Achieving Natural Migraine Relief with Diaphragmatic Breathing
What is Diaphragmatic Breathing?
When you practice diaphragmatic breathing you breathe deeply into your belly using your diaphragm muscle to support the inhalation and exhalation of each breath. Practicing diaphragmatic breathing will be a key factor in your ability to achieve natural migraine relief.
Diaphragmatic breathing is unlike thoracic breathing, otherwise known as “chest breathing”. In thoracic breathing you breathe shallowly into your chest using your neck, shoulder and upper back muscles to help you breathe. This is not a good habit to maintain if you want to achieve natural migraine relief. Your upper body muscles do most of the work in thoracic breathing where as the belly and diaphragm do most of the work when you practice diaphragmatic breathing.
Diaphragmatic breathing is often referred to as abdominal breathing, belly breathing or deep breathing. Though diaphragmatic breathing is the most natural and healthy way for us to be breathing many of us have become thoracic breathers.
Some believe this is due to the excessive stress and or poor management of our day to day stress. Some also believe our obsession with hard, flat bellies has pushed us to become thoracic breathers. What’s important to know is that you can train yourself to become a diaphragmatic breather and doing so can greatly support you in achieving natural migraine relief. With a little time and persistence this can become your new normal way of breathing and your best defense against migraines.
Why Should I make Diaphragmatic Breathing Part of My Natural Migraine Relief Routine?
Diaphragmatic breathing is so important for migraine sufferers because it calms and balances your nervous system. This is a necessary feat for any migraine sufferer who wants to achieve natural migraine relief. It is imperative that you learn to maintain a calm and balanced nervous system in order for you to become migraine free. Diaphragmatic breathing not only balances your nervous system, but as your nervous system comes into balance your muscles relax and your arteries dilate.
When your nervous system is balanced, your muscles are relaxed, and your arteries are dilated you will have created an internal environment that is optimal for remaining migraine free.
Thoracic breathing has an opposite affect. If you are a thoracic breather this will continue to thwart your attempts to achieve natural migraine relief. Thoracic breathing actually creates anxiety as well as emotional, mental and physical stress. It creates muscle tension. In other words, thoracic breathing actually creates an internal environment where migraines can thrive.
Diaphragmatic breathing is one of the easiest ways you can support your nervous system in remaining balanced, dilate your arteries, and keep your muscles relaxed. Diaphragmatic breathing is the single most important strategy you can implement to help you achieve natural migraine relief.
What Can I Expect as I begin to Practice Diaphragmatic Breathing?
As you begin to practice becoming a diaphragmatic breather you might notice that your diaphragm and even your stomach muscles feel tight or weak. You may notice that these muscles tire easily. Some people report feeling a shaky feeling or sensation in their abdominal area.
Any of these sensations are perfectly natural for you to experience in the beginning as you practice. If you have been a thoracic breather for a long time your diaphragm will need time to adjust to this new way of breathing. Beginning with 5-10 minutes of diaphragmatic breathing a day is a wonderful way for you to develop this natural migraine relief breathing habit. You’ll want to give your body time to adjust to your new way of breathing. I suggest slowly increasing the amount of time you spend developing your diaphragmatic breathing habit daily. In time, this will become your new normal way of breathing. You won’t have to think about it so much and it will become a breathing pattern that naturally occurs for you.
Diaphragmatic Breathing Exercise for Natural Migraine Relief
Lie down comfortably on your back on the bed or the floor. This is the easiest way for you to learn diaphragmatic breathing. Now place one hand gently over your chest. Place your other hand over your belly. Let your hands rest here.
Now begin breathing into your belly slowly to the count of five through your nose, and then exhale slowly to the count of five through your nose. Just gently notice your breath, breathing in and breathing out for a minute. Sense how your body feels as you breathe.
Then bring your attention specifically to your belly as it rises with each inhalation. Focus on the expansion of your belly. Use your diaphragm muscle to support your belly in expanding.
And then bring your attention to the hand you have placed on your chest. Is your chest moving a lot with each inhalation? Is your chest rising more than your belly? Your belly should be doing most of the work as you inhale and your chest should only be expanding slightly in comparison.
Try to focus on letting your diaphragm do most of the work as you breathe. With practice, you will gain greater control over your diaphragm and this way of breathing will become more effortless. In time, this will become an automatic natural migraine relief habit that you won’t need to initiate because it will naturally take over for you.
How Can I become a Diaphragmatic Breather?
Practice this exercise every day, and see if you can work your way up to doing this for 10-15 minutes at a time. In the beginning, your belly muscles and diaphragm may tire easy, so give yourself permission to start slow and increase the amount of time you practice daily. If you feel light headed while practicing the diaphragmatic breathing simply stop and resume your normal way of breathing until the light headed feeling passes.
Diaphragmatic breathing will change the oxygen levels in your blood and can sometimes cause a feeling of light headedness as you begin shifting out of your old breathing habit. So be gentle with yourself if this occurs and allow yourself the time to slowly adjust to your new breathing habit. In time, this will become an automatic natural migraine relief habit that you won’t need to initiate because it will naturally take over for you.
Download your complimentary audio training for Diaphragmatic Breathing today and I will guide you through this practice step by step. Enjoy! Left click on the link below and you will be taken to the download page. Once there, you can left click your mouse again to listen immediately to the audio or you can “right click” and click “save target as” to download the audio to your computer.
For further tips on successfully developing your diaphragmatic breathing practice check out the article below
