Last changed 17 days ago.

Deep Breathing Works

Intro

Stressed, anxious, angry, negative, sad? Can't shut off your thoughts in the day or night? Science has proven that proper deep breathing exercises will shut off negative "world taught" thoughts. It lowers blood pressure, and help you to feel a whole lot better. You will feel happier and able to perform better during the day.

Deep breathing shuts off your mind created thoughts and brings you back to the present moment, to peace. If you practice it, you will feel it.

A conscious breath takes 5-10 seconds and it shuts down negative thought and brings you to presence. If you become aware when your stressed during the day and stop and take 2 to 3 conscious breaths when you notice stress, you can calm the mind and make an enormous difference in your daily life. This page will help you learn this simple method, and provide important tips to make the experience most effective. Effective Deep Breathing techniques are very simple. It is really "take a deep breath and hold it", but with just a few important actions to take while you deep breathe.

Effective deep breathing may be called "belly breathing", "abdomen breathing", or "diaphragmatic breathing".

For some examples, and the science behind it, see:
Deep Breathing and Relaxation (utoledo.edu/)
Proper Breathing Brings Better Health (scientificamerican.com)

The Basics

1) Learn and practice the important "diaphragmatic breathing" or "abdomen breathing".

• This video is used to help GI Patients in Digestive and Liver Health (uofmhealth.org) . Think about how you can apply this practice to many situations!
• When you take a deep breath fill the belly first. Let it expand first. Even initially, put your hand on your belly as you breathe in. Start by taking a deep breath. Taking a deep breath is also healthy for your body as it adds more oxygen, something that is needed for improved health.

• The ratio of breathing in to exhale is important. See video. Inhale for a count of 2, exhale for a count of 4-8.

One addition is that when your breath is gone you can also pause for a count of say 2 to 4. It may feel uncomfortable at first because you.re out of breath, but if you put that thought aside, I think you can feel a sense of peace and utter awareness of the present moment. I find it is a great addition to the deep breathing practice.

2) There are additional actions that you can add to greatly increase the effectiveness of your deep breathing practice.

*** Besides awareness of your deep breathing, ALSO consciously focus your mind on your breath while you deep breath.

When you are taking a deep breath, you can also be thinking about how the air feels going through your nose and follow it into your belly. You can think about your breath, going in and out of your belly, the air going through your nose, the belly expanding and contracting. Continue to focus you thoughts on the physical feelings as you breath. This shuts of negative thoughts including stress thoughts. This also shows that one can truly choose their thoughts.

Smile while you are doing it.

Note: If you mediate, (optional, but suggested), before you begin meditation it's important to first calm you mind through deep breathing.

I tested the power of conscious deep breathing on myself and proved it works. Throughout my entire life, I was terribly afraid of heights, obviously because of my thoughts. After practicing deep breathing, I went on top of a tall huge rock that was straight down at it the end of the rock. The rock is called table rock in New Hampshire and could stand there and sit there in peace. It was hard to believe but I did it, and I even wondered if I would have nightmares afterwards, but I didn.t. It worked because I continuously and consciously focused on conscious deep breathing which kept me in the present moment, and absent of fear.

Is there a next step (optional)?

When you can shut off the running negative "worldly" thoughts, you can become present or aware, and it is much easier to focus. All these can help one to be more compassionate, kind and loving to themselves and others.

You can feel a sense of peace and utter awareness when you are able to be in the present moment.

How do you keep that calm feeling?

Eckhart Tolle calls the present moment the NOW, and he does a great job of teaching you one way or "view" of how to live a life this way. It is very effective towards increasing happiness! He also suggests that if you start to think negative thoughts or stress during the day, take 2 to 3 conscious breaths many times a day, and that can make an enormous difference in your life.

See also:

YouTubes I.ve watched, some of these have much more than deep breathing in them. I like the additions, but everyone is different. 

Learn a One-Minute Meditation for Quieting Your Mind (lifespa.com)  -A different practice than many above.

See also, for more science behind it:

From fight or flight to rest and digest: How to reset your nervous system with breath (cbc.ca)
Breathing can affect the cleansing of the brain (sciencenorwa.no)
Cerebrospinal Fluid, Breathwork, and Brain Health (somabreath.com)
How to Detox Your Brain + Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) (lifespa.com)

What If the whole world knew
and practiced Deep Breathing?

Teach only Love, for that is what you are.

Thank YOU for reading this!

By David M