Dr Priti Nanda SibalFounder - Functional medicine clinic

Tips on maintaining mental health during Covid - Belly Breathing | Diaphragmatic/Abdominal Breathing

Name: Tips on maintaining mental health during Covid - Belly Breathing | Diaphragmatic/Abdominal Breathing
Uploaded: 2020-08-02T11:30:04+00:00
Duration: 1 min 18 s
Channel: Dr Priti Nanda Sibal
Description: In this video, the speaker addresses Sneha and the audience, emphasizing the importance of conscious breathing for mental health during the Covid…

2 Aug 2020 · 1 min

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1:18

In this video, the speaker addresses Sneha and the audience, emphasizing the importance of conscious breathing for mental health during the Covid pandemic. The speaker explains that stressed individuals tend to engage in sympathetic (fight‑or‑flight) breathing, and that switching to diaphragmatic or belly breathing can shift the nervous system to the parasympathetic (relaxed) state. Viewers are directed to research Wim Hof’s 4‑7‑8 breathing technique or general belly‑breathing methods and to practice them two to three times daily, taking three to five breaths each session. The speaker claims that even a short two‑ to three‑day practice can empower individuals, reducing stress and improving sleep, with many patients reporting a “magical” difference in their stress levels.

Chapters

Something here, Sneha. One more thing which I really want people and viewers to do is connect with their breathing. So in my practice, what I've seen is that, you know, if somebody is stressed, they're doing sympathetic breathing, and you make them do belly breathing and they are breathing the wrong way. Just the thing that if you can, you know, Google and you can check for Wim Hof breathing, which is 4-7-8 breathing. Or you can Google for belly breathing and just practice that, right, 2 or 3 times a day, 3 to 5 breaths every time. What that does is it immediately switches your mind from parasympathetic to sympathetic— sorry, from sympathetic to parasympathetic. So sympathetic is the stressful mind, parasympathetic is the relaxed mind. And if you've not tried it, and even if you have, do it for 2-3 days and you will find that, you know, you actually come back empowered. Yes, because it really helps. A lot of my patients, they come back and say this is one thing which has made a magical difference in our stress lives. Stress and sleep both get corrected.