Why do you get breathless during an anxiety attack? | Yoganama

There are many factors involved in anxiety. And one of them is our breathing pattern.
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Before an anxiety episode even happens - it may be preceded by a period of shallow breathing due to fear, discomfort or just improper breathing.
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Shallow breathing increases CO2 levels. The hyperventilation that follows is considered the body’s way of offloading that excess CO2. But it goes overboard and expels more CO2 than was necessary.
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Now due to Bohr effect, affinity of Hb for O2 increases and in a way it simply carries the oxygen back without delivering it to the cell. At this point your oxygen readings may come high as blood is sufficiently saturated but that oxygen is not actually being delivered to the cells. So it doesn’t help.
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That’s why it’s important to incorporate working on our breathing patterns, building more breath awareness and of-course aerobic exercise which is great for the respiratory system and very beneficial for those with anxiety. This is especially important as people with anxiety tend to a low tolerance for CO2.
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So, ironically, it’s not really a lack of oxygen but the inability to tolerate high CO2 levels that is one of the root causes. This is why yogic pranayam or breath retention practices are helpful but should only be practised under guidance as they can also trigger an anxiety episode if not done properly.

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