Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

AutoModerator t1_jbpkof4 wrote

Welcome to r/science! This is a heavily moderated subreddit in order to keep the discussion on science. However, we recognize that many people want to discuss how they feel the research relates to their own personal lives, so to give people a space to do that, personal anecdotes are allowed as responses to this comment. Any anecdotal comments elsewhere in the discussion will be removed and our normal comment rules apply to all other comments.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

1

chrisdh79 OP t1_jbpl0jj wrote

From the article: A new report published in Cell Reports Medicine has found that individuals who use assigned breathwork techniques experienced greater improvements in mood and lowered respiratory rates as compared to those practicing mindfulness meditation. These findings indicate that breathwork may be an important therapeutic tool for those experiencing depressed mood or an overactive nervous system.

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, breathwork has become a popular and cost-effective intervention for improving health and well-being through intentional breathing techniques. Numerous scientific studies have demonstrated how we breathe affects our heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen levels, and ventilation. In addition, initial research has provided evidence that techniques like slow and nasal breathing can enhance the quality of life for asthma patients, reduce anxiety, and improve alertness and learning abilities in people.

13

matt____n t1_jbpqgzg wrote

Would being aware of your breath just be mindfulness in action?

71

Zorkdork t1_jbprvkn wrote

TLDR: cyclic sighing for 5 minutes a day is the best option among those studied.

214

foomy45 t1_jbpupib wrote

Replying to matt____n (#2,203,187)

Yes, but it would not be breath work, according to the article:

>Interestingly, research has found breathwork and mindfulness meditation have distinct differences. Unlike mindfulness meditation, breathwork involves intentionally altering the body’s physiological state through controlled breathing techniques. Mindfulness meditation focuses on observing one’s breath without actively trying to change it, with the goal of increasing present moment awareness.

46

ExtremePrivilege t1_jbpv7u9 wrote

Ideally you do both. Someone should invent a meditative exercise routine that incorporates breath control and mindfulness into balance and flexibility training.

I bet that would be really popular!

257

yusquera t1_jbpxnls wrote

It sounds like they are talking about pranayama which is the yogic exercise of altering the breath to have different effects. It isn't necessarily the same as meditation because you might not do it repeatedly for long periods of time, which is basically what meditation is, but pranayama could be viewed as meditation because you are focusing on the breath and building awareness, and maybe doing it for some amount of time and repetition. This is why in zen they say everything is zen.. because whatever you are doing, for one second or one hour, is, in a sense, meditation. If anything there are different types of meditations. Some would say meditation is a key element of yoga, whether you are practicing pranayama, asana, or whatever, you are supposed to be meditating, otherwise it isn't yoga.

16

theguineapigssong t1_jbqb099 wrote

I do a similar thing for my high blood pressure and get positive results. There is a device called a Resperate that plays tones that cue you to inhale/exhale. It's expensive but worth it for me

4

fourdac t1_jbqc1a1 wrote

Diaphragmatic breathing releases the stresses of existing spatially in 3 dimensions

2

wutzinanumber311 t1_jbqhju3 wrote

meditation is just breath work, our imaginations build meditation into this grand mysterious thing to keep us from how simple it is, hence meditation practices that have nothing to do with breathing

−5

Odd-Gear9622 t1_jbqnfzb wrote

Diaphrametic Breathing is taught in conjunction with both meditation and mindfulness at every Pain Clinic that I've attended (6) in the last 20 years. Together, they do indeed improve my mood because they help regulate my perception of pain.

38

lowkeyalchie t1_jbqq0jp wrote

Never had breathwork help anything, sorry to say

1

kittenTakeover t1_jbqr2di wrote

Breath exercises and mindfulness are the same thing to many people.

7

BokBokBagock t1_jbr79ek wrote

Box breathing really helps me when I start to feel overwhelmed

12

sleepnandhiken t1_jbrdmgf wrote

Replying to foomy45 (#2,203,410)

I wondered to what degree “don’t alter it just pay attention” is possible. It seems natural to me to adjust it once you are of aware of where you are at. Also it seems that you can’t focus on simply improving your breath work if you’re not mindful in that regard.

15

TickTock432 t1_jbrfyin wrote

Authentic / traditional ‘mindfulness’ practice includes breathwork. If your “mindfulness” practice isn’t rooted in a foundation of breathwork, then it isn’t mindfulness practice.

−2

DJ_DD t1_jbrhd3t wrote

Had a guided meditation recently very focused on breath work. Not even kidding my body was buzzing like I was coming up on DMT. A very profound experience indeed.

6

NoelAngeline t1_jbrkcf7 wrote

I’ve only managed to truly breathe once in my life and it was amazing. If I lost control I would struggle and couldn’t breathe and had to refocus and it was the most mind blowing thing ever. I felt truly “better” afterwords.

I had been having a panic attack and sat down to try and breathe through it. I struggled and it was hard. But I got there and it was fantastic. Of course after that I walked out and my bird was having an asthma attack.

So much for that

2

incognitochaud t1_jbrkh22 wrote

If you’re reading this: take the biggest, deepest breath you’ve had all day.

11

Excitium t1_jbrzrxl wrote

Are you telling me all the cultivation fantasy was right all along.

