Can Deep Breathing Be the Secret to Easing Your Lipedema?
Plus! Seven other ways diaphragmatic breathing helps your body.
Deep breathing is one of the long-lost methods of maintaining health. Forget about a formal meditation practice. Sitting quietly and taking 20 deep breaths is enough to improve so many aspects of your lipedema wellness (and honestly, to sit and take 20 deep breaths is, in itself, a meditation practice).
Before this article ends, I aim to convince you to take at least four deep breaths. I know you can do it!
Whenever I’ve had manual lymphatic drainage, whether through my physical therapist or massage therapist, they’ve always started me out by taking long, deep belly breaths. My massage therapist also presses on my belly as I exhale to activate my lymphatic system.
Breath is our life essence and the most natural way to improve our health.
Breath is what keeps us alive and is one of the easiest ways to stay healthy. By taking slow, deep breaths, we help our bodies get more oxygen, feel less stressed, keep our hearts and lungs strong, and keep our lymphatics moving. Breathing deeply also helps us feel calm and happy. It's a simple way to take care of ourselves every day.
Benefits of Diaphragmatic Breathing for the Lymph System
Increased Circulation: Deep breathing improves circulation, which helps move lymph fluid. The lymphatic system relies on body movement, muscle contractions, and pressure changes (like those from deep breathing) to move lymph, as it doesn’t have a central pump like the heart in the circulatory system.
Pressure on Lymphatic Ducts: The thoracic duct, the largest lymphatic vessel, is located near the diaphragm. As the diaphragm contracts and relaxes during deep breathing, it exerts pressure on the thoracic duct, encouraging the flow of lymph fluid into the bloodstream, where it is filtered and processed.
Enhanced Detoxification: The increased movement of lymph fluid helps the body to remove waste products and toxins more efficiently.
Deep breathing helps lipedema and lymphedema by acting as a natural pump for the lymphatic system, promoting better lymphatic drainage and potentially reducing fluid retention.
Other Deep Breathing Benefits
Improving digestion
Reducing Anxiety.
Improving Depression.
Managing stress.
Improving focus.
Better sleep.
Faster recovery from exercise or exertion.
Using the 5-5-5 Breathing Technique.
On average, adults take 12-20 breaths per minute at rest.
Deep breaths are longer and slower, taking about 4-5 breaths per minute. You must be more mindful of this way because we aren’t used to breathing this deep and slow.
Here's the process:
Inhale: Breathe in slowly through your nose for a count of 5. Take in as much air as possible to fill your lungs.
Hold: Hold your breath for a count of 5.
Exhale: Breathe out slowly through your nose or mouth for a count of 5. Let go of as much air as you’re able to empty the lungs.
Repeat: Repeat the process three more times for four cycles.
Now, here’s the challenge: Use the next one minute and take those deep breaths. Go ahead, I’ll wait for you!
Here’s a timer to help if you need it.
How does it feel? Good? Bad? Nothing at all? No matter, your body is thanking you right now.
So, how does deep breathing work on the body? For those who like to know the physiology behind the process, Here’s a 10-Step Breakdown:
1. Diaphragm Contraction and Descent: When you take a deep breath, the diaphragm contracts and moves downward. This downward movement creates more space in the thoracic cavity to expand the lungs.
2. Increased Intra-abdominal Pressure: As the diaphragm moves downward, it increases intra-abdominal pressure . This pressure gently massages the intestines, helping to move gas and contents through the digestive tract.
3. Activation of the Parasympathetic Nervous System: The deep breath stimulates the vagus nerve, which runs from the brainstem to the abdomen. This calms the nervous system, promotes relaxation, and reduces stress.
(Have you ever had hiccups and been told to take deep breaths or hold your breath? This activity stimulates the vagus nerve and calms hiccup spasms).
4. Improved Gas Exchange: With the lungs fully expanded, oxygen diffuses more effectively from the alveoli into the bloodstream, while carbon dioxide is expelled more efficiently during exhalation. This improves overall oxygenation of the body’s tissues and organs.
5. Enhanced Circulation: The rhythmic movement of the diaphragm during deep breathing helps to improve blood flow. The negative pressure in the thoracic cavity during inhalation aids in drawing blood back to the heart.
6. Enhanced Blood Flow to Digestive Organs: Deep breathing increases the efficiency of the circulatory system by improving oxygenation and promoting blood return to the heart. Better circulation means more blood is delivered to the digestive organs, including the stomach, intestines, and liver.
7. Activation of the Lymphatic System: The diaphragm’s movement during deep breathing is a natural pump for the lymphatic system, which lacks a central pump like the heart. As I mentioned above, it relies on muscle contractions and body movements to circulate lymph fluid throughout the body.
9. Promotion of Relaxation Response: Diaphragmatic breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system, shifting the body from "fight or flight" to "rest and digest." This helps with digestion, anxiety, and stress.
10. Exhalation and Diaphragm Relaxation: During exhalation, the diaphragm relaxes and moves back up into its dome shape, reducing the volume of the thoracic cavity and forcing air out of the lungs.
This passive process allows the body to expel carbon dioxide and prepare for the next inhalation. The cycle of contraction and relaxation of the diaphragm during breathing helps maintain a balanced and efficient respiratory system.
Diaphragmatic breathing can lead to improved oxygenation, reduced stress, enhanced cardiovascular and digestive health, boosted immune function, better mental clarity, emotional regulation, increased respiratory efficiency, pain management, and regulation of major body organs. These benefits contribute to overall health and well-being, making diaphragmatic breathing a powerful tool for holistic health.
Fad Diets Based on Breathwork?
As I was searching the internet, I found this funny (not meant to be, but I laughed) video called The Japanese Long Breath Diet that I have to share with you. Japanese actor-turned-self-proclaimed diet guru Miki Ryosuke championed this quick-fix hack. I’m not endorsing any of it; there’s no direct evidence that this method works. This is for entertainment purposes only:
Take care and keep breathing!
Michelle