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Breathe and exhale.
We do it about 20,000 times a day. Each can be considered as another small opportunity to decompress.
The retired American swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian in history, knows it well. Although breathing is a crucial part of swimming, Mr. Phelps said he discovered, outside the pool, how breathing techniques can improve mental health.
Phelps – who is currently working with Colgate to encourage people to save water – said that he had learned to take a deep breath when he was upset or stressed in the course of a job. The panoply of strategies that he used to calm down, relax and go through difficult times. The gold medalist 23 times is open on his struggles in mental health. Prior to the 2016 Olympics, he had spoken frankly about his fight against depression, which was sometimes so debilitating that he did not want to get up from bed or leave his room several days in a row.
"I did not want to be alive anymore," he told Business Insider.
Phelps is now trying to teach his kids to master the breathing techniques that helped him – but much earlier.
His eldest son, Boomer, is now 2 years old and quickly understood one of Phelps' hottest tips: "We teach him a lion's breath," Phelps said.
The "lion's breath" is a technique often used in yoga classes: it consists in breathing deeply, holding the air for a second, then letting out an exhalation similar to a roar. Sometimes people pull their tongues, extend their faces and decongest the jaw during this spectacular exhalation.
"When he's frustrated, [he’ll] try to take a deep breath, and almost take a step back, and rethink everything or use his words instead of throwing a tantrum and just let his emotions express themselves, "said Phelps of Boomer. Just be open, do not let any compartmentalize and just build, because it will be just a gigantic bomb that will explode at any moment. "
This breathing awareness strategy is based on a lot of scientific data.
Breath awareness can help people calm down and focus
The physician and psychiatrist Dan Siegel, executive director of Mindsight Institute in California, is the author of more than a dozen books on the development of the conscious brain. He says that the work of breathing helps to regulate our autonomic nervous system, a complex network of pathways that extends from our brain to our body. The system regulates things like blood pressure, sexual arousal and metabolism.
"Breath awareness is an important avenue for self-regulation," said Siegel.
When we inhale, we accelerate, thus accelerating the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system. Expire, it's more like hitting the brakes, activating the parasympathetic branch.
"Increasing the duration of the expiry, either by holding it back, or by extending the duration of expiration, is increasing parasympathetic activation," Siegel said. "And it can be really good to reach a state of calm and relaxation."
Boomer Phelps seems to have already mastered this concept.
"He tells me to take a lion's breath sometimes," said Phelps, adding that it had happened just the other day, while he and Boomer were playing golf.
"It was pretty amazing." I was just a little upset, and he looked at me and he said, "Dad, inspire yourself," he said. said Phelps. "I was like, you gotta make fun of me, this kid is not even three years old."
Siegel pointed out that as Boomer becomes aware of the situation and regulates his breathing in this way, he could create new connections and encourage pathways in his developing brain that can help him better control his emotions. to come up.
"Studies have shown that the more a child, adolescent or adult is aware of his inner life – feelings, sensations of his body and mind – the more he is able to regulate these things," he said. -he declares. .
Some small-scale studies have even suggested that mindfulness-centered breathing meditation may be as effective (or more effective) than drugs for treating ADHD.
How to start your own breathing practice
Siegel practices what he preaches: every morning, he says, he does the work of breath that promotes Wim Hof, an extreme athlete from the Netherlands. This technique involves several cycles of about 30 active and passive inspirations. The idea is to take more oxygen with each breath, breathing more and more deeply as you go.
If you want to try this type of breathing practice, Siegel suggests doing it in the morning, before going to work or to school. On his website, he shares a 11-minute guided breath awareness practice.
But before attempting, a warning: The awareness of breathing is not without risk. For some people, especially those who have experienced trauma, chronic stress or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), respiratory work can cause anxiety and trigger an emotional flow.
"It does not mean that they should not do it," Siegel said. "It simply means that they should be very kind to themselves and patients."
Some people may want to start a practice simply by watching their breath, without trying to lengthen it.
Phelps pledges to teach his children mental health
For Phelps, the breathing technique, combined with therapy sessions that helped him learn to communicate his feelings, literally saved lives.
"That's why I'm here today, it's about being able to afford to be vulnerable," Phelps said. "It's something I live with and live with all my life."
Phelps said that he was grateful for the lessons that he had removed from the therapy.
"I'm kidding about learning communication at age 30, but that's true," Phelps said. "It's something I've learned and I'm very grateful to have learned it at this age."
He wants his two toddlers to develop their communication and breathing skills much earlier. The same goes for the third baby Phelps, who is due to give birth this fall.
"The idea of becoming aware of your breath or controlling it a bit, that's great," Dr. Siegel said of Phelps' efforts. "I think it looks fantastic."
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