I think Michelle Branch said it best in her 2003 hit song when she said “If I just breathe, let it fill the space between…everything is alright, if I just breathe.”
We hear it all the time when we’re stressed out and panicking because we waited to the last possible minute to finish that semester-long project or when we put off studying for that midterm until the night before. Just breathe. Stay calm, breathe and woo-sahhhh.
While it may not sound like the most helpful remedy for stress, it’s actually medically proven to help alleviate anxiety and stress. According to Mladen Golubic, a physician in the Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Integrative Medicine, in this NPR article, deep breathing affects not only your anxiety levels but also your heart, brain, digestion and immune system.
Here are four breathing exercises you can do to help alleviate stress:
-
How to belly breathe:
Difficulty level: Low
Step 1: Position yourself comfortably, preferably sitting.
Step 2: Place one hand on your abdomen, just below your ribs and the other on your chest.
Step 3: Inhale, taking a deep breath in through your nose and let your belly push your hand out (chest should not move).
Step 4: Exhale through pursed lips, like you were whistling.
Step 5: Repeat this 3 to 10 times, taking your time with each breath.
-
How to morning breathe:
Difficulty level: Low
Step 1: Begin standing straight up then slowly bend forward from the waist with your knees slightly bent. Let your arms hang to the floor.
Step 2: Inhale slowly and deeply then roll up through your spine, letting your head up last.
Step 3: Hold your breath for a few seconds once you are standing.
Step 4: Exhale slowly as you bend forward from the waist once again.
Step 5: Repeat a few more times until you are feeling relaxed and all muscle stiffness is gone.
-
How to 4-7-8 breathe:
Difficulty level: Medium
Step 1: Begin either sitting or lying down.
Step 2: Inhale slowly from your belly and silently count to 4.
Step 3: Hold that breath and silently count from to 7.
Step 4: Exhale, letting that breath out as you count silently to 8.
Step 5: Repeat 3 to 7 times.
-
How to roll breathe:
Difficulty level: High
Step 1: Begin lying on your back with your knees bent in.
Step 2: Place your left hand on your abdomen and your right on your chest.
Step 3: Watch your hands as you breathe and try to fill your lower lungs by breathing so that your belly goes up when you inhale and your chest stays still (make sure you are breathing in through your nose and breathing out through your mouth). Try this 8 to 10 times.
Step 4: Continue that breathing technique but now continue inhaling into your upper chest, which will cause your belly to fall a little and your chest to rise.
Step 5: Exhale slowly through your mouth, letting your belly fall first then your chest.
Step 6: Try breathing this way for 3 to 5 minutes. The goal is to have your belly and chest roll like the waves of an ocean.
Source:
webmd.com