Science Of The Breath

This talk explores the science of the breath and how it supports the body from the inside out.

We will explore how breathing influences the nervous system, hormones, circulation, and the body’s sense of safety.

Rather than controlling the breath, we explore how gentle awareness and small shifts help the body soften and rebalance naturally.

A calm, accessible offering for anyone curious about how the breath works — and how it can support wellbeing in everyday life.

Transcript

Hey and welcome.

Welcome back to episode 4.

I am Annie Mills and today we are going to be exploring the science of the breath.

Just a quick recap.

So far we have noticed just how powerful this extraordinary breath of ours can be.

How it can support our overall wellbeing,

Everything in our lives.

And we have focused in on soothing and easing a busy mind as an act of kindness for our daily lives.

And we have also looked at how by working with the breath and directing the breath we can soften and release the body so it can function to its maximum capacity.

And now it feels like the right moment to explore a little bit in more detail what is actually happening inside the body when we breathe.

I have touched on it already but breathing is one of those things that is both automatic and voluntary.

It can happen without us thinking in fact many of us don't think about our breath from year to year.

And yet we can choose to change it and we can choose to direct it.

Like a conductor of an orchestra we can begin to guide where our breath is going.

And this is where the glorious magic lies.

Poof.

I know that we have spoken about it in small detail but I want to expand on the nervous system right now.

And this is where we'll start.

Most of the time our breathing is managed by the autonomic nervous system.

That's what I was just talking about.

It happens automatically.

And the autonomic nervous system,

Get my words out,

Is the part that looks after things like our heart rate,

Digestion,

Blood pressure and our stress responses.

And within this system,

The autonomic nervous system,

We have two major branches or two main modes should we say.

One is a kind of sympathetic system which is called the sympathetic nervous system.

And this is responsible for things like fight or flight.

And it gets us ready for action.

You know you have heard the sabre tooth tiger thing.

Are we actually under attack?

Rawr.

And if we are properly under attack our heart has to increase,

Our muscles tense and our attention has to sharpen because we have to figure out what we have got to do.

So that's one side of our nervous system.

And then the other side is the softer side of the nervous system called the rest and digest and parasympathetic.

And this supports stuff like our recovery,

Being able to access our immune system,

Being able to release,

Let go,

Be friendly and open,

So social connection.

And yeah,

So we have got the sympathetic,

Fight or flight,

And the parasympathetic which is rest and digest in simple terms.

And our breath can,

If we choose to,

Influence both.

So if I kind of breathe deeper,

Shallower,

Sorry,

Up in the top of the chest,

The body will go,

What's occurring in this person's world?

What do we need to do about it?

And that will begin to trigger the sympathetic nervous system and move the body towards this readiness to pounce and escape or flee or whatever it is or fight.

Yeah,

When I breathe or when we breathe deeper into our body all the way down,

Our nervous system then receives this message that says,

Oh,

Hey,

Time to chill,

Time to chill now,

Safety.

It's going,

Yeah,

Chill out now.

This is why when we exhale slow and long,

It can feel calming.

It really does have a physical message that stimulates the nervous system.

And this gentle breathing and releasing says you don't need to stay on high alert right now.

Yeah,

So the breath can help your whole being decide whether to stay on high alert or to switch off that signal so you can come into better supporting resting place for yourself as a unique human being.

And it's not only about the nervous system,

We have this pharmaceutical part of our chemistry that's pretty incredible,

Too.

I'm going to start just with the basics of oxygen and carbon,

Not carbon dioxide.

Sorry,

I couldn't get that out right either.

So every time we inhale,

Oxygen enters the lungs.

We know this.

We learnt this in school and it travels through the bloodstream and all our cells go,

Yay,

Hi.

And the fuel goes to wherever we need it.

And every time we exhale,

We release carbon dioxide,

Managed it that time,

A natural waste product.

So when we're stressed or anxious,

This balance can be really disrupted.

We might breathe too quickly or hold our breath or breathe higher into the chest.

And this can create a sensation of lightheadedness and can.

Oh,

Yeah,

I just by doing it temporarily just for a few seconds,

I could feel lightheadedness.

