Question: How Do I Perform Pursed Lip Breathing?
If you have COPD, learning how to perform pursed-lip breathing can be extremely beneficial to your daily life. In fact, it can even help you during the most intimate of moments. Why? Because pursed-lip breathing is a breathing technique designed to help you control dyspnea, the hallmark symptom of COPD.
A patient of mine once told me that she used this simple mantra to help her remember how to perform the exercise:
Smell the rose; blow out the candle.
Answer:
The following demonstrates the simple technique of pursed-lip breathing:
- Sit in a comfortable position and relax.
- Slowly take a deep breath in through your nose.
- Draw your lips together as if you were going to whistle and blow out through pursed lips slowly and evenly.
- Try to make the time blowing out longer than when you took a breath in.
- Repeat this procedure several times until your shortness of breath disappears.
- If you feel any dizziness, rest until it stops.
Practicing pursed-lip breathing on a daily basis, 3 to 4 times a day, will allow you to use it effectively during times of need, especially when your shortness of breath worsens.
