Most people know that taking deep breaths helps the nervous system. However, do you know the science behind it and that how we breathe is also important?

Inhalation: Preparing for the “Fight or Flight”

When you inhale it activates the sympathetic nervous system, the one responsible for fight or flight responses. This means the heart rate increases. However, when you exhale it suppresses the sympathetic nervous system responses and calms the nervous system. 

Why is this important? Because a lot of people in a stressful state don’t even realize that they are holding their breath or breathing in a shallow way. However, when you exhale your heart rate slows down and there’s calming for your nervous system.

So, the longer you can exhale, the better. 

Teaching Breathing for Self-Regulation

There are many strategies for teaching children to breathe (balloon breathing, 5-fingered breathing, star breathing, dragon breathing, etc.). You can search many of these ways and find helpful visuals to use with children. However, many of the breathing strategies we teach children give equal time to the inhale and exhale. This is certainly better than nothing, but if you can teach them to extend their exhale, you can do more for their nervous systems.

Sigh for a Reset

If you need a quick reset, you can ask children to sigh. We often do this naturally already, but make it intentional and do 2 to 3 of them, and that will help the nervous system.

What About Children Who Won’t Try Breathing?

For some children the suggestion of a strategy can be more of a trigger than a useful idea, and I have found that deep breaths tends to be a relatively common one. Why is that when we know it works? I suspect that it’s because it’s often presented as a “cure-all” to bad feelings and some children just have resistance to anything that is suggested by someone else because any request is perceived as a threat. But, I also wonder if they have never breathed in a way that is actually calming to them (shallow, longer inhale than exhale). 

Here are some strategies that can get them breathing without realizing they are even doing it:

Deep Breathing With Toys

Toys don’t usually feel like strategies, so anytime you can be playful that’s a plus!

Not only are these fun, they often encourage deep breathing with a longer exhalation. 

Pinwheels

Bubbles

Straws 

Balloons

The downside to these strategies is that they require materials and if a child is on the verge of a meltdown in a grocery store these aren’t usually going to be readily available. They can be part of a self-regulation kit in a school or home, however.

Teach the Biology of Breathing

Many children will respond better to the strategies we teach when they understand the science behind them. In fact, often making references to the body, as opposed to “them” and their behavior or personality, can help some children be more open to suggestions of strategies. If you are looking for a program that helps teach children about their nervous system, check out the Brain Executive program. 

Model Deep Breaths

You don’t even need to ask a child to take a deep breath, they may automatically do it if they see you do it (thanks to mirror neurons, brain cells that like to mimic what other people do). Don’t talk about it, just do it. 

Deep breaths are powerful for the nervous system, even if they don’t include a long exhalation. Sometimes we need to teach deep breathing in different ways so children can learn how helpful they are, and learn to breathe in a way that is most effective for their nervous system.