What is abdominal breathing?

I always recommend abdominal or diaphragmatic breathing to all of my patients. This is a method where you lie on your back and practice breathing with your stomach, not your chest. Prolonged chest breathing causes improper activation of the diaphragm. Many people these days have altered chest breathing patterns, and the main causes are stress and core weakness.
The best benefits from abdominal breathing are almost always psychological and emotional. If you can find a quiet spot and focus on breathing in through your nose and inflating your stomach for about 10 minutes; most people start to experience a sense of well-being and calmness. This exercise can be extremely effective for stopping panic attacks. Doing this exercise daily will moderate your cortisol levels, and keep them much more regulated.
Ok, how do you abdominal breathe? The best way is to lay on your back with your knees bent and feet on the floor. Place your hands over your belly button and attempt to inflate your stomach against the weight of your hands. A few tries and you should get the feel of this. Again, this is a DAILY exercise to regulate your body! So leave the computer and go try to relax and breathe!