Is it possible for your breathing habits to affect your sexual life?
Approximately one-third of men experience erectile dysfunction (ED), a condition that can be difficult to discuss. However, ED is a widespread and treatable condition.
While it may seem like the cause of ED is directly related to your manhood, there are several other factors that may contribute. These include anxiety, stress, mental health, blood pressure, and even breathing patterns.
Dive into the episode as I discuss how breathing habits affect your sexual life and what steps you can take to address it.
- Episode Video
- Breathing Impacts Your Blood Flow
- Nasal Breathing: Benefits, How To, and More
- Final Thoughts
Episode Video
Breathing Impacts Your Blood Flow
Did you know that breathing through your nose is more beneficial than when you breathe through your mouth?
When you breathe into your nose, the hairs inside actually clear the bacteria out. This will help you produce more nitric oxide. If you listen to my previous episode, I talked about how nitric oxide is critical for blood vessels and blood flow.
Blood flow restriction is what causes ED. When you breathe through your nose, you'll have more nitric oxide and therefore less risk of ED.
Also, the air moving through your lungs is less irritating. Unlike if you are breathing into your mouth, where the air is not filtered, you breathe in bacteria. The air also seems to irritate the lungs more when you breathe through your mouth.
Now, when you breathe into your nose, you also want it to breathe out of your nose as well. You won't inhale as much carbon dioxide when you breathe out through your nose. When we breathe, we want to breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide.
When you breathe into your mouth, you actually don't make as much nitric oxide. You will also release more carbon dioxide when you breathe out through your mouth. Sometimes exhaling more carbon dioxide is not too good either. You just need the right amount.
Nasal Breathing: Benefits, How To, and More
Some people can go as far as recommending keeping your mouth closed with mouth tape. That way, you can breathe in and out through your nose at night. But you can practice this during the day by doing box breathing, a technique that Navy SEALs practice.
Doing a nasal breathing activates the nerve that is called the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), the relaxation nervous system. It's the system that stimulates more blood flow and your erection. The other nervous system, the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), is the fight-or-flight nervous system, which constricts blood flow and restricts your erection.
Your SNS kicks in more than your PNS when you're stressed and not relaxed, or when you're depressed and anxious. In order for you to get an erection, your PNS has to be more prevalent than your SNS.
However, if you breathe through your nose in a slow fashion, you will stimulate your PNS more than your SNS. Both of those systems are present at the same time, but one may be more dominant than the other. And so, nasal breathing not only activates the PNS; it also gives you a sense of peace because it also balances your hormones.
Benefits of Nasal Breathing
- Decrease stress by decreasing stress hormones.
- Balances your PNS versus SNS.
- Improves your circulation because of the increased nitric oxide.
- Helps with increasing your libido and being in the mood.
How to do Nasal Breathing
I'm going to walk you through this because I really feel that this is something you can do during the day, when you feel stressed, when you need to focus, or when you just need to kind of have a moment.
- Hold for a count of four.
- Breathe in through your nose for a count of four.
- Hold for a count of four.
- Breathe out through your nose for a count of four.
You can also do it up to a count of six if you want to or if you can hold your breath. But you don't want to stress your body out. Repeat the steps for about five to eight breaths or until you feel relaxed and more focused on what you’re doing.
Final Thoughts
Nasal breathing is a good thing to practice and it's easy to do. It can stimulate your parasympathetic nervous system, which helps to increase your blood flow and improve your erection. It can also help in balancing your hormones and providing you a sense of peace.
You can do nasal breathing every time you feel stressed, when you need to focus, or when you just need to kind of have a moment. But keep in mind that do not overdo it. You don't want to stress your body out.
Additional Resources
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