Deep Breathing and the Stress in Your Life
Thursday, April 8th, 2010
The technique to deep breathing is simple. Make sure you are sitting up straight. This will expand all of your inner organs, including your lungs. This is an important step for the deep breathing, because you can’t get a full lung of air if it is squished inside of your ribcage. And, with deep breathing, it is essential to grant your lungs a full, expansive breath of air.
Once you are sitting up straight (whether you are at work at your desk, in the drivers seat of the car, or just sitting on the couch), breathe in slowly through your nose. Feel your lungs fill up completely with air. Now hold it in…hold, hold, hold. Try to count to five or ten. Now, when you exhale, let the air out very slowly. The exhale should last longer than the inhale. Now, try it.
Didn’t that feel good? You can also practice deep breathing while lying down if it is possible to do so. Or, as you lay down for the evening, apply your technique to your bedtime routine to eliminate the stresses of the day. Now, you can attempt to grab a restful night of sleep.
Regardless of whether it’s your job, your children, or the traffic pile up that you sat in for four hours today, you can calm the stress levels in your body. Before you have your next melt-down moment, and the whole world falls apart, practice your deep breathing technique, and exhale the stresses of your world.