Breath and the Body
Michele Sabia, LMT, Massage Director
Take a moment and consider how you breathe. Are you a belly breather or do you only breathe into your upper chest? Do you breathe shallow or deep? Is your breath long or short? When you breathe in is it longer or shorter than your exhalation? Right about now you are probably even asking yourself, does any of it matter, just so long as you are breathing?
The truth is how you breathe does matter, especially if you are trying to relax your body and mind. When we deep breathe we engage the parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic nervous system is a network of nerves that relaxes your body when it has been under periods of stress or danger. It also runs life-sustaining systems such as digestion. The parasympathetic nervous system is known as the “rest and digest” system of the body.
How to Activate the Parasympathetic Nervous System
Massage Therapy
There are many different ways to activate the parasympathetic nervous system. One way of engaging the system is to get a massage. Within my massage therapy practice, clients often come in and tell me their nerves are shot. They need to “just calm down and relax.” They get on my table and try to relax. Most people do not breathe deeply. I encourage my clients to breathe deeply, and start the massage with me and my client taking some deep breaths. I continue to breathe deeply myself as I work. As a client if you can remember to breathe a little more deeply than you would normally do during a massage this will help facilitate deeper relaxation on the massage table.
Relaxing Activities
Other ways of engaging the parasympathetic nervous system outside of the spa setting can be as simple as taking a walk outside in nature. At home, you could take a hot bath, put on relaxing music, or cuddle your favorite human or pet.
Breathing Exercises
You can also practice some breath work. Here is a little exercise you can do when you’re feeling stressed, or having a hard time getting your mind to calm down before going to bed. Or if you want your body to decompress after a long hard day.
- Sit comfortable in a chair with your feet flat on the floor, with your back straight, chin slightly tilted down. Have your teeth lightly touching with your tongue pressed against the top teeth. Slowly take a deep breath imagining that it fills your body all the way to your “third eye” the center of your forehead, just above your eyes. Imagine a warm ball of white light filling this space. Exhale slowly as well. Do this for three breaths. On the exhalation of your third breath, imagine the white light descending down your center as you exhale. Past your eyes and nose, down to the center of your chest.
- Continue breathing in the same manner imagining that same ball of white light warming the center of your chest where the “heart chakra” resides. Breath into this area, five times, visualizing that ball of white light filling and warming the area. On the exhalation of your fifth breath, imagine the white light descending down your center as you exhale. Past your belly button, to your lower center. About four fingers below, or about 2 ½ inches below the belly button.
- Continue breathing in the same manner. Breath into this area, ten times, visualizing that ball of white light filling and warming the area. On the exhalation of your tenth breath imagine the ball of white light slowly dissolve as you continue to breath normally.
When you are done, take a moment to assess how you feel. Are you more focused and centered? Do you feel less muscular tension? Are you more relaxed and feeling more at peace? This simple exercise takes less than ten minutes, and you can do this exercise anywhere. So if you are feeling a little anxious before giving that big speech at the office you can do the exercise to relax and gain focus, and calm your nerves. If you have a need to decompress after work or would like to start your day with more focus, make the time to practice this exercise. Be kind to yourself and take a moment to just breathe!