When you struggle with anxiety, depression, or any other mental health disorder, others may motivate you to seek professional treatment. Traditional therapy seems to be the default answer for struggling people, although experiencing relief from sessions can take time.

One powerful aspect of holistic treatment emphasizes the valuable tools and resources available anywhere, anytime, to promote positive health outcomes. Especially when experiencing an anxiety or panic attack, wouldn’t it be nice to have a technique to help calm your body and mind quickly and effectively? Luckily there is, and it’s called breathwork.

You can experience the power of breathwork right now by taking one slow, deep breath. A cleansing breath is known to all, as it helps to reduce our automatic stress response and keeps us grounded in the present moment. Aside from that, breathwork offers a variety of benefits concerning the mind, body, and spirit. The most valuable thing about breathwork is that, like many mindfulness techniques, it can be used nearly everywhere or at any time needed.

What Is Breathwork?

Breathwork is an umbrella term for various techniques that foster intentional use of the breath. It is an all-natural method to enhance your well-being. The power of the breath has been researched in many cultures for years. The focal point of breathwork is learning how to regulate the flow of your breath to balance and connect your body and mind.

Breathwork is a form of active meditation that uses the natural breath as a tool for self-healing. As you breathe, you increase awareness of your thoughts, feelings, and experiences that distract you from self-love.

Breathwork offers a unique and readily available opportunity to release unwanted thoughts or energy that has been unhealthily in the body. When less negative or unwanted energy exists, there is more space for life to flow through and within you. It offers immediate, positive feedback when you feel overwhelmed or off-center.

Explaining the Relaxation Response

Breathing is an automatic process controlled through the brain’s respiratory center. The primary role of breathing is to increase oxygen intake and release carbon dioxide from the lungs. It represents “out with the old and in with the new.”

In high stress or anxiety moments, our breathing patterns change to mimic the fight-or-flight response. When anxious, people are more likely to experience small and shallow breaths. Too much shallow breathing, or hyperventilation, can cause severe and prolonged feelings of anxiety. When we focus on breathing consciously, the mind slows down and connects itself to the present moment.

Deliberate and controlled breathing can calm the nervous system, which keeps the body’s involuntary functions in homeostasis. The relaxation response can cause positive physiological changes such as:

• Increased physical energy
• Lowered blood pressure
• Lowered heart rate
• Reduced levels of stress hormones in the body
• Reduced build-up of lactic acid in muscle tissue
• Balanced levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide
• Increased feelings of well-being
• Improved immune system functioning

How Do I Start Breathwork?

If you decide that you’d like to try breathwork, look for different styles and techniques available to you to practice on your own. There are applications, books, and videos online to help you foster different breathwork practices. You do not necessarily need a professional to work with you on breathwork, although it may sometimes help.

When attempting to practice, experiment with different durations of how often you do it and how long you engage in a session. These questions depend on why you use breathwork, which can also be researched. You may come across one style that reduces immediate stress, while another is good for when you are trying to fall asleep.

Many breathwork enthusiasts recommend that you engage in daily breathwork practice to experience quicker or noticeable results. Here are two suggested forms of breathwork to try:

#1. For When You Are Feeling Overwhelmed or Anxious:

During times of stress or overwhelm, use the 4-7-8 breath. This means you breathe in through your nose for four seconds, hold your breath for seven seconds, and then exhale out of the mouth for eight seconds. Repeat this as many times as necessary. Remember to inhale nourishment and exhale all that no longer serves you.

#2. For When You Need Energy:

When you need energy, it may be helpful to use the 4-4-4 breath. This technique is also referred to as square breathing. Start by releasing all the air from your lungs and hold for four seconds. Breathe in through your nose for four seconds, hold your breath for another four seconds, and then release and exhale air from your nose for four seconds.

You may need to repeat this technique for a few minutes to experience results. Remember to breathe in positivity and goodness and release any unwanted energy on your inhales.

Breathwork is a holistic approach to enhancing well-being while reducing feelings of anxiety and stress. The breath’s power helps reduce our automatic stress response while keeping us engaged and grounded in the present moment. Breathwork is a valuable tool, offering an effective and efficient coping mechanism that is always readily available. Using the natural breath as a tool for self-healing helps release unwanted thoughts and energies from the body while replacing the lost space with nourishment and positivity. You can start to engage in breathwork by finding different techniques online and sticking to a breathwork routine to experience noticeable results. At Sabino Recovery, we believe in using holistic modalities to complement your treatment experience. We want you to know that mental health and addiction recovery is possible, and we will walk you through every step of the healing process. For more information, call Sabino Recovery today at (844) 227-7014.