Therapy for anxiety Therapy for anxiety
Related Articles
More about breathing.
Now you can learn a little more about breathing. Sit comfortably, or lie down.
Put one hand flat on your stomach, and the other on your chest, just below your neck. Sit quietly and feel how the hands move as you breathe. Which hand is moving the most? If it is the upper hand, the one
on your chest, then you are breathing in a shallow way that isn’t helpful for Anxiety.
It should be the lower hand that moves as you breathe, with the upper hand nearly still while you’re at rest (it will move more when you’re active) Here’s an exercise to help you practise good breathing.
- Lie down flat on your back.
- Place your hands on your stomach with the fingertips just touching.
- Breathe through your nose.
- Breathe in and allow your stomach to expand like a balloon as you fill
your lungs with air. Your fingertips will move apart as you do this. - Breathe out and allow your stomach to shrink as you push the air out
of your lungs. Your fingertips will move back together as you do this.
You can count in your head as you do this exercise. Once you’ve got the hang of it, try it sitting, and then standing. When you feel confident that you’ve mastered it, you can also use this kind of breathing during exposure sessions.
