Diaphragmatic Breathing

What is Diaphragmatic Breathing?

The diaphragm is a dome-shaped muscle beneath your lungs. When it contracts, it moves down and gently pushes the belly outward, drawing air deep into the lungs. Under chronic stress, many people stop using it fully and breathe with the neck and chest muscles instead — a pattern that keeps the body on alert.

Diaphragmatic breathing retrains this. It is the safest technique for absolute beginners, during panic, for children and older adults.

How to do Diaphragmatic Breathing, step by step

1. Lie on your back with knees bent, or sit upright. Place one hand on your chest and one on your belly.
2. Breathe in through your nose for about 4 seconds. The belly hand should rise; the chest hand should stay almost still.
3. Breathe out slowly for about 6 seconds through gently pursed lips or the nose. Feel the belly fall.
4. Keep the breath relaxed — no forcing the belly out.
5. Practise 5–10 minutes, 2–3 times a day, until it becomes your natural way of breathing.

What the science says

An 8-week study found that adults who practised diaphragmatic breathing showed improved sustained attention, less negative mood and lower salivary cortisol (a stress hormone) compared with a control group (Ma et al., 2017). The gentle movement of the diaphragm also massages the abdominal organs and stimulates the vagus nerve, which is why belly breathing is commonly recommended for stress-related digestive discomfort.

Benefits of Diaphragmatic Breathing

Tips for better practice

• Place a light book on your belly while lying down — watch it rise and fall.
• If your chest still moves a lot, slow down and breathe less, not more.
• Loosen tight belts or waistbands.

Safety notes

Frequently asked questions

References

1. Ma X. et al. (2017). The effect of diaphragmatic breathing on attention, negative affect and stress in healthy adults. Frontiers in Psychology.
2. Russo M.A. et al. (2017). The physiological effects of slow breathing in the healthy human. Breathe.