Everything was getting a bit hectic,

A tightness in my chest and my heart has actually started racing a little bit.

Whereas gentle,

Steady breathing helps restore this balance,

Thank goodness.

It supports clearer thinking,

A calmer physical state.

So when we breathe,

We're not simply relaxing,

We're supporting the body's chemistry.

And part of the body's chemistry is the hormones,

You know,

Likewise the hormones help us like react to how we feel and shape how we feel.

Under stress,

The body,

You know,

When a body feels like it's under stress,

It will begin to naturally release things like cortisol and adrenaline.

And these hormones are really useful in short bursts and we need them if we're going to be able to respond to periods of danger.

But when we stay like that for too long,

We can begin to chronically stay in this position and become tired and tense and aching and overwhelmed.

But the good news is we can breathe,

We can breathe calmer and we can reduce these levels of cortisol and adrenaline in the body,

These signals that say it's time for action.

And we can allow the body to stand down and go,

Yay,

Time to chill,

Baby.

When this happens,

Our hormones are able to flow more freely.

And when this happens,

We are able to access some of the lovely hormones that can be released into our body.

Things like oxytocin.

And oxytocin is like the cuddle hormone and linked to connection,

Balance and emotional safety.

And then we have serotonin.

And this is connected to emotional balance and steadiness so we can feel our feet on the ground.

And then we have dopamine,

Which is like a real reward thing associated with motivation and keeping us going.

So through the breath we are gently shifting the body's internal landscape,

Internal environment towards a space of ease.

And yeah,

Isn't that magic?

I think it's magic.

And the final thing I will talk about today in terms of science is our diaphragm,

Our muscle,

The diaphragm.

It's a huge muscle that sits underneath the lungs and quite often doesn't get much action in terms of,

You know,

Like getting switched on properly.

If we breathe deeply,

It moves downwards,

Drawing the air deep into the body.

And when we activate this diaphragm,

This helps support,

Massage all of the organs and support our circulation.

And it also regulates things like pressure between the chest and the belly.

So it gives us more chance to open out and release.

And when this diaphragm moves,

Our diaphragms move more freely,

Breathing becomes more efficient and the body works with less effort.

You know,

Like when we work any muscle,

The more we practice,

The stronger it gets.

And it's also important to know that this breathing through the diaphragm,

Deeper down into the belly is where we breathe instinctively when we're babies.

This is when we feel safe.

And so by breathing into the belly in this way,

It's a signal to the mind,

The body,

The nervous system,

All the hormones,

All the chemistry that's going on in your body,

That you are safe.

And it gives all of that an opportunity to kick in.

As I've said time and time again,

Under stress,

The movement shortens,

Because we breathe into the chest.

And by allowing this breath to deepen,

We gently strengthen this diaphragm muscle and it supports our whole system in a multitude of ways,

Which I've just discussed.

So it's a good time to remember that most of the stress that we experience in our daily lives is not life-threatening.

It's subtle,

It's ongoing,

It's cumulative,

It's chronic,

It's poking us all the time.

Deadlines,

Responsibilities,

Emotional demands,

Uncertainty,

And then we've got things like our own inner critic.

And then we have the news and what's going on in the environment around us.

It's no wonder that we are raw.

And all of this sends signals to our system that we are under attack and we can get super overwhelmed by all of these different demands on our body and pokes to our nervous system.

Yeah,

I hope that by sharing what I've been sharing over the last number of weeks,

You're beginning to realise that you have this superpower.

You have this superpower of awareness,

You have this superpower of knowledge,

And you can begin to go and go,

Okay,

I can see what's happening.

I'm breathing into my chest.

That isn't serving me.

It's putting me more into action.

What I need to do is go and find a quiet place and allow myself to ease the busy mind,

Soften through into the body,

Generally check in through my whole wellbeing,

All the systems that regulate my whole wellbeing,

And take a pause,

Take some precious time out to be with your magical breath.

Breath by breath,

You will begin to transform your life.

Anyway,

I can tell that I'm probably being super passionate about this right now,

And time's ticking on.

So,

Thank you so much for being with me today,

And I look forward to seeing you next time.

Namaste,

Have a good day,

And bye for now.