If you are recovering from an illness or struggling with your breath in general, physiotherapy can be your best bet. We often do not notice but our breath is our life force. Breathing is something we tend to take for granted most of the time. However, when we face any difficulty in breathing then we notice it.

Paying attention to your breathing and seeing how healthy and natural it is can help you to a great extent. It can improve your body functions and also enhance the quality of your life. It can greatly help you improve your breath without much effort.

Unlike the general belief, physiotherapy is not only meant for injuries or sports rehab. It makes a highly effective treatment for your lung function, and can help improve breathing.

Before we see how physiotherapy treatment can help you improve your breathing, let us explore why breathing is so important and deserves your attention.

The Importance of Breath

You may not know but breathing affects your every cell. The reason is that oxygen powers all your organs including your brain, muscles, and immune system. If your breath is not healthy it can lead to a number of health problems such as sleep disturbance, brain fog, anxiety, panic attacks, back pain and added risk of respiratory issues.

That is why you need to pay attention to your breath. Improving your breathing will help you enjoy optimal health as it will enable all your organs to perform at their best. It will not only enhance your lung health but boost your energy levels, and emotional health as well.

Physiotherapy Vs. Traditional Therapies for Improving Breathing

While there are a number of treatments and therapies that can help you with breathing, physiotherapy holds an important place. Unlike other treatments, it is a natural and safe approach that helps you improve your respiratory function and also allow you to enjoy added benefits.

Traditional treatments focus on controlling symptoms and progression of disease while physiotherapy has a unique approach. Therapies such as medication, bronchodilators, corticosteroids, and mucolytics, together with oxygen therapy are typically used Respiratory physiotherapy, on the other hand, takes a long-term approach. Using techniques such as breathing exercises, airway clearance methods and pulmonary rehabilitation, your physiotherapist focuses on strengthening respiratory muscles, reduce breathing, improve lung capacity, and lessen breathlessness.

You can say that physiotherapy bridges the gap between management that employs medication and complete. Not only does it help you manage your breathing through professional session but it also trains you to take control of your breathing, which helps you have long term relief.

Types of Breathing Problems

You should make use of physiotherapy if you have breathing difficulty. It can help people with problems such as:

·       Bronchitis

·       Asthma

·       Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

·       Emphysema

·       Cystic fibrosis

·       Post-COVID Recovery

·       Post-Surgical Patients

·       Breathing problems caused by conditions such as stroke, Parkinson’s disease, and spinal cord injuries

Physiotherapy for Better Breathing

While physiotherapists work to improve your musculoskeletal and neurological health, they also help improve breathing. Using a number of techniques they will allow you to improve your respiratory health. Physiotherapy for breathing may include exercises and other techniques to:

• Increase your lung capacity
• Clear mucus and congestion
• Reduce shortness of breath
• Improve movement of diaphragm
• Make respiratory muscles stronger
• Have improved better breathing patterns
• 
  

Physiotherapy Techniques For Improving Breathing

Here are some of the common techniques that your physiotherapy may use in order to treat your breathing problem:

Diaphragmatic Breathing Training

This physiotherapy exercise will help increases oxygen exchange, lessen heart rate, blood pressure, and improve lung function. It will also help promote relaxation.

Stretching and Posture Correction

Poor posture can limit lung extension and with physiotherapy you will be able to improve your breathing. Chest-opening stretches, shoulder and thoracic mobility exercises and additional postural education you will be able to improve lung capacity and breathing efficiency as it will help our lungs have added space for expansion.

Inspiratory Muscle Training

This technique involves resistance devices which can help you strengthen the muscles used in inhalation. It will help increase respiratory strength, have improved oxygen delivery to muscles and also lessen fatigue while you move around.

Pursed-Lip Breathing

Patients with asthma and COPD can benefit from this type of physiotherapy technique. It helps slows down your breathing rate, reduce breathlessness, keep airways open for more time and also help improve exhalation.

Airway Clearance Techniques

For patients with excess mucus, physiotherapy techniques such as postural drainage, percussion and vibration and active cycle breathing can be helpful.

Benefits of Physiotherapy for Breathing Problems

Physiotherapy, without doubt, is loaded with benefits for people with breathing problems. Here are some of the great advantages of this treatment for breathing issues:

·       Better lung capacity and stamina

·       Less shortness of breath

·       Improved sleep

·       Lesser snoring

·       Easier mucus clearance

·       Reduced dependence on inhalers

Final Thoughts

Knowing how important your breath is you must not ignore its health and make sure your breathing is as healthy as possible. Healthy breathing means a healthy body.

Whether you are suffering from asthma or any other chronic respiratory condition, recovering from illness, or want to improve your athletic performance, physiotherapy can do miracles for you. It offers a safe, natural, and highly effective way to help you have improved performance.

So if you want to start afresh and enjoy optimal health, try physiotherapy treatment now!