Pelvic Health & Orthopedic Physical Therapy
Addressing your questions about pelvic, women's, and musculoskeletal health. Health is a journey. Movement is healing!
You’ve been breathing your entire life, filling your lungs and emptying them. It just seems like such a natural act. The way you breathe, however, can contribute to dysfunction in the body. It typically plays a role in low back pain and pelvic floor dysfunction. So let’s discuss the mighty diaphragm in all of its glory. The diaphragm is a muscle in your abdomen. It separates your lungs and heart from the rest of the organs in your abdomen. It also assists in creating a pressure gradient for lung expansion and deflation, allowing you to breathe. The diaphragm has a few passages through it allowing different vessels and structures passage between the split cavity. As the diaphragm contracts it helps to pull the lungs down and expand the chest cavity allowing you to take a breath. As the diaphragm relaxes it recoils, pushing air out of the lungs with exhalation. It may seem like such a small thing, but the way that you breathe can affect other muscular structures. When your breathing pattern is inefficiently utilizing the diaphragm it may have adverse reactions on other structures in your body. This is most evident in individuals presenting to physical therapy for low back pain or pelvic floor dysfunction. Due to inefficient breathing patterns your PT may suggest diaphragmatic breathing. So first thing, gain an awareness for you breathing pattern. Lay on your back flat with both knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Put one hand on your chest and one hand on your belly. Breathe normally for a about a minute. Note: Where do you feel the most movement when you are breathing? Your chest or stomach? Is your breathing quick or slow? Irregular? Now let’s try more targeted diaphragmatic or “big belly” breathing. In the same position (laying on your back flat with knees bent and feet flat on the floor, one hand on your chest, one hand on your stomach) inhale slowly through your nose, focus on sending air to your stomach, and letting the hand on your stomach rise. Exhale slowly through your nose or mouth, letting the hand on your belly fall. Try to focus on using your belly to breath as opposed to moving your chest. This may be more challenging if you noticed you moved a lot in your chest with normal breath patterns. Continue this exercise for 5 minutes a day, every day during the week in this position (You could even turn this into a meditation practice if you want). Try to be more aware of your breathing pattern throughout the day. As you master diaphragmatic breathing you can begin to incorporate it with other exercises as well as in other positions (sitting, standing, walking, hand stand). It is especially important to become proficient in this breathing pattern for those of you who run as it will make you more efficient and reduce those pesky side cramps. Comments are closed.
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AuthorHello! I am Caitlyn, Doctor of Physical Therapy and Board Certified Women's Health Physical Therapist working in St Louis, Missouri. Faculty in developing residency program. Endowarrior Categories
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July 2021
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