The Benefits of Focused Breathing

Photo by Elijah Hiett on Unsplash

“Breath is the finest gift of nature.”
~ Amit Ray

One of the things I’ve found to be most helpful during the pandemic has been short text conversations with girlfriends. These quick check-ins that conclude with heart emojis warm my heart and remind me that I am not alone.

A book club friend often includes a reminder to “breathe” in her texts, especially if she senses that I’m stressed or struggling. I guess it’s starting to sink in, because I’m finding myself taking more frequent breaks to focus on inhaling and exhaling. 

Even on Zoom, we open each book club session with a meditation that includes deep breathing and relaxation exercises. For some reason, I tend not to meditate on my own, despite knowing the benefits, so I appreciate the encouragement of the members. Something to add to my New Year’s resolutions, perhaps.

When I was contemplating writing this post, as if on cue, this song “Breathe!” came across my news feed. It was created to raise awareness about mental health issues. I love how upbeat and hopeful it is, and how timely, given the estimates about the number of people experiencing anxiety across the globe right now.

Years ago when I was going through my divorce and my anxiety was sky high, I began to have “spells.” As my chest tightened, I was overcome with an out-of-control feeling that was hard to explain. I had no idea what was going on, but fortunately I was in therapy at the time. When I described my symptoms to my therapist, he suggested that I was likely suffering from panic attacks due to the stress I was under.

As I learned, when we get anxious, we tense up, and our breathing becomes much more shallow.

Breathing only from the very top of our lungs, we don’t take in enough air. Our bodies respond with symptoms such as a pounding heart, sweating, trembling, dizziness, and other uncomfortable sensations. This sets our mind to racing as our oxygen-deprived brains try to understand what’s happening to us. Many people experiencing these spells believe they’re going to die, and rush to the emergency room, only to be diagnosed with panic attacks.

Therapy taught me how important it is to pay attention to the warnings my body sends me when I’m nearing the point of emotional overload. As is typical for me, I did some research to educate myself further about anxiety, and I’ve rarely had panic attacks since.

This Harvard Health Publishing site explains the mechanics of panic attacks, which largely has to do with autonomic (involuntary) changes in our breathing due to stress.

Focused breathing can quickly interrupt the cycle of panic and restore calm.

If you’ve done any yoga, you’ve had experience with deep breathing, but you may still need reminders, as I do, to actually stop and do it. Here are some additional resources that make the case for focused breathing and explain how to do it:

Healthline: 10 Breathing Techniques (breathing exercises along with a 15-minute yoga video for anxiety)

University of Michigan: Stress Management (breathing exercises for stress management)

Collectively, if ever there were a year that required us all to inhale deeply, it was 2020.

In our family, having lost three aunts and a cousin in the last 13 months, we are acutely aware of the significance of breathing in the natural cycle of life. At the same time as we mourn those who have taken their last breaths, we look forward to the day our new little granddaughter draws her first sweet baby breaths.

As incongruent as those events seem, Pema Chodron suggests in her book Living Beautifully that “we can hold pain in our hearts and simultaneously be deeply touched by the power and magic of the world.” She adds, “We can live beautifully with whatever comes—heartache and joy, success and failure, instability and change.” 2020 has certainly borne this out.

Heading into 2021, based on the projections of health care professionals, we will need to continue breathing deeply for a little while longer. The pandemic, political instability, and economic downturn can feel overwhelming at times, but we will get through it.

One way is to turn our attention to the earth’s cycle of life. As unsettling and uncertain as these times are, embracing the seasons as they come and go with unfailing regularity can calm us.

For now, we can focus on inhaling the aromas of winter: the crisp cold air, the flaming logs of a firepit, mulled wine, hot chocolate, and apple cider.

Soon enough we’ll be taking in the early spring bouquet of flowering dogwoods and crape myrtle trees, quickly followed by the fragrance of lilacs, daffodils, and hyacinths.

As spring gives way to summer, the fresh scent of newly cut grass, sizzling barbeques, and salty ocean air will be upon us.

With luck, by then the pandemic will be subsiding, and we will begin to breathe a sigh of relief, excited to resume our normal lives.

Until then, hang in there, and keep checking on your friends.

Best wishes for a peaceful, happy, and healthy 2021.

❤️

Affectionately,

Elaine