Do you ever really stop and think about your breathing and our emotions?
How to master your breathing
I recently went to a day retreat and we concentrated on our breathing techniques. As we lay there slowly breathing in and slowly exhaling, the instructor was explaining how our breath changes depending on how we are feeling. For example, if we are upset our breath is usually short or in my case I sometimes forget to breathe!
We feel anxious and if we don’t breathe properly we can actually lose control of breathing and fell like we are having a panic attack.
It made me think about how our emotions control our breath but rather we should be using our breathing to control our emotions. If we are angry or anxious or feeling pain we usually hear people suggesting we take a deep breath. By taking a slow deep breath and then whooshing it out we are slowing down our feelings and relaxing our body and getting the emotions out. It really does work.
I’ve been doing yoga daily this month and really concentrating on my breathing technique. I even find I’m relaxing more at the end of the session and through concentration on my breathing we I can actually clear my mind.
Why not try it? Next time you feel anxious or stressed remember to deeply breathe in and exhale with a whoosh to drive out all of that emotion.
Let’s Keep Sizzling!
13 Comments
I try it but sometimes the stress is way too much. Good advice, though. Thanks!
Yes sometimes we do get so stressed it is hard to simply breathe and relax Bren. It is worth a try though. Have a great week!
Breathing is so important to stress relief. If I feel stressed it is usually true that I’ve been either holding my breath or hyperventilating. In both cases the anxiety builds in my body making it difficult to recover. Thanks for the reminder!
I’m the same Molly there are times I just simply forget to breathe and that could be fatal!!! Have a great week!
Good advice. Seems almost impossible that we could forget to breathe but I have been there! Holding my breath through some mini-catastrophe or round of exercise… a few seconds of course. I used natural childbirth with both of my daughters and have seen first hand what breathing intentionally can do.
We are so alike I’m sure we are related – both Roberts’. I sometimes find myself literally thinking omg I haven’t taken a breath for a while! My daughter did some relaxation techniques and breathing in preparation for childbirth and it certainly made all the difference.
I’ve not been able to master breathing techniques but I do know that whenever anxiety or stress rears its head in my house, I find myself taking a deep breath before I try to deal with it. Even a novice like me gets benefit from the deep breath–a pause that refreshes or at least calms me down..
I think even a deep breath can be effective and can bring calm. I’m a novice too but find that it really does work for me. Thanks so much for stopping by and have a beautiful day.
I always think about how much they focus on breathing when you’re giving birth – the importance of it for staying in control and coping with the stress and pain – this has to have the same effect on normal day to day stressful living too doesn’t it Sue. PS Welcome home!
Thanks Leanne I can’t wait to chat with you!
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I learned when I was in high school that I was actually breathing backward. My chest rose on exhale and fell with inhale! Lying on the floor with a dictionary on my chest helped me to breath correctly. I find that if I can control my breathing that I’m much more at peace and that my blood pressure it much better.
Oh Sandy that is unusual and what an inventive way to help you breathe correctly. I don’t always remember to breathe when I’m stressed but my three year old grandson said to me the other day ‘Calm down Nan, breathe in, breathe out’ it was a classic!