How To Relax Using Deep Breathing Techniques

Step 1: Make yourself comfortable

You can do this technique in any setting, but it is better when your mind is calm and your body is relaxed. Find a quiet place if possible. You can either be seated or lying down. Once in position take a few deep breaths.

Step 2: Focus your attention

Close your eyes and begin to empty your mind and clear away all thoughts. Pay particular attention to your body and your breathing.

Step 3: The inhale

Begin by placing your hands on your stomach. Slowly inhale through your nose, filling first the abdomen as you feel your hands rise while the air enters.

Continue filling the lower lungs, and finally the upper chest around the heart.

Step 4: The exhale

Now, slowly exhale the air out the mouth, going in reverse order, first emptying the chest then the lower lungs and finally the stomach, allowing the belly button to fall towards the spine.

Step 5: Silent moments

As you repeat these steps, you may start to notice a pause that begins to happen at the end of the inhale and the end of the exhale. It is during these moments that you can now enter a deep state of relaxation benefiting both body and mind.

Step 6: The rhythm

Now that we've practiced the form, it's time to set a tempo. Different patterns of breathing have varying effects on the systems of the body. For relaxation, we will attempt to slow the heart rate to calm the nervous system.

The key to achieving this is to make the exhale slightly longer than the inhale. This can be done by counting slowly to 5 on the inhale.1..2...3..4...5.

then count to 8 on the exhale. 1..2..3..4…5…6..7…8.

Step 7: Putting it all together

Now that we've got the style, it's just a matter of practice. It is good to start out with sessions of about 5 minutes each. This will be enough to slow the heartbeat, lower the blood pressure and improve the functioning of the all the body's systems.