From the Desk of Carolyn Dean MD ND
How often do you think about your breathing? I want you to spend the next minutes, as you read this blog, focusing on your breathing and your breath. Are you breathing through your mouth or your nose? Are you breathing into your chest, or into your diaphragm, expanding your stomach?
In my latest book, The Complete Guide to Mental Health, I’m sharing lifestyle lessons to incorporate into your life to calm and soothe anxiety, depression and stress. Ben Pelton, one of guest authors, contributed a chapter on breathwork to this book and Total Body ReSet for Men, and I want to share some of his insights and suggestions with you.
Breathing is automatic and we rarely have to think about it yet it’s a bodily function so crucial to our survival. We can survive for a few weeks without food, a few days without water but only a few minutes without breathing. What can we do to become better breathers? And how can we use our breath to calm and soothe ourselves in stressful moments?
First of all, the nose is for breathing and the mouth is for eating! The nose has perfect filters to clean, warm, humidify, and condition the air that goes into your lungs. Practice breathing in AND out through your nose. Breathing through your mouth can be useful if you’ve been doing heavy exercise as you can eliminate excess carbon dioxide more quickly.
Another asset to nose breathing is that the paranasal sinuses create a powerful anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-fungal called nitric oxide to enhance the body’s defense mechanisms by inhibiting pathogen growth. Ben shares much more info about the body mechanics of breathing in this book.
Your brain responds to your breath
Depending on how you breathe and your rate of breathing, you’ll have fluctuating levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in your blood. Your brain takes in this information and if your breathing is fast, it might decide that you’re under stress in that moment. If you’ve created an excess of carbon dioxide in your blood, it can feel like you’ve been holding your breath, and your brain sends a strong signal for you to breathe. This feeling of difficultly in taking a deep breath is often associated with anxiety and even panic symptoms.
The most common dysfunctional breathing pattern is called over-breathing which leads to excess carbon dioxide in the blood. The brain jumps in and increases your breathing rate to lower CO2, and this can look and feel like hyperventilation which the brain reads as stress and danger and the fight or flight response can kick in, creating more dysfunctional breathing.
You have complete control of your breath!
The above scenario sounds pretty scary, but what’s important here is that you have complete control over your breathing, the depth and deepness and the rhythm and so you have only to practice the following techniques to move out of the stress feelings and into more calm. How many times have you witnessed a scene in a movie or even read in a novel to “take a deep breath!” It’s good advice and it works!
Slow, methodical breathing exercises are an important key to transforming your mental state.
The first step for anyone is bringing their focus to your breath. Focus your attention on the sensation of inhaling through your nose and feeling the relaxation of the exhalation. The mind will want to wander away from this focus of the breath; however, you can hold your attention even longer with practice. Focusing on the inhalation and letting go through the exhalation will distract your mind from being busy with thoughts. Rumination can lead to distress and can contribute to more anxiety and depression. Bringing your attention to your breathing allows the mind to focus on something else besides negative or stressful thoughts.
Now that you’re focusing on your breathing let’s go ahead and bring your attention to the diaphragm. Here is a simple exercise you can practice to improve awareness of your diaphragm muscle. Lie down on your back with your knees bent so that the soles of your feet are resting on top of the floor. Then, place a light book on your stomach.
As you inhale, you will feel the pressure of your diaphragm pushing down into your core and toward the pelvis. This will create a pressure wave, lifting the book slightly towards the ceiling. As you exhale, the diaphragm will begin to relax, and the pressure wave will dissipate, bringing the book back down. This is a gentle movement. Practice this exercise for five minutes.
Practicing this (and other exercises in the book) will help you become more aware of how you breathe and how you engage your diaphragm. As you become more mindful, you’re in a better position to improve your breathing.
One of the best ways to quickly correct dysfunctional breathing is with Three Second Inhale / Exhale/ Hold.
It’s super simple: Inhale for three seconds and then exhale for three seconds. Now pause and hold your breath on the exhalation for three seconds. Repeat this pattern five times to start with. You might already begin feeling more relaxed and it might be easier to be aware of your breath. You can practice this routine five to ten minutes a day anytime and anywhere. With practice you’ll notice an increase in overall relaxation.
For more inspiration and breathing exercises, please read Ben’s chapter in my latest book, The Complete Guide to Mental Health.
Carolyn Dean MD ND
The Doctor of the Future.
