Holding one's breath is a common response to stress and/or focused mental activity. Practicing "Belly Breathing" helps labored respiration become natural and spontaneous, allowing more oxygen (and thus, energy) available for thinking, speaking and moving. The next time you or your child are entering a stressful situation, or one that will require significant mental activity, try beginning with one of the following Belly Breathing Activities:
**To begin, rest your hand on your abdomen. With your chin tucked and ribs relaxed, blow out all the air in your lungs in short, soft little puffs (as though you are keeping a feather airborne). On each short exhalation, press your navel inward, toward your spine. Now take a slow, deep inhalation, gently refilling your lungs. Continue slowly inhaling and exhaling from your belly. Arch your back slightly at the waist so the air can go even deeper. Repeat three or more times. Variation: Lie on your back with a book on your abdomen. As you breathe, notice how the book will rise with each inhalation and descend with each exhalation.
**Squat with your hands flat on the floor between your knees. Imagine an 8 between the left and right sides of your rib cage, feeling both spheres of the 8 expand as you inhale and deflate as you exhale. Now imagine turning the 8 so that it expands between the stomach and the spine and then turn it top to bottom, expanding the chest and lower abdomen. Can you expand all three 8's at once?
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