Shallow breathing sends a signal of “fight or flight” to the body. This pattern of breathing is where the chest and shoulders are what primarily move when you inhale. Our bodies are designed to have a shallow breath when we are in trouble, like in the case of being chased by a tiger. In today’s world that tiger has been replaced by fear from events that create stress in our lives. Most of the time, it’s the “what if” that is triggering the stress and not a a real situation. The problem is the body doesn’t know the difference. All it knows is that the brain is sending a signal of “distress” and it needs to put into action the plan to save the body. What does that plan mean? Along with with shallow breaths, the heart starts beating faster, the muscles tense and a series of hormonal changes and physiological responses happen, to prepare for quick reaction to life threatening situations. This is all meant to take place for short spurts of time when we are in physical danger. The problem is when these changes occur for extended periods of time, it takes a toll on the body. It can lead to high blood pressure and clogging of the arteries, which is a mechanism designed to prevent us from losing too much blood in case of being cut in an attack. There are changes in the brain, which if extended over long periods of time, can lead to anxiety and/or depression. And ultimately imbalance and disharmony in the body occurs and the environment for disease is created. Breathing shallow has become a habitual way of breathing for many of us, without us knowing it’s been happening. It’s never too late to change that old habit. Start making belly breathing your new habit. Be deliberate about it. Keep practicing and you will find yourself breathing like that spontaneously after a few weeks of practice. Go to January 17, 2019 in my blog if you need help on how to start your belly breathing practice. And as always, feel free to e-mail me if you have any questions.