Richard P. Brown, MD, Patricia L. Gerbarg, MD, Fred Muench, PhD
Psychiatric Clinics of North America, Volume 36, Issue 1, March 2013

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Neurophysiological studies may explain how breathing techniques normalize stress response, emotion regulation, and autonomic and neuroendocrine system function. Breath practices have been shown to reduce symptoms of stress, anxiety, insomnia, post-traumatic stress disorder, mass disasters, depression, and attention deficit disorder. Technology-assisted breathing interventions facilitate therapeutic breathing by using either static cues such as a breath pacer or real-time feedback based on physiological parameters such as heart rate variability. The empirical literature indicates that technology-assisted breathing can be beneficial in mental health treatment, though it may not be appropriate for all individuals. Initial in-person training and evaluation can improve results.

Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc.

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Author Information:

Patricia Gerbarg, MD     

Patricia Gerbarg, MD, Assistant Professor in Psychiatry NY Medical College, graduate Harvard Medical School and Boston Psychoanalytic Institute, integrates standard and complementary treatments. She serves on the APA task force on CAIM and on the board of the American Botanical Council. Her research focuses on mind-body practices for stress and for survivors of mass disasters. With Dr. Richard Brown she co-authored ‘Yoga and Neuro-Psychoanalysis,’ in Bodies in Treatment: the Unspoken Dimension (Analytic Press 2007), How to Use Herbs, Nutrients, and Yoga in Mental Health Care, Non-Drug Treatments for ADHD, and The Healing Power of the Breath. With Dr. Philip Muskin and Dr. Brown she co-edited the March 2013 volume of Psychiatric Clinics of North America, Focus on Complementary and Integrative Treatments in Mental Health.

Richard P. Brown, M.D.

      Dr. Richard P. Brown, Associate Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Columbia University, lectures extensively, including full-day courses on complementary and alternative medicine for the American Psychiatric Association and other conferences. He completed his MD at Columbia University, Psychiatry Residency and fellowship in Psychobiology and Psychopharmacology at Cornell University Medical College.  He has published over 90 scientific articles, books and chapters including, Stop Depression Now, The Rhodiola Revolution, “Complementary and Alternative Treatments in Psychiatry,” in Psychiatry (Wiley & Sons 2003, 2007); “Alternative Treatments in Brain Injury” in Neuropsychiatry of Traumatic Brain Injury (American Psychiatric Publishing 2004, 2009). Dr. Brown’s neurophysiological theory explains the effects of yoga breathing on mind and body in treating anxiety, depression, and PTSD. A certified teacher of Aikido (4^th Dan), yoga, Qigong, and Open Focus Meditation, Dr. Brown conducts Breath~Body~Mind^ã workshops.  www.haveahealthymind.com.