Relaxation Hack

My Pilates instructor often tells our class that the key to Pilates movements is the breath.  While I’m still working on mastering that, as a psychologist I know that a key to achieving a more relaxed state, and even to managing a panic reaction, is deep breathing.  Let me explain why breathing is a powerful and critical tool for changing one’s psychological state, and then I’ll share how to do it right.
Deep breathing works to increase relaxation by introducing more oxygen into our body and decreasing carbon dioxide.  By controlling our breathing in this way our body automatically shifts from the sympathetic nervous system’s “flight, flee or freeze” response to the parasympathetic nervous system response, which redirects oxygenated blood from the muscles back to the brain, allowing us to better use our judgement and reasoning.  The vagus nerve is stimulated and in turn regulates physiological responses such as heart rate and blood pressure while releasing neurotransmitters that improve focus and concentration.  And all this just by breathing.

I participated in a meditation exercise once that involved instructions to breath in through one nostril and out through another.  Kudos to those of you who have that talent—I couldn’t quite master that task!  Luckily deep breathing is much easier and simpler, and can be done almost anywhere and anytime. ​

Place one hand on your abdomen and one hand on your chest.  Breathe in deeply from your diaphragm, which causes your abdomen to expand and your hand to rise along with it.  After a full breath, exhale completely, feeling your belly fall while the hand on your chest rises slightly.  ​
And that’s really all there is to it. If you like, you can count to three, or repeat a word or phrase with each inhalation and exhalation (like “in with the good” and “out with the bad”).  Three to five minutes of this controlled breathing is adequate to trigger the relaxation response, but I start to notice positive benefits with as few as five of these belly breaths. Just like with everything in life, practice is the key to successfully using our breathing to increase relaxation and inner calm.

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