We all breathe. Obviously, we have to. But did you know that breathing slightly differently might actually help when you’re in pain?
When you live with chronic pain, there is usually no quick fix available. There are no magic cures. Along with medical help, it’s useful to have a few pain management techniques at your fingertips. One of my most used pain management tools is a breathing exercise called belly breathing, also known as diaphragmatic breathing.
My Physiotherapist Explained That Breathing in a Better Way Could Help My Pain
I first learned about the importance of learning breathing techniques a few years ago when I was attending a physiotherapist due to my chronic rib and back pain. A few days before one of my appointments, I fell and broke a rib. They were already painful enough without that happening! I was in extreme pain, and the physiotherapist’s first words when he saw me were, “Are you breathing correctly?”
Had I been able to laugh, I would have. I thought to myself, Of course, I’m breathing correctly. I’ve been doing it since I was born. I’m actually quite good at it.
However, I wasn’t good at it when my ribs were so painful. My breathing was fairly shallow because I was trying to protect them. But he explained that I was doing more harm than good. Shallow breathing was slowing my healing and I was putting myself in danger of getting pneumonia.
The physiotherapist told me that breathing differently could help my pain. He suggested belly breathing. Initially, it wasn’t easy because I was in so much pain. However, I persevered and did notice a difference. Breathing like that calmed me down when my pain was at its worst and helped me to cope much better.
I now practise this type of breathing every day, even on the ‘better’ days. It feels natural and helps me to cope when my pain is bad.
What is Belly Breathing?
When we breathe, we fill our lungs with air. At least that’s what we think we do. In reality, with normal breathing, most healthy people only use about 70% of their lung capacity.
When we use belly breathing, we push air deep down into our lungs, meaning that we breathe in more oxygen than when we breathe normally. In doing so, we are giving our bodies a boost by supplying them with extra oxygen.
Why Oxygen is so Important
With every breath we take, oxygen passes into the bloodstream where it is carried to the heart and pumped throughout the body. That oxygen is vital for our well-being. It gives us energy. Our brains need it. The digestive system needs it. Cells need it in order to repair and renew themselves. Every organ, muscle and tissue in our bodies needs oxygen to function.
Is Belly Breathing Better – How Can it Help Pain?
Belly breathing isn’t a magic cure but it can help to give people pain relief.
Reduce Muscle Tension
According to the London Pain Clinic, belly breathing can reduce tension in the muscles which could potentially lessen pain levels. This simple act of relaxing your body might help to reduce your pain.
Calming
The Harvard Medical School explains that breathing this way stimulates the vagus nerve, which runs from the head down the neck, through the chest and then on to the colon. This activates a relaxation response, reduces the heart rate and blood pressure and lowers stress levels.
It’s well known that pain causes stress. It’s also well known that stress causes pain. A small, simple act of breathing differently could help to break that vicious circle. Getting de-stressed and relaxed will have a positive impact on pain. In any situation in life, we respond better if we remain calm. If we can stay calm, we can also cope with pain better.
Read more about coping with stress
Distraction
Even just focusing on breathing like this might help you to stop thinking about your pain for a few minutes. Then, once you feel calmer, you’ll hopefully be able to use other distraction techniques to help take your mind off your pain.
Here are some simple distraction techniques
Better Sleep
If you’re calmer and relaxed, you could also find it easier to sleep. Disrupted sleep always has a detrimental impact on pain.
Here are some more ideas to help you sleep better
Learn Belly Breathing
It’s best to learn belly breathing while lying down, but you can also do this exercise while sitting.
- Lie on your back with your knees bent. Support your head with pillows to make yourself comfortable.
- Put one hand on your upper chest and the other just below your rib cage. Breathe normally so that your hands can feel how your diaphragm moves when you breathe.
- Now breathe in slowly through your nose. Focus on that breath as you gently push the air deep down into your lungs until you feel your stomach rise. The hand on your chest shouldn’t feel any movement.
- Exhale through pursed lips very slowly. Focus on that breath as it leaves your body. You will feel your stomach flatten. The hand on your chest shouldn’t feel any movement.
- Repeat several times.
Try to get into the habit of practising this exercise for a few minutes at a time, 3 or 4 times a day. It will then start to feel normal to you and it will be easier to do whenever you feel stressed, anxious, unable to sleep or if you are in pain.
There is No Simple Solution for Chronic Pain
As I said at the start of this post, there are no simple answers for dealing with chronic pain. Hopefully, this breathing exercise might help you. Even if it doesn’t reduce your pain level, it might help you cope with it more easily. It’s worth a try.
Please let me know how you get on if you try this breathing technique. I hope it helps you.
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Please remember that the posts on Despite Pain are written using my experience and knowledge as someone who lives with chronic pain. They are not intended as a substitute for medical advice from a health care professional.
Thank you so much for reading.
If this post resonated with you, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
And feel free to share it with your friends or support groups.
Take care,
Liz.
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One slow breath at a time
I 100%agree I’m sean jennings and you can see my NHS England film “seans story there is another way” I live in Cornwall, and after 25years on high doses of opioids gabapentanoids etc etc I am now 2years and7months meds free!! When I have flare ups, I now concentrate on my breathing! I’m lucky that I can drive to the coast in 15mins. I breath to coincide with the waves! I have learnt through mindfulness to do the same when I’m trying to get to sleep! I hope this story helps others 😎
Thanks for sharing your story, Sean
I am a full time belly breather due to muscle weakness around my chest. From birth I’ve just continued breathing this way, it’s a common trait with my condition. I’ve never really thought about it having any affect, just that I do it. I’ll have to try consciously breathing as you’ve said to see if it helps with pains or stress etc.
I learnt about this following my hysterectomy and the pain I suffered with afterwards, it was my physio who taught me and I still do it to this day, thanks for sharing Liz xx
I’m glad your physio taught you this too. It’s so helpful.
Breathing was only something I particularly became aware of when I started having problems with it because of lung scarring and bronchiectasis. It really does have an impact on wellbeing, stress, and pain, if you can change the way you’re breathing to slow things down and boost oxygenation.
Your broken rib a few years ago made me wince. I’ve pulled rib muscles, which I didn’t even know existed until I did it, and cracked the floating rib when I had recurrent chest infections. The pain was intense and moving, let alone lying down, was so difficult. I can’t imagine what it was like to fall and break a rib like that, ouch! I’m glad the physio brought up breathing and how shallow breathing was doing more harm than good.
I’ve never done belly breathing properly by the sounds of it. Thank you for sharing that technique with lying down – I’ve book marked this so I can try it tonight and perhaps get into a daily routine of doing it.
Fantastic topic to cover & very helpful suggestions because breathing is something we so often take for granted and don’t pay much attention to because we ‘just do it’. xx
It’s funny, Caz, babies and young children apparently do belly breathing, but must grow out of it. I hope this might help you. It’s one of those ‘nothing to lose by trying’ things, isn’t it?
I’m so bad at shallow breathing with bad abdominal or chest pain! I’ll definitely try learning to breathe correctly and see if it helps!
I was taught this by a friend when I had pneumonia and have done it ever since but more so since I’ve been in chronic pain with my coccyx. I’m making sure it is now part of my daily exercise routine.
Fantastic post, Liz! One of my favorite fitness instructors who specializes in chronic pain and EDS is always talking about how involuntary guarding changes how we breath. I utilize a lot of these techniques. Thanks for sharing all of this excellent info! Xx