When Anxiety Takes Your Breath Away: Understanding and Coping with Shortness of Breath

Relieve Anxiety and Shortness of Breath

Anxiety can have a tremendous effect on your daily life. It may make it difficult to focus, and may even make you feel as though you're struggling for breath.

When this occurs, it's a sign that your body is engaged in fight-or-flight mode. This instinctive response shields you from potentially hazardous predators as well as difficult conversations at work.

Fight-or-Flight Response

The fight-or-flight response is a biological instinct designed to help us survive danger. When activated, this response floods the body with hormones and physiological modifications that prepare it for either fighting or fleeing from an imminent threat.

But when this response is activated frequently or falsely by less serious situations, chronic stress can ensue and disrupt our daily lives. This could occur for many reasons such as financial troubles, traffic jams, job worries or troubled relationships.

Thankfully, there are ways to calm and manage the fight-or-flight response so that you can feel more at ease. For instance, learning some breathing techniques, practicing self-care practices and finding social support can all be beneficial in managing this response.

Hyperventilation

When feeling anxious, your breathing may speed up and deepen more than usual. This is part of your body's fight-or-flight response which prepares you for emergency situations or potential threats.

Breathing more rapidly can also be caused by asthma, heart conditions or diabetic ketoacidosis (a life-threatening complication of diabetes). If you are hyperventilating due to anxiety or panic, your doctor may suggest therapy or medication.

At home, you can try several techniques for relaxation such as belly breathing or alternate nostril breathing (cover one nostril and breathe through the other). Additionally, meditation can help slow your breath rate.

Diaphragmatic Breathing

Breathing exercises that emphasize diaphragmatic breathing can be beneficial for alleviating anxiety and shortness of breath. Diaphragmatic breathing may even benefit people with asthma.

When we feel anxious, we tend to take shallow, quick-intake breaths from our chests. Unfortunately, these breaths disrupt the normal balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide within the body which may manifest physically as a rapid heart rate, muscle tension, or dizziness.

Deep breathing can reduce feelings of stress and enhance circulation in the body. Additionally, it triggers endorphins which reduce pain and lift moods.

Diaphragmatic breathing can be beneficial for anyone, including those suffering from chronic lung conditions like emphysema or COPD. However, it should never replace other treatment methods or therapies prescribed by a doctor.

Self-Care

Self-care is an integral component of mental health. It could just involve taking a moment to breathe deeply and relax, or it could involve learning a new skill or engaging in meditation.

If you're struggling with anxiety or shortness of breath, self-care can be a key tool in combatting the issue. While it may not be easy, taking care of yourself is necessary for long-term success.

Though it may seem counterintuitive, taking a break from the situation that's causing your anxiety can be beneficial. For instance, if someone else is angry or yelled at by you, try going to another room or doing something completely different to give yourself some space and perspective.

Self-care can be practiced in various ways, such as mindfulness exercises, deep breathing techniques and soothing yoga sequences. When feeling anxious, engage in movement like tai chi or walking - the benefits of which will help focus on the present moment instead of allowing your thoughts to race ahead.