Yourdiaphragmis a muscle that sits at the bottom of your lungs to help you breathe deeply.

During normal inhalation, your diaphragm tightens and moves downward.

During normal exhalation, the diaphragm relaxes and moves upward in the chest cavity.

A woman is breathing with hands on her chest and belly.

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This article discusses what diaphragmatic breathing is, how to perform it, and tips for getting started.

What Is Diaphragmatic Breathing?

Diaphragmatic breathing teaches you to breathe deeper into your belly, rather than taking shallow breaths in your chest.

As you breathe out, your body gets rid of a waste product called carbon dioxide.

This bang out of breathing often shows up when you are understress.

Is It Effective?

How to Perform Diaphragmatic Breathing

Proper diaphragmatic breathing can take some time to learn.

In the beginning, practice diaphragmatic breathing laying down.

Once you’ve mastered the technique, you might do it just about anywhere.

Diaphragmatic Breathing Exercises

Once you’ve mastered basic diaphragmatic breathing, try these variations.

Risks of Diaphragmatic Breathing

Diaphragmatic breathing is not typically harmful.

Once you’ve got the technique down, find ways to incorporate it into your daily schedule.

Summary

Diaphragmatic breathing, or belly breathing, is a deep breathing technique.

This jot down of breathing increases the amount of oxygen delivered from your lungs to your blood.

Diaphragmatic breathing triggers a response in your body that can decrease stress and lower blood pressure.

In the beginning, you might need to schedule deep breathing practice sessions.

However, over time, deep breathing can become second nature.

Ideally, you should incorporate diaphragmatic breathing throughout your day.

Practice sessions only need to last a few minutes at a time.

Diaphragm weakness can cause shortness of breath at rest and with activity.

You might also feel tired most of the time and have difficulty sleeping.

Harvard Health Publishing.Learning diaphragmatic breathing.

Harvard Health Publishing.Understanding the stress response.

2020;7(10):65. doi:10.3390%2Fmedicines7100065