What Are the Best Breathing Techniques for Asthma Attacks?

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? Let’s define what Asthma is first before we proceed on how to figure out the best way for you to handle an asthma attack later on.The symptoms of it can happen in different patterns. These patterns can be classified into two categories: the episodic type and frequent episodic type.

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? When a symptom is under the episodic category, this means that the occurrence of asthma will only be occasional. It is a well – defined symptom and often lasts for just a couple of hours. For some people it can last for a few days. Often times, there’s no symptom in between the attacks. What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? When it comes to frequent episodic type as the name state; the frequency of asthma attack typically lasts longer. For most people, it can last for a couple of weeks. In the persistent variety of asthmatic symptoms, the patient will experience such symptoms continuously even if the patient is feeling well.

What’s Your Asthma Type?

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? It can be classified into different categories. It is mostly on the basis of various factors such as the underlying causes; severity factors, history, environmental condition, and the likes. On the basis of onset; it can be a childhood onset asthma, adult onset asthma or senior onset asthma. When it comes to severity: it can be intermittent, mind persistent, moderate persistent and severe persistent. On the basis of the presence or absence of atopy: it can be atopic asthma which is also known as extrinsic asthma or non – atopic asthma which is also known as intrinsic asthma.

On the basis of underlying causes: Asthma can be classified in a variety of way like the exercise induce asthma, drug induce asthma, occupational induce asthma etc. And finally on the basis of control: it can be classified as controlled, fully – controlled, and partially – controlled. Atopy is the predisposition of an individual to produce immunoglobulin E in response to allergen. Atopic individuals usually have a family history of eczema, hay fever or asthma. These individuals have a tendency to produce abnormally high amount of immunoglobulin E resulting in atopy. Allergy, on the other hand, is the clinical presentation of atopy is known as allergy.

Asthma Attacks Breathing Techniques

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? Here’s the thing, people with asthma breathes way more and way quicker compared to people not diagnosed with this. They tend to use their mouths to compensate for the lack of oxygen they need. However, according to doctors it’s much riskier for people with asthma to get triggered when they use their mouths. That is because asthma attacks are usually caused by the cold and dry air coming in and out along with possible irritants that may cause inflammation.

An asthmatic person will be prescribed preventive medicines just like medicated inhalers in order to open up their airways. If you want to lessen using asthma medications, it’s highly recommended that you also supplement it with breathing exercises for you to be able to handle asthma attacks. According to recent research, it showed that breathing exercises significantly improve the quality of life for the patients.

Breathing Techniques

Diaphragmatic Breathing

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? You can do this technique in order to relearn your diaphragm usage. For people with no asthma, they breathe using their chest. But if you have asthma, this exercise slows your breathing which will come in handy if you have an asthma attack, and it also helps regulate blood flow. What you can do is simply lie on your back with your knees bent, or you can also sit straight in a chair. The next step is to place one hand on top of your chest and the other on your abdomen. It’s best if you breathe on your nose, and just keep doing this. Focus on your breathing. When you inhale, the hand on your stomach should move, while the hand on your chest is still. When you exhale, breathe slowly through your mouth, while slightly closed.

Nasal Breathing 

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? If you want to lessen having asthma attack breathing through your nose will surely help and that is due to the fact that the air you breathe will pass through a nasal mucosa. This serves like the filter for the allergens and irritants that can enter your lungs which can reduce the risk of asthma attack. When you breathe through your mouth, nothing filters the air that goes into your lungs.

Papworth Technique

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? The Papworth techique is quite similar to diaphragmatic breathing and the Buteyko breathing. This usually results from a more relaxed and gentler diaphragm breathing especially through the nose. It’s more effective when combined with asthma medications and this can help decrease the need to practice it on a daily basis.

Buteyko Breathing

In 1952, the Buteyko Breathing exercise was developed by Ukrainian Dr. Konstantin Pavlovich Buteyko. The Buteyko Breathing technique is designed to help patients who have trouble breathing at a slow pace. This technique can greatly reduce the number of asthma attacks as well as the dosage needed. What you need to do to implement this is to simply breathe in and out through the nose, slowly and deeply, while focusing on using the diaphragm. You can check this technique if it’s working by using a Control Pause which is a type of breather test.

Yoga Breathing

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? According to research, patients with asthma who practice yoga usually have fewer asthma attacks. It also helped patients to reduce their medication.  But make sure to consult your doctor first regarding changes in your medication. Through the combination of physical movements and deep breathing, yoga may help improve a person’s overall lung health.

Conclusion

What are the best breathing techniques for Asthma? All these breathing techniques can surely help asthmatic patients especially when they get asthma attacks. Make sure to regularly practice these methods so that you can at least reduce the chances and severity of asthma attacks.  This may also help in lessening the use of inhaled medications. However, these exercises may not fully restore your lung health. Make sure that when doing these exercises, your medications are on hand in case of emergencies. It is important to consult your doctor before trying out any of these exercises to ensure your safety.