B – Breathe

Breathe. Just breathe. Insert Michelle Branch goddess vocals in her 2003 song called Breathe. Did you know that in this same song, she actually talks about another awesome coping skill: “I, hold my breath and count to 10”. Counting to 10 can be really helpful to de-escalate in situations of high stress or anger. Don’t hold your breath though, that completely defeats the purpose of this post and is not a helpful. Good news, I added the video at the end of this post for your enjoyment.

Back to the breath. Breathing is an essential tool when dealing with daily life and mental health. The best news is that it is free! That’s right, fo free. Plus you can do it literally anywhere. A lot of times when feeling anxious or overwhelmed our breath becomes shallow and we begin to breathe into our chest which can cause hyperventilation also known as… you guessed it… a panic attack. Deep belly breathing and mindful breathing are great tools to not only help aid in the moments of a panic attack but that can also help reduce symptoms of anxiety, stress, and fogginess.

 

How can it help?

Deep abdominal breathing reverses the stress reaction by providing more oxygenation of the blood resulting in greater relaxation, better emotional balance and control. It can also increase mental clarity and acuity, and greatly improved general health. Breath switches on the parasympathetic part of the involuntary nervous system which allows the system to rest, relax, and repair. Another benefit is that your lung capacity will gradually increase so you will become less winded by exertion if you continue to practice deep belly breathing.

How is it done?

Belly Breathing

As I mentioned before, you can actually do this skill anywhere. For demonstration purposes, I will discuss how to do this in an environment where you will get the best results: a quiet room in a comfortable chair.

  1. Take a seat in this quiet room and comfortable chair
  2. Take your hands and feel your belly to find where your ribs end — that’s how big your lungs are so we need to create room in our belly to allow those big beautiful lungs to expand
  3. Place one hand on your belly and one hand on your chest
  4. Now when you take a deep breath in, try to breathe into your belly completely which in turn will make you poke your belly out
  5. No judgments about your belly being poked out — our society always tells us to suck it in, but I’m here to tell you to poke it out
  6. The goal is that your hand on your chest stays relatively still and the hand on your belly will move up and down with the breath (No worries if your your chest moves a little bit)
  7. Exhale and let your belly completely release all of the air in your lungs
  8. Repeat 5 times

How do you feel? As I mentioned before, you can do this anywhere if you feel that shallow breathing kick in. The grocery store at 5:30pm is my go to place to practice deep belly breathing.

See below for a how-to video!

Mindful Breathing

Another great skill to reduce anxiety and bring focus away from a stressful or emotionally distressing event is mindful breathing. I have added a recommended count, but you will find your own rhythm.

  1. Take a seat in your quiet room and comfortable chair
  2. Utilize breathing into your belly and filling your lungs up completely (see above for belly breathing instructions)
  3. Exhale all of the air in your lungs
  4. Then inhale for a count 5
  5. Hold for a count of 3
  6. Exhale for a count of 7 (you want the exhale to be longer than the inhale to release all of that icky carbon dioxide)
  7. Repeat 3-5 times

Now, try to set a goal to do deep belly breathing or mindful breathing 1-2 times a day. To increase consistency, practice these skills the same time each day.

 

 

Videos I love 💕

Michelle Branch – Breathe (you’re welcome for the nostalgia)

The video below is one of my favorites for learning about belly breathing. It gives you a nice little step by step guide.