WELLNESS ARTICLES
How Conscious Breathing Increases Your Energy Level
When you are feeling stressed, your body responds immediately by pumping out hormones –- adrenaline and noradrenaline –- that increase the heart rate, quicken breathing, raise blood pressure and tense muscles (for example, anger and fear always require your stomach muscles to tighten and contract).
Left unchecked, this chemical mix sets you up for an array of physical and emotional problems.
By keeping your breathing in a deep and relaxed manner, the same emotions are experienced very differently – they seem to have a lower intensity and pass quicker. As soon as you start to feel stress, deep breathing can increase your feeling of calm.
- Conscious, connected breathing is the easiest way to bring your focus to the present moment. This reduces your focus on stressful thoughts.
- Slower breathing physiologically quiets the chatter and racing thoughts that prevent us from mental clarity.
Deep breathing increases the amount of oxygen in the blood stream which increases your energy level. As our brain gets flooded with oxygen rich blood, serotonin and endorphins (chemicals in the brain responsible for positive moods) are released. We feel good, calm and relaxed. We get at least 70% of our energy from breathing. So many people are lacking energy because they are either shallow breathing or breath holding.
You can use this technique before every business meeting to quickly reduce/manage stress. It allows your voice to come from a deeper, more powerful place, and your body feels more energetically alive and grounded.
SIMPLE, DEEP BREATHING
- Take a deep breath in through your nose to a mental count of 4.
- Hold your breath for a count of 7.
- Exhale completely through your mouth to a count of 8.
- This is one breath. Now inhale again and repeat the cycle three more times for a total of four breaths.
Dr. Elaine Dembe
200 St. Clair Avenue West, Suite 308
Toronto, Ontario, M4V 1R1
Tel: 416-960-5353
Fax: 416-960-0193
www.elainedembe.com
dr.elainedembe@rogers.com