoid wearing tight fitting clothes for this exercise.
2. Put one hand on your chest and one on your stomach.
3. Slowly inhale through your nose or through pursed lips (to slow down the intake of breath).
4. As you inhale, feel your stomach expand with your hand.
5. Slowly exhale through pursed lips, thus regulating the release of air.
6. Rest and repeat.

How often should I practise?

This is a very easy and beneficial way to control your stress at any given time. A few deep breaths can calm both the body and the mind. In fact, with further practice, performing diaphragmatic breathing can be therapeutic and can even become a standard way of breathing.
 
Other tips and caveats:

– The stresses of modern life can result in over-stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system, and as society idealizes a hard, flat belly, many people carry excessive tension in the belly, chest, and back, which makes it difficult for the diaphragm to move freely through its full range of motion.

– In certain people the diaphragm can be dysfunctional, in which case it is better to switch to SLOW breathing, rather than deep. Yoga, pranayama and other Eastern influenced holistic practices can help people feel better with simple and effective breathing and movement practices.

– Many people who stutter can benefit from using diaphragmatic breathing to help them gain more control over their speech.