Take A Breath
April 26, 2020
Laura Lee

This is a very stressful time for everyone. The coronavirus pandemic is affecting various aspects of people’s lives all over the world. I’ve been dealing with stress issues for a long time now, and there is one thing I found to be very helpful – breathing. What probably sounds like the most trivial and minor thing you can do is hugely beneficial. Your breath is a powerful tool to ease stress and make you feel less anxious. Simple breathing exercises can make a huge difference in your life if you make them a part of your routine.

Before we dive into the different exercises, here are a few important tips to remember. First, and maybe most importantly, don’t force it. By forcing yourself to do them, you may even feel more stressed than before. Second, try to set a permanent place and time to do it. It could be once or twice a day in your bed, on your sofa, or wherever you see fit. Breathing exercises usually don’t take longer than a few minutes, but if you have more time at your hand, it can only be beneficial.

The first breathing exercise we’ll visit is deep breathing. Often, people take short and shallow breaths, which can make you feel anxious and waste your energy. With this technique, you’ll be able to take bigger, deeper breaths. Here is how you do it:

  1. Get comfortable. Place your head and knees underneath a mattress or a pillow.
  2. Place one hand on your upper chest and the other just beneath your rib cage, allowing you to feel the movement of your belly.
  3. Slowly inhale through your nose, feeling your belly rise. As you breathe out, again through the nose, feel your belly lower. The hand on your belly should move more than the one that’s on your chest.
  4. Repeat a few times.

Getty Images/ Westend61

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