Conscious breathing control is linked to emotional regulation. Heightened breathing rates and hyperventilation are common in anxiety and panic disorders, especially during panic attacks. Many slow breathing techniques have been developed and recommended for managing panic attacks, anxious episodes, and stress.
The fact that breathing can be voluntarily controlled suggests there should be input from the brain’s more complex regions connecting to the brain stem, which is known to control unconscious breathing. This neuronal circuit had not been discovered until a recent paper found a link between the two areas in mice brains.
This study identified previously unknown neuronal connections from the anterior cingulate cortex, in the frontal region of the brain, to the brainstem. This circuit seems to be involved in both the conscious control of breathing and emotional regulation. When the connection between the anterior cingulate cortex and the brain stem was active, the mice were breathing more slowly and behaving calmly. In contrast, when the mice were in stress-inducing situations and behaving anxiously, the activity between these two areas drastically decreased. This suggests that this neural circuit causes breathing rate to decrease when it is activated, and that this is linked to a meditative mental state.
In terms of future developments, the researchers believe that they could develop a drug which specifically activates the neuronal connection from the anterior cingulate cortex to the brainstem. The so-called “yoga pill” would decrease breathing rate by activating this neural circuit, making those with anxiety, stress and panic disorders feel more calm and in control of their emotions. The idea is that you could take this pill when having a panic attack, and it would instantly induce a calming mental state by slowing down breathing. Although a drug like this would take years to develop, it is an exciting new development in the search for a pharmaceutical solution to anxious attacks!