Could breathing be the key to happiness? Breathing better is the guarantee of being less stressed and of living with serenity the hazards of daily life. Instructions for improving your breathing and feeling much better .

Of course, everyone knows how to breathe. It's even natural and automatic. Without breathing... no life. It's also the first breath, the air that enters the lungs, that tears the newborn's cries. Physiological and vital, we breathe most of the time without thinking about it. Without paying attention to it. As a result, breathing remains superficial, movements too fast and focused on the upper body. The key: fatigue and stress, or at least, poor stress management.

How do you breathe?

Simply lie down with one hand on your chest and the other on your stomach. Breathe as you normally do, don't try to control it.

1- Become aware of your breathing

Take a deep breath, if your chest (upper body) rises first, you are "team thorax" and you are not using all your breathing capacities. The goal of the game is to join the "team belly." And to breathe like babies: by inflating the lower body first. So, when you inhale, the belly inflates and it deflates when you exhale.

At first, it will take a bit of concentration, because you have been breathing backwards for years. Once you have integrated the new movement, you will just have to think about it at key moments of the day (when you get a phone call from Big Boss, for example) to get back on track and breathe better to face the tornado.

The benefits of this upright breathing?

Fatigue is felt less quickly, which is normal since we breathe more fully and thus bring more oxygen to our cells. Another benefit: better elimination of toxins. Not to mention that breathing also affects the production of certain hormones, in particular noradrenaline, responsible for attention, and cortisol, responsible for stress. Hence the interest in better controlling your breathing in the event of hyperactivity or continuous stress .

2- Find the right rhythm

It is very easy to acquire: count the number of inhalations and exhalations through the nose that you make in one minute (take the timer on your phone.). Ideally, you should count 8. Yes, the ideal rhythm is much slower than the one you practice.

3- Little advice

Think about your posture. A straight back, shoulders back, and an elongated neck also help you breathe better.

Control your breathing

By regaining control over your breathing, it is the parasympathetic system (that of calm and relaxation) that is stimulated, and not the sympathetic system (that of excitement and agitation). Refocusing on your breathing, ample and deep, promotes concentration, sleep and chases away negative emotions (anger, sadness) and anxieties. Indeed, conscious breathing brings us back to the present moment (here and now, not in the future, a source of worry, nor in the past, a source of regrets).

Breathe to stay young

Skin quality is also closely linked to stress levels. Dull complexion? Not only that! Indeed, cortisol (again) has an impact on the skin's immune system and degrades the quality (and production) of its collagen, leading to accelerated aging.

Train yourself to breathe better!

Three exercises to practice regularly several times a week:

• Rediscover your diaphragm by inflating your belly as you inhale, exaggerating the thrust to extend this main muscle of breathing. After two or three seconds, exhale by pulling in your belly.
• Exhale into an imaginary straw: this sophrology technique allows you to chase away tension in a few minutes. Inhale through your nose and exhale (imagining removing all the ideas that bother you) with your mouth slightly open, as if you were blowing into a straw.
• Try alternate nostril breathing. When you feel like you're losing control, sit comfortably, inhale deeply through both nostrils, and as you exhale, exhale through one nostril (blocking the other with your thumb). Inhale through both nostrils again. On the next exhale, block the other nostril. Do this for a few minutes.

If you enjoy working on your breathing, you can also (re)discover certain practices that emphasize deep breathing, such as yoga , sophrology and Pilates .

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