Diaphragmatic breathing is sometimes referred to as belly, deep, relaxed, or abdominal breathing. It optimizes use of the main muscle of breathing, the diaphragm, resulting in slower, deeper breathing. It can be an important skill in a patient’s self-management toolbox. With practice, most clinicians can teach it to their patients in 5-10 minutes.

In contrast to shallow breathing, diaphragmatic breathing is marked by expansion of the abdomen rather than the chest during the in breath. With shallow breathing, also known as thoracic or chest breathing, minimal breath is drawn into the lungs, usually through the use of the intercostal muscles and not the diaphragm. When lung expansion occurs lower in the body, breathing is described as “deep” and corresponds with observed or felt movement of the abdomen outward with inhalation. For use of this technique in chronic pain self-management, refer to “Diaphragmatic Breathing to Assist with Self-Management of Pain.”

Ways Diaphragmatic Breathing Can Be Useful

Diaphragmatic breathing:

• Shifts a person from a place of passivity to a place of activity; they are “doing something” about their symptoms
• Introduces training in increasing calm and relaxation
• Provides a simple way to quiet high-arousal states caused by pain or other symptoms and the emotions that it elicits
• Is extremely portable
• Costs nothing except an initial investment of time
• Can be used to manage other life stressors
• Can be used during difficult procedures, such as injections, imaging studies, etc.
• Provides a positive distraction
• Can be used to interrupt negative patterns of thought
• Demonstrates that clinicians consider non-pharmacologic interventions important for health