Relaxation Techniques - Deep Abdominal Breathing

Deep abdominal breathing is a basic method to reduce stress. When we are under stress, our breathing would be relatively shallow and rapid. The air will be inhaled into the upper part of the lungs. The muscles of the neck and shoulders will contract in order to help breathing and hence causing a tense feeling. If we persist shallow and rapid breathing for a long period of time, a slightly lack of oxygen will result. Hence we will feel tired. Deep breathing will teach us to breathe slowly and evenly, as well as to use our diaphragm to perform the whole breathing. As a result, the head and shoulders and eventually the whole body will be relaxed. The amount of oxygen exhaustion will be reduced. It is easy to learn deep breathing, the steps are the following:

1. Lie down or sit down on a comfortable place. Put our hands on our stomach.,
2. Imagine there is an empty bottle beneath our hands, then start breathing. Imagine the air is passing through our nose to the empty bottle slowly. After three to five minutes, the empty bottle will be filled with air and our hands will then be lifted up.
3. Hold our breath and let the air to stay in our bottle. Say to us repeatedly, 'My body is calm'.
4. Exhale the air from the bottle slowly. Say to us slowly, 'My body is quiet'.
5. Continuously repeat these steps for four to five times. When we are under stress, we can repeat it for four to five times a day.

Benefits of Deep Breathing

1. Physiological aspects: It can reduce migraine headache, backache, stomach, and insomnia. It returns the blood pressure to a normal level.
   
   
2. Psychological aspects: It can reduce stress and anxiety, and make us feel relaxed.

Important Notes:

1. Do not speed up or slow down our breath deliberately, breathe naturally.
2. Do not tight our stomach in order to reach the expected action.