If you are breathing correctly when you inhale your belly should inflate like a balloon. When I inhaled my stomach would suck up into my ribs (picture sucking in your gut to fit into a tight pair of jeans, which by the way, is just as bad as breathing wrong). Because of this my lungs didn't take in a full dose of air making me feel short of breath and anxious. I also had the habit of holding my breath. Although my history of anxiety started in my head, it eventually affected the way I breathed.
Eventually I learned how to breathe right but it took time. I still catch myself doing it wrong, especially when I'm under a lot of stress. Chronic stress has a negative affect on the body, especially in the respiratory system. It restricts the connective and muscular tissue in the chest causing a decrease in the range of motion of the chest wall, aka shallow breathing. It's that feeling of tightness we get in our chest when we are scared or upset. Taking shallow breaths when we're upset only gives oxygen to the upper half of our lungs. The bottom part of our lungs have the most blood vessels, which help circulate oxygen to the rest of our body. If oxygen isn't getting to where it's best absorbed in the lungs, our bodies have to work harder to circulate the little oxygen it has been given.
When our bodies are in overdrive our sympathetic nervous system is stimulated. This can cause a lot of physical responses such as a rising heart rate, increased perspiration, muscle tension and rapid, shallow breathing. This system is designed to put us into our fight or flight response helping us face dangerous situations. However, with life constantly being on the go, our bodies now perceive being late for work as a flight or fight response and our body reacts accordingly. It's not like we see a tiger and have to run for our lives, but when we realize that we're late, our breathing becomes rapid and shallow triggering our sympathetic nervous system into action. Over time this causes health issues such as inflammation, high blood pressure and muscle pain and that is just the start of things.
Deep abdominal breathing helps to calm the sympathetic system by stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic systems job is to calm us down. When it is set into motion, it's like the moment you step onto the beach for your vacation and you sigh with relief. That sigh is beneficial to your health.
If we are breathing correctly, when we exhale our bodies are designed to release 70% of its toxins. We exhale carbon dioxide, which is toxic, but if we aren't fully exhaling we aren't getting all the toxins out. The other detoxification systems in the body (the lymph system is one) have to work harder to expel waste. This is taxing to the body and can make us weak and more susceptible to illness.
Besides subduing our sympathetic system, deep breathing has other benefits.
1. Helps reduce pain by releasing endorphins which are the bodies natural pain killers. Focus on the breath, not the pain. Having given birth to my daughter naturally, I can speak from experience, this one is helpful.
2. Improves digestion by increasing blood flow. It encourages intestinal action, improving how the body digests food. Our digestive system gets shut down when we're stressed. Taking deep breaths to stay calm will keep the system up and running well. This is especially helpful for people with IBS.
3. Stimulates our lymphatic system. Lymph fluid rids the body of the debris our cells excrete. Proper breathing stimulates the lymphatic fluid, efficiently getting waste out of our bodies. It's like giving your garbage guy a cup of coffee.
4. Expands our cardiovascular capacity. I once got my lung capacity tested to see if my allergies were affecting my lungs. The guy who did the test asked if I was a runner because I had such great results. Truth was, at that time, the only exercise I had done regularly for the past three years was yoga.
5. Improves energy by allowing the body to work efficiently. You're reducing the body's exposure to anxiety so you sleep better. This allows you to wake up rested and full of energy.
If you Google the benefits of deep breathing, you'll find many reasons why it's essential to your health. Some sound a little crazy, but what it all comes back to is giving your body the oxygen it craves. It works better when it has it, like oil in a car. Something as simple as correcting your breathing patterns and building awareness to take deep breaths in time of stress, can have a profound affect on your health.
Click here to learn the Ujjayi breath, it's a great place to start. Try practicing it for 5 minutes a day and use it when you are stressed.
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