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Using Breath to Manage Stress and Anxiety

When the mind is agitated, change the pattern of the breath. 

Patanjali, Yoga Sutras

So why is breath important ?

Well, we can live 3 weeks without food, 3 days without water and 3 minutes without air.  Lack of oxygen affects our brain’s ability to function. So having an appropriate level of oxygen in take is imperative for survival.

Very simply, there are two way of breathing.

• The limbic /sympathetic nervous system – this breathing is activated when we are stressed and anxious and are in some sort of fear response.
• The parasympathetic system – this breathing is activated when we are relaxed and are calm.

Sympathetic nervous system Breath (Stress and Anxiety)

Stress and anxiety affects our breathing patterns. When stressed we move from relaxed breathing (through the nose and into our lower lung) to a more shallower rapid breathing.

Shallower and rapid breathing help us in moments of stress to fend off danger, by increasing the level of oxygen in our system. It comes from the limbic system (the sympathetic nervous system) and supports our fight / flight responses to danger. It is part of our evolutionary biology from when we were cave people.  The response is appropriate for those times when we needed energy to fight off wild animals and wild tribes. It can be helpful in emergency situations. However if the sympathetic breathing pattern is too frequent or for prolonged periods of time, it can have negative effects on our health and well-being.

Parasympathetic nervous system Breath (Relaxed and Calm)

When the moment of danger is pasts we return to our parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for keeping us relaxed and in a normal state. In that normal state we are more rational and make choices and decisions based on proper assessment of the situation. Simply put we can think clearly. Unless there is an emergency (e.g. avoiding a car accident) in modern times, a relaxed mindset can be more appropriate. When rational we can think our way to a satisfactory solution rather than be lost in an emotional reaction. Imagine that!

Taking Back Control

From a hypnotherapy perspective both forms of breathing have their place and value. After all when we are in physical danger then the sympathetic breathing pattern is entirely appropriate to get us to a point of safety. Also when we need to think clearly and use our “know how” then the parasympathetic breathing system is more appropriate. The appropriate balanced use of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems results in a motivated and resourceful mindset. On the other hand their in-balance can lead to stress and anxiety or depression / procrastination / lethargy etc.

The GOOD NEWS is that once we understand the above principles we can consciously restore ourselves to appropriate balance. The conscious action we can take is to change our breathing patterns. By consciously changing our breathing patterns we puts ourselves back in control. Being in control alleviates our stress and anxiety and raises our motivation.

A great example of appropriate use of both nervous systems is that of an army “bomb disposal officer”. Imagine if the “bomb disposal officer” was operating too much from their fight / flight mindset and was operating from fear and negative expectation of their bomb disposal endeavours. Would that be useful? What if they were operating from their parasympathetic system, being too relaxed and not worrying about the consequences of their actions. Would that be useful?

Now imagine if the bomb disposal officer was using both nervous systems in an appropriately balanced way. Imagine that they were alert to the danger (sympathetic nervous system) as well as relaxed enough to be able to remember the bomb wiring diagrams (parasympathetic nervous system).

Which of those approaches would you choose? And which pattern are you currently using in your life ?

Two useful breathing patterns

So here are two breathing patterns that can help you get back into control!!

7 / 11 Breathing

This breathing pattern is also known as the “Sigh response”. The sigh response is what happens when a moment of danger has passed and we relax and return to our normal state, e.g. after giving an important presentation. You know that feeling when there is relief and you let out a sigh, relaxing your shoulders.

The sigh response is typified by the outward breath being longer than the inward breath, i.e. the 7 / 11 breath pattern. The 7/11 breathing pattern is when you breath in for a count of 7 and out for a count of 11. When we consciously do the 7/11 breathing pattern we are telling our nervous system that the danger has passed and that it can relax. We are taking back control of our reaction to a particular situation.

Note: It doesn’t have to be a 7/11 ratio it can be 3/5 or any other combination where the outward breath is longer than the inward breath.

Also to help slow down the outward breath, it is useful to imagine that you are breathing out through a straw.

In the “Bomb disposal officer” example above, when the officer felt that they were loosing control (i.e. getting anxious, fearful) they would do the 7/11 breathing to get back in control. So the 7/11 breathing pattern can be used to recover our state to a more rational and resilient perspective.

Try it for yourself:

• Imagine as situation in your life where you feel stressed or anxious. Choose a situation where you want to be more in control. For the purpose of this exercise choose a situation that is not too charged. Sometimes its worth starting small and then building up.
• Imagine that that situation is happening here and now.
• As you experience the situation do the 7/11 breathing (or any other ratio that you feel comfortable doing) and notice how it changes your reaction to the situation.

Congratulation you’ve taken back control (even if it is just a little 😊). How does it feel?

Of course it does take practice to manage your responses in this way, however the results are definitely worth it!

Balanced Breathing

This breathing pattern is designed to balance the sympathetic and parasympathetic system. Balanced breathing creates an alert calm state.

Maybe this is the ideal breathing pattern for the “Bomb disposal” scenario.

In this breathing pattern the duration of the inward breath is the same as the outward breath. For example, breath in for a count of 5 and out for a count of 5. Of course it can be a 4:4 or 3:3 ratio, provided the inward breath is the same as the outward breath.

Try it for yourself:

• Think of a situation that it would be useful to be alert as well as calm in.
• As you think about that situation do the balanced breathing.
• Notice how it changes your reaction to the situation. Notice any increase in your level of control and motivation in that situation.

The breathing pattern in the picture below can help with doing balanced breathing.

Conclusion

As Patanjali said in the above quote, when you feel anxious, stressed or demotivated change you breathing pattern and so change your state. Try it, you’ll like it!

Taking control of your breath patterns falls into the 3P strategy of Solution Focused Hypnotherapy, i.e. positive action, positive interaction and positive thinking. When we take positive action and change our breathing pattern we generate the wellbeing neurotransmitter serotonin, this helps us relax, be more motivated and helps us make better decisions.

Accreditation: National Council of Hypnotherapy (NCH), Association of Solution Focused Hypnotherapy (AfSFH),Association of Neuro-linguistic Programmers (ANLP)