Sitting down and practicing a breathing technique can improve yourself. Fantastical times we live in...

2

Available_Panic_5631 t1_jbs7i40 wrote

You need to take in Dao, it is simpler to breath and take in Dao than to have complex thought and take in Dao

2

MalpracticeMatt t1_jbs8rqp wrote

I always thought they went hand in hand. A lot of mindfulness for me is focusing on my breath

1

pihkal t1_jbsdvsk wrote

Replying to TickTock432 (#2,206,126)

Anapanasati doesn’t involve altering the breath, only watching it. And since the Anapanasati Sutta is part of the Pali Canon, the oldest extant Buddhist scriptures, it’s pretty “traditional”.

3

IneoMors t1_jbsjbvp wrote

Any links to media for valid breath work options?

2

2legittoquit t1_jbson9a wrote

These are typically done in conjunction with each other.

2

smallcoder t1_jbspng1 wrote

Replying to yusquera (#2,203,555)

I'm partially disabled with mobility issues, and recently started Kum Nye meditation with my yoga teacher. I am a complete cynic about new age stuff in general but the combination of the breathing exercises and meditative focus is amazing in how it has given me more energy and lowered my general anxiety and pain levels.

I've no idea what the science is behind it all, and frankly it is unimportant to me as long as it works :)

I just have to agree that focused breathing exercises - which are part of the Kum Nye method - are amazing.

1

artbykoi4 t1_jbst4zk wrote

More specifically the physiological sigh. Inhale twice through the nose; first is a long passive one, second is a quicker aggressive one. Then exhale through the mouth emptying the lungs. Repeat.

1

yusquera t1_jbsux78 wrote

Replying to smallcoder (#2,207,831)

Yes, the yogis were aware of this from a long time ago. Breathe properly and oxygen enters your blood, cells, and brain properly, and you feel relaxed and energized. It is kind of amazing how aware people were a long time ago.. yoga is an ancient art.

4

CPT_Shiner t1_jbswh3g wrote

Replying to BokBokBagock (#2,205,738)

Same! I recently started using it at work before big presentations and it helps me stay calm under pressure. Also good for dealing with young kids when they're acting crazy, without getting all worked up myself.

3

Stalinbaum t1_jbswjb2 wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#2,205,976)

I'm not spiritual and haven't done much martial arts or meditation. Do you actually feel these feelings? Do you believe it's placebo, or some mind trick, or is your mind really manifesting these feelings in your body?

Also as you seem to take great care in your wellbeing I can't suggest looking into mushroom extract drinks enough, like mushroom coffee. Not that MudWtr crap but species of mushrooms (not the magic kind) like Chaga and Lion's Mane have a ton of health benefits and as far we no there's no adverse affect to most of these extracts. Chaga is crazy, natural anti-inflammatory, and anti-tumor. They also remove free radicals from your body

−3

Toby_Forrester t1_jbsxsty wrote

Replying to christianhelps (#2,206,194)

No, they are not. Mindfulness is about being aware of your senses, feelings, thoughts, everything, without evaluating or judging them. Like if you have a bad thought, you note it is there, but do not judge or start analyzing it. You treat it like a noise from a radio, not as something that requires you to react.

Breathing excercises make midfulness easier.

0

Spinalstreamer407 t1_jbtvo2u wrote

Bringing more oxygen to where it’s needed most in your body is incredibly important. Increasing lung capacity is a worthwhile destination. An everyday thing for self support. Imagine that.

1

B-Bog t1_jbxsq69 wrote

They only did 5 minutes daily for both. I'd argue that

  1. breath work has a much smaller minimum effective dosage than meditation. That is to say, 5 minutes of breath work can fulfill the purpose of said breath work much better than 5 mins of meditation can fulfill the purpose of that activity. It takes our brain approximately 11 mins to truly focus on any given activity, so doing a focus meditation for less than 11 mins per day probably isn't going to achieve very much. And

  2. Meditation has a much steeper learning curve than breath work and can actually entail a lot of frustration and discomfort in the beginning. It's really not the relaxation or "stress management" exercise it is often marketed as here in the West, but a long-term project with the goal of increasing awareness. But as awareness grows, we are not going to like everything we become aware of. E.g. the first thing many people become aware of when meditating is how busy their mind actually is on a moment-to-moment basis, and how uncomfortable it is for them to sit down and not distract themselves with external stimuli. If you go into a meditation with the express purpose of changing your internal state, as you would with a breath exercise, you've really already lost the plot, because meditation is about acceptance and witnessing of the present moment as it is.

3

TickTock432 t1_jc05w0h wrote

Replying to pihkal (#2,207,394)

The very modern invention known as ‘Buddhism’ didn’t invent and doesn’t own traditional mindfulness. The practice of mindfulness, of ‘remembering‘, which includes remembering how to properly breathe as we evolved to, extends far back into the mists of time and cross-culturally, noting that even just observing the breath is ’working’ (consciously engaging) with it.

0

sysyphusishappy t1_jc0ipgl wrote

BTW if you want to try pysiological sighs, the specific breathwork that was used in this study but have a deviated septum or other issues breathing through your nose, one of the study's authors Andrew Huberman has said that you can do it just as easily through your mouth as long as you do a double inhale and a longer or more forceful exhale.

1