Watch a sleeping baby. The baby’s belly will rise
and fall with each breath. Diaphragmatic or belly breathing is natural
and effortless. However, sometime in childhood we lose our relaxed belly
breath and start to breathe shallowly into the chest. Unfortunately,
using shallow chest breathing for long periods of time creates tension
in the body, limits the ability to take in oxygen, and causes fatigue.
We know that life begins with the first breath and ends with the last.
But it is how we breathe in between the first and the last that greatly
impacts how well we live this life.
For more information about this and other subjects
related to preparing for childbirth,
read Motherwell Maternity Fitness
Plan by Bonnie Berk, RN.
