STRESS-BUSTING BREATH STEPS
Breathing to relax is as easy as 4-7-8
BY:MARY ELIZABETH TERZELLA
When your life gets frantic or you’re feeling frazzled, take a deep breath. The shallow gulps of air people tend to take when tense have been shown to increase heart rate, which exacerbates feelings of anxiety. That’s the last thing you need when you’re stressed out.
Luckily, all it takes to go from crazed to calm is to refocus your breathing. You can’t always will yourself to relax, but you can trick your body into feeling that way by breathing slowly and deeply. To harness your body’s natural ability to soothe itself, Andrew Weil, MD, founder and director of the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona, recommends on his website (DrWeil.com) this simple breathing technique, called the “4-7-8 Breath.”
If you find yourself at wit’s end, follow these steps:
Place (and keep) your tongue against the ridge of tissue
behind your upper front teeth.
Inhale quietly through your nose to a mental count of four.
Hold your breath for a count of seven, if you can.
Exhale through your mouth, making a whooshing sound, for
a count of eight. Try pursing your lips slightly if this seems
awkward with your tongue behind your teeth.
Repeat this cycle (one breath) three more times and bask
in the feeling of relaxation.
This simple stress fighter can be done anywhere, anytime—at your desk, in bed, while waiting in line.