By Bertil Hjert
Breathing is an important part of coping with and relieving anxiousness and stress. When you are anxious, you tend to breathe from your chest, a method called thoracic breathing.
The rapid, shallow breaths tend to create a sensation of hyperventilating and tightening of the chest which in turn tends to cause anxiety and panic. Most people that are anxious are unaware they are breathing so shallowly. Sometimes, simply focusing on the breath and engaging in abdominal or belly breathing can restore a feeling of calm and reduce your anxiousness.
Breathing is very important to both the psychological and physical comfort of our bodies. Yoga and meditation practitioners will be familiar with the importance of the breath and spend a great deal of time focusing on breathing in their practice. In fact if you are an anxiety sufferer of any kind, participating in yoga or meditation classes or programs can be a real assistance in coping.
By learning and practicing relaxation techniques, you will be able to reduce the level of your anxiety and panic attacks. You may even be able to defuse an attack in the making.
Our bodies automatically respond to the stress that we encounter throughout the day. In some cases the body prepares to run, in other cases it prepares to fight. When you are in extreme danger, this automatic reaction is helpful. However, if you are simply engaged in your normal daily activities and the fight or flight response is constantly being engaged, it can exact a heavy toll on your body.
Meditation is a good way to exert the opposite effect on your body. Meditating restores the body to a clam state, helps the body repairs itself and prevents new physical and emotional damage due to the effects of stress.
There are numerous benefits to meditation. As you meditate, both your heart rate and your breathing slow down, you blood pressure normalizes, oxygen is used more efficiently and you sweat less.
1. Meditating also causes your glands to produce less cortisol, your immune system will improve and you will have a greater sense of physical and emotional calm and well being. This feeling helps to combat the anxiousness, stress and worry that can invade your daily life.
2. Meditating is easier than you think but it does take practice and dedication. It begins with sitting in a relaxed position and clearing your mind of all thoughts. Silence and privacy are helpful at first but as you become experienced you will find yourself able to take a few minutes out anywhere, at your desk, in the theater, or on the ride home, to meditate.
3. Meditation is a great tool in your fight against anxiety because it is free, always available and very effective in short-term stress reduction and long-term health. You will be able to feel the benefits after just one session and the effects will compound as you continue to practice.
However, to be successful at meditation you will need to practice. Don’t get distressed if you don’t get it right away, you don
