Try These Breathing Exercises to Relieve Stress

There’s truly no shortage of contributing factors to what stresses us out in your daily 
lives, whether it’s from family, work, relationships, finance, or anything else.

It should come as no surprise to you that managing stress is important for maintaining 
your health in basically every aspect. There’s all sorts of ways to go about managing 
your stress such as exercising, mindfulness practices, and even breathing exercises.

This is probably not the first time you’ve heard about breathing exercises being effective 
for managing and coping with stress. And in this article you’re going to learn about 
different breathing exercises that can assist you greatly with relieving your stress.


Diaphragmatic Breathing

This first type of breathing exercise is also known as diaphragmatic breathing, where 
you are doing “belly breathing” With this excellent technique, you will be taking slow and 
deep breaths, which helps to activate the relaxation response in the body. Here’s 
exactly how you can do this:

*	Find yourself a comfortable and quiet place to lie down or just to sit.
*	Start with one hand on your belly, and one hand on your chest.
*	Inhale slowly and deeply through your nose, allowing your belly to expand.
*	Exhale slowly and fully through your mouth, feeling your belly deflate.
*	Repeat this for several minutes or until you feel your body and mind relaxed.

The benefits of diaphragmatic breathing include reducing anxiety, improving sleep 
quality, and lowering blood pressure.


Alternate Nostril Breathing

Alternate nostril breathing, which can formally be referred to by the name of Nadi 
Shodhana Pranayama, is a yoga breathing technique that helps to go about balancing 
the left and right hemispheres (sides) of your very own brain. It is definitely an 
impressive way for you to calm the mind and reduce your stress. Here’s how to practice 
this:

*	Find a comfortable position to sit in, preferably with your spine straight.
*	Close up one nostril by using your thumb, leaving the other side open.
*	Breathe in through the nostril that is open.
*	Now alternative them by breathing through the opposite nostril.
*	Continue breathing through the open nostril, while alternating closing the other 
one.

The benefits of alternate nostril breathing include reducing anxiety, improving 
concentration, and promoting overall well-being.


Box Breathing

Box breathing, also referred to as four-square breathing, is a technique that involves 
breathing in for a count to four, holding for another count to four, exhaling for another, 
you guessed it, four counts, and holding for yet a final count of four. It is a simple yet 
effective way to reduce stress and anxiety. Do this yourself with the following steps:

*	Sit down somewhere quiet and comfortable.
*	Breath in fully through the nose to a count of four.
*	Hold your breath for another four counts.
*	Breathe out fully through only your mouth for the next four counts.
*	Hold your breath for, you guessed it, a count of four.
*	Repeat this process for a couple minutes or until you feel relaxed.

The benefits of box breathing include reducing anxiety, improving focus, and increasing 
energy levels.


Breath Counting

Breath counting is a technique that involves counting your breaths. It is a simple and 
effective way to reduce stress and improve mindfulness. Follow the steps below to 
practice your breath counting on your own:

*	You can do this sitting or lying down, as long as you are comfortable.
*	Close your eyes and pay attention to your breathing.
*	Inhale slowly and deeply through your nose.
*	Exhale slowly and fully through your mouth.
*	Count each breath, starting from one.
*	When you find your mind wandering off on your, nudge your mind back to focus 
on your breathing and continue counting.
*	Repeat the above for several minutes or until you feel relaxed.

The benefits of breath counting include reducing stress, improving mindfulness, and 
promoting relaxation.


Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Progressive muscle relaxation is a technique that involves tensing and relaxing different 
muscle groups in the body. It is a truly excellent way to go about  reducing muscle 
tension and promoting more relaxation. Here’s what you need to do to try this method 
out:

*	Choose to sit or lie down for this exercise.
*	Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths.
*	Tense up the muscles within both of your feet and hold for another few seconds.
*	Release the tension and relax for several seconds.
*	Move up to your calves and repeat the tension and relaxation.
*	Continue tensing and relaxing each of your various muscle groups within your 
body, moving up to your thighs, your behind, the abdomen, chest, both arms, 
hands, neck, and ultimately ending on your face.
*	Repeat all of the above for a couple of minutes or until you feel yourself relaxed.

The benefits of progressive muscle relaxation include reducing muscle tension, 
improving sleep quality, and promoting relaxation.


Mindful Breathing

Mindful breathing is a technique that involves paying attention to your breath and being 
present in the moment. It’s truly an excellent method to reduce stress and improve 
mindfulness. Here’s how you can do this yourself:

*	Find a quiet place that you can comfortably seat yourself or even lay down.
*	With your eyes closed, take a few deep breaths.
*	Focus on your breath and observe each inhale and exhale.
*	Keep focusing on your breathing every time your mind wanders off.
*	Repeat the above tasks until you feel relaxed.

The benefits of mindful breathing include reducing stress, improving mindfulness, and 
promoting relaxation.


Summarizing Thoughts

By now, you should see that there are various breathing exercises that can help you to 
effectively relieve stress. 

You have a few methods that involve deep breaths, and some with short breaths, you 
have all kinds of tactics for focusing your mind and centering yourself. All of these 
techniques are effective and can be implemented into your life at any time and any 
place.

Incorporating these breathing exercises into your daily routine can without a doubt help 
you to better manage your stress and ultimately keep yourself focused and healthy.

Finally, always remember to find a quiet and comfortable place to practice, take just a 
few focused breaths, and pay special attention to the way in which you’re breathing. 
With consistent practice, you can learn to manage stress and improve your quality of life 
as a result.
