Belly breathing, also called abdominal breathing or diaphragmatic breathing, is a technique to help you reduce your feelings of shortness of breath. Your abdomen should rise when you breathe in and lower as you breathe out.
Your diaphragm is the muscle that separates the chest cavity from the stomach. When the diaphragm tightens, the lungs expand. It’s designed to do most of the work involved in breathing. When you have COPD, the diaphragm doesn’t work as well, and you tend to use muscles in the neck, shoulders and back instead. However, these muscles aren’t very helpful for moving air in and out of your body. Instead, training your diaphragm to take over more of the “work of breathing” will be much more helpful.
Belly breathing isn’t as easy to do as pursed-lips breathing. It’s recommended that you get instruction from your health coach or someone from your care team with requisite experience in teaching it.
It’s best to try this technique for the first time when you’re feeling rested and relaxed and while sitting back or lying down. (See this video for reference.)
Place one hand on your abdomen. Place one hand on your upper chest.
Focus your breathing on your abdomen.
As you breathe in, the hand on your abdomen should rise.
As you breathe out, the hand on your abdomen should lower.
Breathe in through the nose. Breathe out slowly through pursed lips.
Practice this 2 to 3 times a day for 5 to 10 minutes. Start by doing it while lying on your back. Then try it while sitting. Then try it while standing. Finally, try it while doing an activity.
As you become more comfortable with this type of breathing, you can use it to reduce your feelings of shortness of breath. You can use belly breathing for any kind of daily activity, such as:
Climbing stairs
Going on long walks
Carrying or lifting things
Showering
Exercising
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