A variety of scientifically backed breathing tools that have shown evidence to enhance one’s ability to learn, concentrate and focus by activating the sympathetic nervous system and reducing vagal activity. There are studies showing different breathing patterns affecting widespread areas of the brain, for instance - activating the insula and anterior cingulate cortex, a brain region involved in moment to moment awareness and therefore one’s ability to sustain attention.

The rhythm, rate and depth of your breath is always sending messages to the brain. The neural circuit in the brainstem is part of what's been called the brain’s “breathing pacemaker” because it can be adjusted by altering breathing rhythm (slow, controlled breathing decreases activity in the circuit; fast, erratic breathing increases activity), which in turn influences emotional states.

Our autonomic nervous system controls involuntary activities in the body like heart rate and digestion. The autonomic nervous system consists of two major divisions: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system controls and stimulates an activating ‘fight or flight’ response, preparing you for perceived danger or arousal. The other branch, the parasympathetic nervous system, controls and stimulates your ‘rest and relax’ response, guiding you into a calm state. Breathing is one exception to the autonomic systems in that it functions automatically and you can voluntarily control it. Under stress and anxiety, breathing exercises therefore have the ability to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system (rest & digest) and suppress the sympathetic nervous system (fight-flight), sending messages to and fro along the vagus nerve to direct ourselves into a relaxation response.

Studies have shown breath practices to reduce symptoms of stress, anxiety, insomnia, PTSD, obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention deficit disorder and schizophrenia. Breathing exercises have the ability to activate the vagus nerve, a winding cranial nerve that links the brain to organs: informing the heart, lungs and digestive when to beat, breathe, digest, etc. The vagus nerve not only carries messages from the brain but to the brain, connecting and communicating many seemingly disparate autonomic functions that influence stress response and emotion. As respiration is the only autonomic function we can control, breathing gives us the ability to influence the rate at which these impulses are transmitted, remaining calm yet alert. When we elongate the exhalation, in particular, we stimulate the vagus nerve and direct ourselves into a parasympathetic, relax and renew state. Another practice that has influence on anxiety and panic in particular is breathing less, practices that not only slow the breathing rate but actually decrease the amount of air we breathe. Breathing less has the ability to increase our tolerance to Carbon Dioxide which, much like breathing into a paper bag, can short circuit the experience of panic. Increased levels of CO2 can calm your amygdala and synchronize heartbeat and breathing rhythm. With regards to depression, there is often a build up of emotional stress in the body that the mind has to “depress”. Breathwork helps process emotional stress and relieve the body of built up energy.

In modern society, we have been disconnected from our emotions, learning to be afraid of them and suppress them. Breathwork is a quick and effective means of clearing out one’s mental and emotional systems. Using the mind to solve a mental or emotional issue can be a lengthy and often futile process. You can’t change or ‘defuse’ your past by re-thinking it. The more attention we give a particular event in our past the more meaningful it seems to be and the more ‘hold’ it has over us. Instead we need to go deeper and find the energy holding the issues in place. Emotions are energy and they are meant to be in motion, not stuck in our bodies. We need to create a shift whereby the energy can be processed & cleared. As clearing takes place, the mental, emotional and physical levels recalibrate accordingly, and we are left feeling dramatically lighter than before.

Activating certain parts of the brain which spark and enhance creative thinking.

Breathwork is very effective in helping us get to sleep. By down-regulating the nervous system through a variety of techniques our bodies can be put into the parasympathetic branch of our nervous system - ‘rest and digest’. By practicing daily each time we go to bed, we can build a habit sending signals to our bodies and mind letting them know it’s time to go to sleep.

Deeper breathing results in an increased blood flow in the digestive tract which encourages intestinal action and improves overall digestion, alleviating Irritable Bowel Syndrome and constipation. In addition, deeper breathing results in a calmer nervous system which in turn enhances optimum digestion.

Oxygen is the most essential natural resource required by our cells. We can go without food for up to 40 days and without water for three days yet we can die after just a few minutes of not breathing. From a purely physical point of view, breath equals life.

Around 70% of our toxins are released from our body through our breath, whilst deep diaphragmatic breathing facilitates movement of lymph through the bloodstream. If we’re not breathing correctly, our lymphatic fluids become stale and waste cannot be removed leading to high blood pressure, heart issues, weight gain and fatigue.

The lymphatic system depends on gravity, muscle movement and breathing to keep flowing so that the body can be cleansed. Deep breathing can play an important role in protecting the body from bacteria, viruses and other threats to our health. When we are stressed our immune system is weakened. It is the stress chemical cortisol that reduces the number of white blood cells in the blood consequently suppressing our immune system. Breathwork allows us to eliminate the effects of stress by lowering our cortisol and blood pressure, clearing our blocks from our respiratory tract, increasing blood flow to the arteries and improving our body’s autonomic response to stress.

Our lungs are naturally springy like balloons inflating and deflating. However, with respiratory conditions like asthma, their capacity to inflate is reduced and air gets trapped and tension builds. Over time this trapped, stale air builds up leaving less room for the diaphragm to contract and introduce new, fresh air. A regular breathwork practice can help keep our lungs springy at full capacity and engage our diagram correctly meaning no stale air gets trapped and we can breathe at full capacity. It opens up the chest, releasing tension within the intercostal muscles and around the scapula, erector spinae and trapezius muscles, allowing for a more relaxed posture.

Breathing deeply slows the aging process by increasing secretion of anti-ageing hormones. By reducing stress, it improves our mood, elevating the levels of serotonin and endorphins. A 2013 study by Harvard Medical School’s psychiatry department showed that people who meditate daily for four years have longer telomeres – the protective caps found on the end of chromosomes – than those who do not. Short telomeres have been linked to premature cellular aging. Humans on average take 12-20 breaths per minute. Tortoises take on average four breaths per minute. They also live on average 98 years longer than human being. You’d think the way they breathe has something to do with it - and you’d be right!

The locomotor system is made up of skeletal muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints, cartilage and other connective tissue. During high intensity exercise, the body becomes fatigued and ‘steals’ oxygen from this system resulting in more fatigue and poor performance. Breathwork allows us to increase the strength of our lungs and respiratory system preventing fatigue during intense physical activity. Ultimately our endurance is increased!

Deep diaphragmatic breathing tones, massages and increases circulation to the heart, liver, brain and reproductive organs. In one study of heart attack patients, 100% of the patients were chest breathers whose breathing involved no diaphragm or belly expansion. Another study found that patients who survived a heart attack and who adopted an exercise regime and breath training afterwards experienced a 50% reduction in their risk factor of another heart attack over the following five years.

Our parasympathetic nervous system is activated when we breathe slowly and deeply. This results in our muscles relaxing, heart rate decreasing and blood vessels dilating. Consequently our overall blood pressure is reduced.

When we are stressed or experience uncomfortable feelings such as anger or pain, our breath becomes shallow and our muscle tissues contract. Deep breathing helps to release this.

Qualitative data suggests improved coping skills and new insight into the effect of stress on the body as a result of breath therapy.

Previous research has shown that breathing exercises may improve the prognosis and health status in patients with lung cancer by enhancing pulmonary function and quality of life (QOL).