What is Belly Breathing? What are the Benefits?
Belly breathing helps you “focus on expanding your abdomen as you inhale, rather than just your chest. This technique utilizes the diaphragm, a muscle below the lungs, to draw air into the lungs, resulting in deeper, slower breaths,” according to Good RX.
Breathing in this way comes naturally to us as babies. As we grow older, and the stresses of life begin to stack, we sink into autopilot, and before long, we’re in a rhythm of chest breathing which often looks like shallow and rapid breaths which can exacerbate stress and overwhelm, instead of calling us into calm.
When I was preparing to write this blog post, I came across an article from Headspace that speaks to the power of belly breathing and the ways continued chest breathing impacts our health -
“When we breathe with our chests, we use the muscles in our shoulders, necks, and chests to expand our lungs, which can result in neck pain, headaches, and an increased risk of injury. Our shoulders slump forward and our posture changes as well.
Diaphragmatic [belly] breathing, on the other hand, can lower blood pressure, reduce heart rate, relax muscles, decrease stress, and increase energy levels. Deep breathing grounds us as well.
It can help intense sensations, experiences, and emotions feel less threatening. Deep breathing brings awareness which can help us to breathe mindfully, noticing that life is a thread of moments, woven together that come and go,” said Juli Fraga, a clinical psychologist with training in mindfulness-based stress reduction and mindful breathing.”
There are many nights where my system is charged from the hyper vigilance of high support needs disability parenting. The body remembers; we must give it a pathway to ease.
This practice is supportive for settling into rest, or soothing nerves in the midst of stress and tension. And we could all use that support right?
