Bringing PHOBIAS Under Control

Watch Your Breathing!

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You Can Manage Stress!

SOME social phobics are able to reduce the intensity of their physical symptoms by giving attention to their breathing. At first, this might sound strange. After all, everyone knows how to breathe! But experts say that many people with anxiety problems do not breathe properly. Often, their breathing is too shallow, too fast, or too much from the chest.

Practice inhaling and exhaling slowly. Breathing through the nose rather than through the mouth will make this easier. Also, learn to breathe from the diaphragm, since breathing from your upper chest increases your risk of hyperventilating. To test yourself in this regard, when standing up, place one hand above your waist and the other in the middle of your chest. While breathing, notice which hand is moving more. If it is the hand on your chest, you need to practice breathing from the diaphragm.

Of course, not every breath has to come from the diaphragm. (The normal ratio of diaphragm-to-chest breaths is about 4 to 1, but this will vary at times.) And a word of caution is appropriate: Those with chronic respiratory conditions—such as emphysema or asthma—should see a doctor before adopting new breathing techniques.

Appeared in Awake! July 22, 1998