Yoga for Speech-Language Development

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Chapter 5

YOGA FOR BREATH

SUPPORT FOR SPEECH

Breath is the link between mind and body.

Dan Brulé

Introduction to respiration

The process of respiration involves the exchange of gas between
an organism and its environment (Seikel, King, and Drumright
2000). In humans, respiration, also known as breathing, is
subdivided into the processes of inspiration and expiration.
Through the process of inspiration, humans inhale which brings
oxygen to the cells of the body. Through the process of expiration,
humans exhale which releases carbon dioxide from the body. The
lungs, the major paired organs of respiration, contain no skeletal
muscles of their own to power this movement. Consequently, the
work of breathing is performed by the surrounding musculature.
Depending on the needs of the body, quiet inspiration involves
only the diaphragm, a large dome-shaped muscle that separates
the thoracic and abdominal cavities. When the diaphragm
contracts and descends during the inhalation phase of breathing,
the volume of the thoracic cavity increases, and the air pressure
inside the cavity concomitantly decreases. In this state, the air
pressure inside the lungs is lower than atmospheric pressure.