As babies, we are born the perfect breathers. Watch how their little tummies inflate and deflate; modelling the perfect diaphragmatic breath. But as we go through life, we pick up bad habits and more importantly, find ourselves experiencing anything from minor upsets to big traumas. In these moments, we automatically hold our breath. In social and work situations, we can hold back from expressing ourselves fully. That might be down to social stigma (not great to cry in the supermarket) or fear (I’ll probably get the sack if I start shouting now) which prevents our emotions from exiting our bodies. Suppressing our emotions and holding our breath tends to lead to poor breathing patterns in adulthood. And that’s not good for our physical and emotional health.