There’s a reason why we tell people to take a deep breath when they’re upset: it works! A deep breath doesn’t just pull vital, life-sustaining oxygen into our bodies; it also acts as a pressure release valve, calming us and inducing a state of brief relaxation. If you’re looking to improve your overall quality of life, there are few things you can do for yourself that will be easier and more cost-effective than putting more intentionality into your breathing.
Releases Endorphins
Taking a deep breath feels good. It feels good because fully expanding your lungs stimulates the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve runs from your brain to the colon; stimulating this nerve activates a “rest and digest” response from your nervous system. The combination of that stimulated nerve and the increased volume of air in your body releases endorphins, pain-relieving neurotransmitters that can induce a state of euphoria.
Stress Reduction
When you’re stressed out, a fast and simple way to take the pressure off is to take a breather. Breathing absorbs oxygen into your body while expelling carbon dioxide. When you’re stressed, you end up taking small, shallow breaths. Stressed people tend to breathe using their shoulders rather than their diaphragm muscle to move air in and out of their lungs. That form of breathing is bad for your health as it disrupts the balance of gasses in your body and can cause muscle strain thanks to the increased pressure on your upper chest.
Breathing with your diaphragm expands your lungs, increasing the volume of oxygen you take in while putting less strain on the rest of your muscles. Opt for deep breathing over shallow breathing and/or hyperventilation whenever you can as shorter bursts of breathing can worsen your stress symptoms and prolong feelings of anxiety. Another added benefit of deep breathing is that it can lower your epinephrine levels. Epinephrine (also known as adrenaline) is a hormone that plays a key role in our body’s fight-or-flight response. Elevated amounts of epinephrine can spike your blood pressure and stress levels.
Stabilizes Blood Pressure
Doing breathwork can lower your blood pressure. Studies have found that our nervous systems automatically lowers heart rates and widens blood vessels in response to diaphragmatic breathing. Prolonging your exhalations exploits this physical tendency. Deep breathing also reduces our cortisol levels. Cortisol is a stress hormone that can increase our blood pressure when we’re feeling tense.
Helps Improve Muscle Function
Breathing from your diaphragm can help improve your exercises. When you’re not using your lungs at their full capacity, your body uses other muscles (neck, back, and chest) to pick up the slack. That means you’ll have lower oxygen levels, which in turn means your muscles will get less energy. Deep breathing gives your muscles more air, more blood, and lower stress hormones. It fuels you for physical activity and makes it so you’ll be less likely to strain or injure yourself.
Best Practices For Better Breathing
There are a few practices you can implement in your day-to-day life to breathe deeply from your diaphragm:
- Keep your back straight. Align your spine so your head is positioned over your neck and your shoulders are over your hips.
- Diaphragmatic breathing can be done while sitting or lying on your back. If you’re lying on your back, keep your knees bent and make sure your head is properly supported.
- Place a hand on your upper chest and set the other one just below your rib cage while you’re breathing. This will let you feel your diaphragm move as you inhale and exhale.
- Breathe in slowly through your nose. You should feel your stomach expand outward, causing your hand to rise.
- Tighten your stomach muscles as you exhale through pursed lips.
- Try the 4-7-8 technique: breathe in for 4 seconds, hold your breath for 7 seconds, and then exhale for 8.
- Another easy technique is “box breathing”: inhale through your nose for 4 seconds, hold it for 4 seconds, exhale through the mouth for 4 seconds, then repeat the cycle.
Article by Austin Brietta
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