Breathing to Fight Stress in the Moment

Life often puts us in a position where we feel over-worked, under nourished and, consequently, stressed out. 

A powerful way to fight stress is by carving out a few minutes from the daily routine to practice controlled breathing. Today I want to highlight a technique known a breathing technique which can be done from anywhere and at any time. As I wrote about in my blog here, oxygen is nourishment for cells throughout the brain and body,  As such, in a moment where you feel overwhelmed, controlled breathing will help influence the feeling of relaxation and lower blood pressure which both help you to de-stress.

Use this breathing technique to slow down the moment and alleviate tension throughout the body.

Here’s the how-to: 

• Start a cycle of deep breathing- in through the nose, hold for a count of five and release (avoid making yourself dizzy). This allows the oxygen to fully saturate your cells.
• Tense and then relax muscle groups, one by one. Start with the shoulders and work your way down to the toes. 
• Breathe in during contraction and out during release.

For increased relaxation, you can close your eyes to block out any extra-sensory stimuli.

Staying ahead of anxiety will always be a work in progress. 

Breathing is a simple example of how you can take advantage of the tools at your disposal- your lungs- to achieve powerful changes in stress levels. Chiropractic is a modality that focuses on your well-being and seeks to relax body and mind by correcting spinal misalignment that contributes to dysfunction in the nervous system. For help on fighting back against the stress of daily life, give our office in Houston a call to schedule an appointment today. 

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C.