Your Breathing Will Determine Whether You Are Relaxed or Anxious – It’s All Under Your Control!!

Diaphragmatic Breathing Helps You to Regulate Your Nervous System

Functional (or optimal) breathing using the nose and diaphragm plays a very major role in regulating the two aspects of the autonomic nervous system – the sympathetic and parasympathetic aspects. It serves to balance them. Something which, as observed from previous discussion, is not achieved by mouth or over-breathing which serves to maintain us in sympathetic nervous system dominance (or ‘fight or flight’ responsiveness) for most of our lives. As most of us have developed into over-breathers over our lives, this pertains to us all.

The diaphragm in particular, plays a major role in sympathetic/parasympathetic nervous system balance in two ways:

1. Balance between the contraction and subsequent recoil of the diaphragm helps balance SNS & PSNS activity.
2. The predominance or abundance of SNS and PSNS in different parts of the lung. 

Firstly, the contraction of the diaphragm on inhalation requires sympathetic nervous system input to fire the contraction and resultant flattening of the diaphragm which draws the lungs down and allows air to fill the lungs – particularly the lower lobes. The exhalation however involves switching off the SNS driven contraction of the diaphragm allowing it to return or recoil back to its original position. This is driven by PSNS activation which acts as a complementary opposition (in this case) to the SNS. As stated, it relaxes the diaphragm or switches off the contraction leading to the recoil or return of the diaphragm to its resting state.

Most over breathers use the accessory muscles of breathing as the dominant muscles of respiration, to the detriment of optimal diaphragmatic breathing. As such the diaphragm becomes weak or atonic and loses its flexibility. We have found via CapnoTrainerTM biofeedback equipment and general clinical observation that, over-breathers have most difficulty controlling their exhalation. It ends up being shorter in duration than the inhalation. Diagnostic norms suggest, however, that the inhalation:exhalation ratio is ideally 2:3, and therefore the exhalation is ideally 50% longer than inhalation.

As a result of this imbalance in the inhalation:exhalation ratio, the ANS becomes SNS dominant.

At Breathing Dynamics we focus on creating a balance between inhalation and exhalation, and therefore balance in the autonomic nervous system. The result of this nervous system balance can positively affect many other functions of the body that are under the influence of, or are regulated by, the ANS. For example, we regularly see positive effects from diaphragmatic breathing on:

• The brain and neurotransmitter levels – Increased PSNS enervation naturally elevates serotonin and melatonin and, as such, we regularly see great results with anxiety & depression and sleep quality via diaphragmatic breathing retraining.
• The digestive system – diaphragmatic breathing often yields great results with digestive complaints such as IBS, constipation and reflux. After all, a system that is sympathetic dominant will inhibit the digestive system, whereas, one that is parasympathetic dominant (via diaphragm breathing) will encourage it.
• The circulatory system – allowing greater blood flow to the brain and peripheral areas, resulting in great benefits for headaches and migraines, cold extremities, skin quality etc.
• The lymphatic system – as the diaphragm helps to act as a constant pump for lymphatic system – which is reliant on muscular contraction for flow.
• The urinary system.
• And more.

Secondly, as previously stated, mouth breathing originally (or from an evolutionary perspective) served as an emergency function in response to an acute stressor. Generally, the chest muscles are mostly used when mouth breathing (instead of the diaphragm – unless you have received previous training) which predominantly fills the upper and middle lobes of the lungs, and less so the lower lobes. The upper lobes of the lungs are rich in SNS receptors which, when activated, serve to accentuate the requirement of the body to respond in emergency fashion – or via a ‘fight or flight’ mechanism. This serves a specific function. An example of this would be when we gasp in response to being frightened or surprised.

But it was not designed to be our predominant mode of functioning.

On the other hand, when breathing uses predominantly the diaphragm (as in optimal breathing), the larger, lower lobes of the lungs are comfortably filled allowing for more gas exchange. And respiration is far more efficient. In addition, the lower lobes are rich in PSNS receptors which allows for a balance between the PSNS and SNS and a correction of our predominant ‘fight or flight’ functioning.

When breathing ‘diaphragmatically’ and through the nose it is common to experience relaxation and a calming of the mind. It also gives athletes greater access to ‘zone like’ or ‘alpha’ states during exercise or competition, which generally involve higher levels of PSNS activation than in normal waking states.

The table below shows a comparison in terms of effects between breathing with the diaphragm as the driver of respiration as opposed to predominantly using the chest muscles or other accessory breathing muscles. Whilst, not all of the points listed in the table are covered in the general information, they are covered when we introduce the ‘Breathing Dynamics’ optimal breathing rhythm in courses or via online training modules.