Our breathing is something often overlooked, but such an amazing way to tap into what's going on with our body and mind. Think about this - what is your breathing like when you're stressed out or nervous? Its most likely shallow and rapid. What about when you're laying on the beach or chillin' with Netflix? Probably much slower...unless you're watching something intense. It would be nice to access that slow, calm breathing anytime, right? You're in luck! You can actually teach yourself to do just that with breath control.
What is Breath Control?
Pranayama, a Sanskrit term translated to "mastery of the life force" (prana) or "breath control", is part of the 8 limbs from yogic traditions dating back thousands of years. With breath control, we can access our nervous system, connect to the present, and be tuned into the state of our body, mind, and spirit.
Benefits of Pranayama for Headache Management
When I recommend breath work to my headache clients, its to help them learn to self-regulate and bring daily stress levels down to a more manageable level. If you know that your headaches are triggered by stress, poor posture, and/or muscle tension in your neck, Pranayama can be a simple first step to help address those triggers.
Breath sends oxygen to every cell in the body but it can't efficiently do that if we aren't using the entire torso to breathe. Most of us have posture issues due to sitting all day, so our diaphragms are rarely fully engaged in breathing - even less so if we live in high stress situations constantly. Yogic breath helps bring awareness to our posture.
Once Pranayama becomes part of your daily life, you'll be alerted to your poor posture quicker and pay attention to it more often. You'll feel inclined to sit taller for deeper breath. Slow and controlled breathing also calms the stress response (fight or flight) by activating the vagus nerve of the sympathetic nervous system and relaxes the muscles in your chest & neck. These muscles are constantly contracting with fast, shallow breathing from anxiety and stress. If you get more frequent or intense headaches when those muscles are tight, your breathing may be part of the problem. Good news! You can learn breathing techniques to help control the way you respond to stress in your life. In turn, this can help you manage the potential causes of your headaches.
If you want to learn the breathing styles that I recommend for people living with Migraine and persistent headaches due to stress (along with other relaxation techniques), check out my on-demand program Resilient with Migraine!
About the Author:
Tiffany Lord, E-RYT & Yoga Therapeutic Specialist
Corporate Wellness Coach
Resilience + Stress Management Expert
As the founder of Love + Asana, I help busy professionals feel more resilient and and increase agency in their wellness. This all-levels, accessible approach to physical and mental health at work allows employees to easily learn and implement healthy habits during their work day…and feel the benefits ripple out into all areas of life
Since 2016, I’ve had the honor of coaching thousands of employees through virtual sessions and workshops focused on relaxation techniques, mindset, and mobility. My wellness articles have been featured in fyi50+, CO Yoga + Life, and I’m the author of three “Get With Gratitude” journals based on my online workshop series for resilience through a grateful mindset.
I completed a 200-hour training through CorePower Yoga and received my 500-hour Therapeutic Specialist certificate through Yoga Medicine to complement my background in massage therapy and Bachelor’s Degree in International Business with Cum Laude honors from the University of Colorado at Denver. As a Continuing Education Provider with the Yoga Alliance, I share my knowledge of functional movement and the mind-body connection with yoga instructors wanting to deepen their teaching toolkit.
Questions? Contact Tiffany at loveandasana@gmail.com