Hi friends! Today, I want to share what I learned in Pulmonary Rehab in my first week, relaxation techniques. The information I got was stuff I already knew, as I’ve been using most of them for almost a decade and/or learned about them in school. Refreshers are always good reminders, though. If you missed last week, where I talked about the other going ons, you can find it here.
Fight or Flight
So, you’ve probably heard about the fight or flight response throughout your life. Basically, it is your body’s response to stressful situations. How does this relate to lung disease? I’m glad you asked. When you have a hard time breathing, your body gets stressed, anxious, and has other typical biological responses, which in turn lead to having a harder time breathing. It’s a vicious cycle. If you’ve ever struggled to breathe, you know what I mean.
The following techniques can help you with those symptoms, help calm you down, and as a result, help with breathing.
Relaxation Technique 1
The first thing we talked about in class was diaphragmatic breathing: what it is, the muscles used, when to use the technique, and how to practice. In short, it’s using your diaphragm (or belly) to breathe. This is something I needed to relearn a few years ago, as I had started chest breathing when I first got sick. Chest breathing messed me up physically for a while, so I make a conscious effort to breathe with my diaphragm on a regular basis.
Relaxation Technique 2
I know this one as square breathing, but in Pulmonary Rehab, it was called deep breathing. This technique helps slow you’re breathing and calm you down.
- Breathe in slowly for at least 5 seconds. Pay attention to the air filling your lungs.
- Hold your breath for 5-10 seconds. Don’t let this get uncomfortable.
- Let the breath out slowly for 5-10 seconds.
- Repeat until you feel calm.
Relaxation Technique 3
Imagery. If you’ve been working on mindfulness, you’ve definitely heard about this one. With this relaxation technique, you go to your happy place and your brain has an emotional reaction based off those thoughts. Happy places give happy brain chemicals.
I’ve been using this technique off and on for years and prefer to do guided imagery. I need something to focus on and someone’s voice can do that for me. There are tons of different ones on the internet, so if you want to try this technique, find one you like and give it a shot.
Relaxation Technique 4
The 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Grounding Technique is pretty interesting. You take a breath and use your five senses to bring yourself into the present. The more detailed the better.
- Five things you can see
- Four things you can touch
- Three things you can hear
- Two things you can smell
- One thing you can taste
Relaxation Technique 5
This one I use often, mostly to fall asleep at night. Progressive Muscle Relaxation. With this technique, you go through your body strategically tensing and relaxing groups of muscles. The goal is to relax, but also to notice how the muscle groups feel after relaxing. There are also a ton of these on the internet, so find one you like and give it a shot.
So, how’d you do with the exercise portion?
Thanks for asking. On Tuesday, I walked on the treadmill for nearly an hour at 1.6 mph. My stats stayed good throughout, so that’s good. My bursitis was pretty aggravated afterward, so I was sore. I’ll note it for next time. I did have shortness of breath despite being on a 0% incline. Speed does it for me too.
On Thursday, I woke up not being able to move well. I slept on my side for a bit and my bursitis acted up, so I did the arm machine for the majority of an hour. Now, I did take a few breaks because my shoulders were feeling the burn. Weakness and old injuries don’t help either. I had little shortness of breath and numbers looked good.
I am the youngest one here and from what I was told I’m in the best shape ability wise. So not the typical patient. Most of the staff have either worked with me or have heard of me though. I got a kick out of that, but years of PFTs, 6 minute walks, and everything else that goes along with treatment of lung diseases it makes sense.
Remember to take care of yourselves and be safe out there! Seeyalaterbye <3
Also, if you feel called to help a sista out with her travels, check this out!
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