Diaphragmatic, or belly breathing, is a way of deep breathing that’s controlled by a large muscle in our abdomen called the diaphragm. Belly breathing can be incredibly useful at helping a child get calm in a moment of crisis. In this post, we will review steps for belly breathing, as well as video demonstrations to help kids master the technique.
When we take air in through our noses, it travels into our lungs. If you take a shallow breath, only the chest cavity expands. Breathing deeply involves more of your body — the diaphragm contracts and both the belly and chest cavity expand.
When you are calm, your body is in "rest mode". The goal of belly or balloon breathing is to get your body back into rest mode. When modeling how to do belly breathing with your child, you should make sure to place your hand on your own belly. Take note of how your hand (and belly) rise and fall.
This video is two minutes in length and walks kids through the technique step by step:
Rosita demonstrates the technique of belly breathing and explains a situation in which she wanted to use the technique to calm down:
Watch Elmo sing and dance as he learns to belly breathe:
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