Diaphragmatic breathing is also known as belly breathing. It is a great way to refocus and calm the body.  It’s also a great habit to create to build resilience. When you make a daily habit of breathing exercises, whatever kind you choose, it becomes a way to refocus when overwhelmed; calm yourself in chaos or take a mindfulness break to get through a day. 

Belly breathing can also be helpful to focus on breathing when you are in pain, or to help treat chronic pain. When you find the pain taking your attention, try to refocus. 

Find a comfortable spot, this is preferably done lying down, but can be done in sitting with your feet flat on the floor.  Rest your hands on your thighs and sit back in the chair for full support of your body.

If you are lying down (this helps you focus on breathing and not on balance) you may want to have a bolster or roll under the legs.  If you have a physioball this is even better to prop your legs up on.  When your knees are bent, it helps reduce and discomfort in the back if lying flat is painful. 

Once in a comfortable position, think about changing a shallow breath to deep diaphragmatic or belly breath.  Breath out all the chaos, anxiety, or pain through your mouth or nose as you shut your eyes. Inhaling as deeply as you can through your mouth and then relaxing your shoulders (which can become tense with pain or anxiety) and exhale with noise through your mouth.  On the next breath, place one hand on your sternum (breastbone) and the other on abdomen.  

This tactile cue (hands on the body) helps you feel the air lift the sternum and chest and also feel the abdomen filling on inhalation and fall as you exhale.  It’s important not to change the speed of your breath, but be mindful of where the breath is moving in your body.  If you aren’t feeling your hands move, you might want to inhale and exhale a bit deeper to fully inflate your lungs. If your mind wanders, come back to how breathing deeply feels in your body, sending that thought away for later. Refocus on the breath, relax the shoulders letting them drop with an exhale, and focus on the breath and how your body is responding to the in and out, breaths.  Each breath, inhaling as deep as you can, so you feel the ribcage expand circumferentially or like a barrel is round, and then fully exhaling through the mouth and feeling the shoulders drop, the sternum sink back and the abdomen shrink in. 

Breath focus will get you in touch with your body and take focus from the chaos, feelings of being overwhelmed or any pain.  Try and add it in as a daily daily practice, it can help you start your day off in a calmer state and is actually a resilience building tool that you can use anytime you feel your breath getting shallow, anxiety or pain creeping in or you want to achieve a calmer and more focused state of being. Mindful breath work helps us learn how to elicit the relaxation response at anytime. So, when a moment of fight or flight comes, AKA the poop hits the fan, you have an automatic go-to for calming.   

Once you master diaphragmatic or belly breathing, you can add an affirmation in to further enrich the breathing experience.  Perhaps you recite your favorite Bible verse or you think of inhaling all God’s promises for your life, and breath out all the negativity that can enter during a day on earth,  It can even be a time of gratitude, where you are thankful for everything from your breath to each blessing you can think of. 

Here’s a quick recap of the steps for diaphragmatic breathing:

1.      Sit quietly with feet flat, arms resting on the thighs, supported by the chair or lay down comfortably

2.      Close your eyes and relax any tense muscles, making sure to relax your shoulders, letting them drop with each exhale

3.      Place one hand on the sternum/breastbone and the other on the abdomen to feel the rise and fall of the breath

4.      Breath in through the nose or mouth and feel the sternum rise and the abdomen expand, as your shoulders remain relaxed and lowered.

5.      Exhale or breath out through your mouth as you feel your abdomen cave in and sternum lower.

6.      Repeat this process for 4-5 breaths, as thoughts enter your mind acknowledge them and send them away like putting them on a cloud and letting them float away.  Repeat the breathing process for several minutes to feel a sense of calm. (start with 3-5 minutes to start)

7.      Layer the breath with an affirmation, Bible verse or gratitude practice to add to the experience.

Once you have mastered the breathing, you can also use a visualization to elicit more calm. Think of a happy place, a shady spot under a tree, a meadow, a beach vacation, or a cozy spot by a fire or under a blanket.

Diaphragmatic or belly breathing is not only a great way to refocus the mind, but if done as a daily practice it helps build resilience for the days when life happens!