Effects of diaphragmatic breathing on stress levels of nursing students

Stress and nursing school seem to be synonymous. The stressors nursing students experience both in their personal lives and in their role as students are many and varied. This study used two surveys, one to measure student stress from life experiences and one to measure vulnerability to stress, and then introduced diaphragmatic breathing as a simple stress reduction technique. There are many stressful events in life, and the way a person deals with those events can actually increase or decrease vulnerability to stress. Although many life situations are not always within one's control, there are other situations and behaviors that can be controlled. Diaphragmatic breathing was taught to students as a way to gain control over their anxiety prior to examinations. The objective of this study was to compare student heart rates and performance on cognitive examinations and clinical laboratory practicum examinations before and after using diaphragmatic breathing to reduce heart rate and improve examination performance.