Mindfulness and Relaxation Breathing

Objective A: Learn about the impact, benefits, and practice of relaxation breathing and mindfulness.
Objective B: Acquire the ability to use relaxation breathing and mindfulness on demand.

Essential Role of Breathing: Breathing is fundamental to life and plays a crucial role in anxiety.
Physiological Impact: An elevated breathing rate triggers various physiological changes, often noticed during fright (gasping, breathlessness, light-headedness, tingling sensations).
Anxious Breathing: Normally, there's a balance between oxygen intake and carbon dioxide exhalation, maintaining efficient body function. During anxiety, this balance is disrupted.
- Hyperventilation/Overbreathing: Taking in more oxygen than the body needs.
- Symptoms: This imbalance leads to chemical changes, causing dizziness, light-headedness, confusion, breathlessness, blurred vision, increased heart rate, numbness/tingling in extremities, cold/clammy hands, and muscle stiffness.
- Normal Rate: The typical breathing rate is 10-12 breaths per minute.
Dangers of Chronic Overbreathing: While not inherently dangerous and even used in medical testing, continuous overbreathing can lead to exhaustion, make individuals