Top 5 Fridays! 5 Important Aspects of Breathing

My studies with Better Physiology and their Capnotrainer have been very enlightening. They made me look at breathing more objectively (literally with the Capnotrainer).

Here are 5 Important Aspects of Breathing

1) Location

where is the majority of breathing coming from?
sternal breathers

has been associated with headaches and neck pain

belly breathers

not the only thing that you should stress
along with anterior movement of the abdomen, there should be lateral and posterior rib expansion, indicating good thoracic mobility

2) Rhythmicity

what is the breathing rate?
without a capnograph, there is no objective method for knowing the patient's PECO2 levels
with practice you will be able to find a rate of breathing that may help relieve the patient's complaints, anxiety, etc

3) Transitions

there should be a pause between the inhale and exhale
the exhale, in particular should have a pause at the end prior to inhalation
otherwise the exhalation is aborted, and this often raises lower PECO2 levels

4) Control

inhalation should be active, but not overactive (accessory muscle use at rest)
exhalation should be passive
have the patient close their eyes and concentrate on their breathing in a relaxing position to start
have them really pay attention to whether or not there is effort with exhalation
I was even surprised to note my exhalation was active

5) Depth

many overbreathers are compensating with improper brain stem regulation
as a result of anxiety, stress, or being in a sympathetic state, the brain strem tries to regular breathing by slowing down breath
this increases oxygenation, and lowers PECO2, thus causing a hypocapnic state
often, increasing the rate, and/or decreasing the depth of breath, will actually improve a patient's complaints