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56 m a s s a g e & b o d y wo r k m ay/ j u n e 2 0 2 2 BREATH AWARENESS It's clear our emotional and neurological states affect our breathing, and conversely, our breathing affects our emotional and neurological states. Our ability to relax is related to the parasympathetic part of the human nervous system, which works in conjunction with the vagus nerve—a long, sensitive cranial nerve that connects the brain, lungs, heart, and digestive tract. Breathing in healthy individuals is involuntary, and it happens naturally because of another important nerve, the phrenic nerve. This bilateral nerve starts in the neck and descends through the thorax until it reaches the diaphragm. When the body needs to breathe, the brain sends information along this nerve, telling the diaphragm to contract. Although the phrenic nerve controls both voluntary and involuntary breathing, humans get accustomed to the involuntary trigger to breathe, and as a result we don't maintain full awareness of our breathing patterns. The most important way to take care of our breath is to simply become more aware of it. When we take note of how we breathe, we can regulate and override irregularities, restrictions, and tension, and become healthier and less stressed. THE STAGES AND TYPES OF BREATHING It's important to understand and recognize each of the four stages of breathing: (1) inhalation, (2) inhalation plateau, (3) exhalation, and (4) exhalation plateau. The two plateaus are rests, or stages of inaction, and they're necessary parts of the breathing process. The inhalation plateau, when the diaphragm assumes a downward position, may last longer if you take a full deep breath, and shorter if you take a quick, shallow breath. The exhalation plateau is longer than the inhalation plateau, and awareness, we can work with our breath and the breath of others to make adjustments and modifications. Awareness of the stages and types of breath is an important element of some forms of meditation. Focusing on breath helps maintain a peaceful state of mind, and this is of great importance to those who work in the healing arts because it usually results in increased sensitivity. BREATH AWARENESS IN DAILY ACTIVITIES Before we begin to work with other people's breath, we need to raise awareness of how we breathe in situations involving body movement, weight displacement, stretching, lifting, and other daily activities. Take some time to examine your own breathing patterns and see how little or how much attention you pay to your breath. Think about the following daily activities. Are you aware of how you breathe when you do them? • Bend down and tie one shoe, then stand up again after you tie it. When you tie your shoes, do you always exhale as you bend down and inhale when you stand up again? Do you ever subconsciously hold your breath when you're doing the actual tying? Don't—just keep on breathing! • Lift a piece of heavy luggage and place it onto an airport conveyor belt about 10 feet away. Do you inhale when you're lifting, and exhale when you're putting it down? And do you continue to breathe in and out as you carry it and walk over to the conveyor belt? • After parking a car, open the door, swivel your body, put your feet on the ground, get out of the car, and come to a standing position. When you swivel your body, how are you breathing? When you come to a standing position, are you inhaling? The bilateral phrenic nerve, as indicated with arrows. Illustration adapted courtesy of brainstuff.org. the beginning of this stage can provide a wonderful sense of ease. But if we stay there too long, we feel tension and need to inhale again. When we stay aware of each of the four stages of breathing, we can begin to enjoy each stage individually and be aware of the alternating rest and tension that is part of the natural breathing process. There are three types of breathing: breathing with the stomach/abdomen, breathing with the chest or midsection, and breathing from the uppermost chest near the clavicle. Stomach breathing is the healthiest and most relaxed way to breathe; chest breathing is less complete and rejuvenating, but still a common form of breathing. Breathing into the upper chest is the least healthy form of breathing, and those who predominantly inhale into and exhale from this area have severely restricted breath, often resulting from physical or neurological impairments. It's important to recognize the predominant type of breathing in ourselves and in the people we work with. Once we have that