Are you feeling out of breath? Running around all week? Overwhelmed by a daily routine that causes you a lot of stress? Well, believe it or not, the way you breathe can be the key to controlling your stress and anxiety. As US author Beth MacEoin indicates in her book The Total De-Stress Plan, unfortunately for many of us stress is here to stay, so it makes good sense to explore practical ways to tame it and to turn it to our advantage. By identifying and using practical tools for stress management and relaxation, we can also make sure that we fully unwind. Stress can be reduced by various practices and techniques, one of the most efficient being breathing techniques. Research indicates that if you want to tame feelings of panic and anxiety, one of the most important things you can do is to learn how to regulate your breathing. The tendency when we are under stress and pressure is to breath rapidly and shallowly from the upper chest, and this can make the situation worse as this pattern of breathing triggers an imbalance in the body that makes us feel more anxious and tensed. If we understand how to use our breathing pattern to induce a relaxed and clear-headed state, we will never again experience feelings of being out of control. Hanan Al-Bahei, a breathing and stress-management healer and author, said that in a busy city like Cairo the right breathing techniques must be part of our daily routine. We should learn to apply them anywhere, and not necessarily only when we are meditating or practicing yoga. “There are four main techniques that I practise with my clients, and these can be done up to 10 times a day,” Al-Bahei said. Proper breathing techniques have a lot of benefits, including helping to control mood, anxiety and insomnia. They can also assist in controlling any negative thoughts we may experience within ourselves. Proper breathing techniques can also better concentration and regulate the metabolism of the body, allowing us to lose weight. They can assist in eliminating constipation, and they can alleviate pain like muscle pain and stomach pain, Al-Bahei explained. “A client can learn the four techniques in 90 minutes. Then he or she can pick the technique that is most convenient to practise,” she said. The idea is not about deep inhalation, as some people might think. In fact, the key is in the exhalation process. “As long as we are exhaling well, we are on the right track. When we exhale properly, we let the carbon dioxide out as well as the pressure we feel inside. The ideal is to exhale from the mouth and be able to hear the sound of the exhalation,” she added. The first technique involves breathing in four times and breathing out eight times, with the next three varying these numbers. The fourth technique starts with exhaling and inhaling in the regular way for up to three minutes when lying down. For people who have sleep disturbances, the technique is to lie down with the knees bent and to inhale and exhale regularly for up to two minutes. “Relief is a great feeling that we must learn to enjoy. When we feel relieved, we can work well, have better concentration, manage our relationships with others, and manage our lives in a more efficient way. These techniques can be practised all day, while working, driving or doing other tasks, and they all allow us to feel this necessary relief,” Al-Bahei said. She said that her clients were mainly women, “as women are more prone to experience stress than men.” She also hopes to teach her techniques to school children from the age of 12 and above. “Breathing techniques are very useful for school children as they allow them to control their moods. There is a marked reduction in bullying or violence among children who practise proper breathing techniques, as breathing properly teaches them to think before acting. It makes them better able to practise self-control,” she noted. Al-Bahei has also used her techniques with cancer patients, her goal being to help them to overcome the state of stress they may be experiencing. “It also helps them to overcome pain, as while doing the breathing techniques the mind gets distracted from the pain one feels, and the patient starts to concentrate on the sound of the regular breathing. This is a good chance to concentrate on something beneficial for the body,” she explained. “My advice to people who want to manage stress efficiently is to think before they act. Usually in a stressful situation a person tends to think and act in the wrong way, so in order to think in the right way he or she must first breathe in the right way. Breathing in the right way helps you to have a better quality of life. It empowers you to defeat insomnia, improve your metabolism, enjoy better digestion, and erase negative thoughts.” “So please do learn to pause and take a few deep breaths,” Al-Bahei concluded.
