What's the Deal With Breathing Again?

I want to try something different this time. I want to dip my toes into writing something that is a little more informative. I know the internet is sick with information already, but I'd like to do something a little unnatural for me and combine actual knowledge with self refection. My maiden topic will be one that plagues me daily (mostly weekdays) and probably you too: Stress.  

In the throes of adulthood it is a daily, if not constant visitor. Its effects vary by degrees from making us a little irritable to sending us into a light headed, breathless panic attack. And besides the emotional effects it brings on at the time, repeated stress can cause more serious harm to the body. It's an old tune I'm sure you're sick of, but high blood pressure, decreased immunity, lower metabolism and foggy thinking are all related to stress. Just writing this is actually making me a little stressed. The point I'm getting to is we all have at least one simple tool we can use to loosen the grip of stress, it's called deep breathing.  It may sound obvious, but don't let it sound so obvious that you say "duh" and continue on your mission for beer, pot or Xanax without even considering it. Those things may help too, but deep breathing is a skill you could teach a dog, a dumb dog (who should still be loved!), and you can do it anywhere, anytime and the effects are almost immediate. 

So picture this: you're driving your Ford Focus or Thunderbird or whatever from St. Paul to Minneapolis during rush hour. Stop. Go. Stop. Go. Some greasy 40 something bachelor wearing your grandpas cardigan just cut you off. You slam on your breaks and the car behind you bumps into you. You get out and look, so does the owner of the car who hit you. No damage done but the driver of the other car is screaming at you in another language. What the hell is he saying? Soon it doesn't  matter, you just scream back in your own language until your voice is hoarse, then storm back to your Geo Metro or Dodge Caravan or Lamborghini or whatever. Now is the time. Breathe in to the count of five, hold for the count of 5, breathe out for the count of 5, hold for the count of 5, repeat. Do that a few times and the hard edges start to soften. No damage done, right? Just a lil altercation to spice up the day, and now you can be on your merry way to Minneapolis for some craft beer and thrift shopping.

The alternative to not doing something to detach from the stress of the moment is rage, or anxiety, or another long lasting unpleasantry that quite frankly will ruin the Ok Cupid date you're about to go on. So when you cross the bridge and you see Mr. Sleaze in your grandpas sweater stopped in the right lane, resist the urge to roll down your window and throw out your fist with the middle finger high. Just do the breathing again: 5 in, hold for 5, 5 out, hold for 5, repeat. 

Sometimes stress doesn't come from one blatant interaction like that, but it quietly builds over the course of the day and you can't name the cause but eventually your neck hurts, you feel nervous, you're irritable, you just snapped at Carol in the break room, poor thing. Now you're glaring around the office wondering how many of your fat coworkers had two doughnuts and didn't leave you a single damn one! Now is a good time to do that breathing thing. In fact an even better time is before all this drama starts. During your coffee break maybe? As you drive to lunch? 

In fact, if you do this regularly, like a couple times every day, you'll start to notice some changes, like controlling stress will be easier in the future, and all that extra oxygen will leave you feeling more alert. Regular deep breathing can also boost your immune system so you may find yourself getting sick less and recovering more quickly. 

Since we've gotten this far I'm just gonna go ahead touch on the mechanics of it all. You may remember this from 8th grade biology, but here's the refresher: when you breathe in until your lungs are full the little balloons which make up the insides of your lungs are all expanding and inflating, even the ones at the bottom that stay deflated unless you take deep breaths. This moves more CO2 out of the bases of your lungs and any fluid or gunk that was festering down there, which makes room for more oxygen, which then enters your blood and travels to your brain and makes you that much more witty and fun at parties. Also as your lungs expand they push down on your diaphragm which in turn jump starts digestion. And lastly, it activates the parasympathetic nervous system. That's the good one, the one that makes you calm the hell down. It's the sympathetic nervous system that prepares your body to run from a sabertooth tiger when you have a job interview or are going on a date. So when you find yourself in one of those situations, remember, you have the tool to get your chill back, or if you're a nerd, you have a reset button. Just use it, and stay golden. Thanks for reading!