Ben Reihanian S2B4 - Why do we sigh?

Why do we sigh?

    I find myself sighing a lot on a daily basis, mostly subconsciously it just kind of happens. Before people get to know me they always get so concerned about it and look at me funny, especially my sister’s fiance who, when I sighed said, “what do you have to be so upset about??” The reality was that I wasn't really upset about anything, my sighing is just a way for me to quickly decompress. But what really is a sigh? 

Taking a deep breath has a soothing effect for individuals all over the world, and it's a component of how we feel and transmit emotion. However, it turns out that our preconceptions about other people's sighs aren't always correct. The biological reasons for sighing begin with the fact that your lungs require sighing to operate correctly. You're sort of restarting them when you take a deep breath. Eupneic breathing is what scientists refer to when you're breathing naturally for a period of time. And if you just let individuals sit with their eupneic breathing for a bit, they'll finally take a breath that's approximately twice as big as normal, which we term a sigh. This is generally followed by post-sigh apnea, which is a little pause between breaths that lasts a little longer than usual. This deep inhalation forces your alveoli—tiny air sacs that fill your lungs—to fully expand. And this keeps your lungs from collapsing, which is a good thing since collapsing is a horrible thing you don't want to happen to your lungs. People's breathing becomes more erratic shortly before they sigh, then becomes more constant thereafter, according to research. As a result, it's almost as if your lungs are reset. To maintain your lungs in good operating order, it is recommended that you sigh every 5 minutes or so. 

You even sigh in your sleep, albeit this happens less frequently. But there are a variety of reasons that might alter your sighing pattern, such as stress, and that's where psychology comes in. Breathing patterns have long been linked to emotions, according to psychologists.

Sighing, on the other hand, is strange since it appears to be linked to both happy and negative feelings. You could sigh when you're upset or frustrated, but you might also sigh while you're calm. One explanation for the discrepancy is that sighing has a lot to do with relief: you do it because you're relieved, or because you're stressed out and your brain is attempting to make you feel better. 

A group of Belgian researchers decided to put this theory to the test in a 2009 study published in the journal Psychophysiology. The scientists made a total of 115 participants listen to an obnoxiously loud white noise turn on and off in three consecutive studies. They employed different shapes on a screen to indicate whether or not there was going to be a noise. One form suggested the subject would be irritated, one said they'd be protected, and one meant they'd have a 50/50 chance of hearing the noise. People sighed a bit more while hearing the noise, but a lot more once it was finished, according to the researchers. People who sighed more also evaluated themselves as feeling more relieved when questioned about their feelings during the trial. It didn't matter if they were relieved that the irritating sound had ended or just that they didn't have to hear it anymore. They'd sigh simply because they were relieved from the stress of the impending event. So, if sighing is related to feeling relieved or relaxed, it's not surprising that it's associated with a wide range of feelings.

We interpret sighing in different ways—and not always appropriately. In a 2008 research, for example, 117 participants were told fictitious tales about someone sighing and asked what they felt the sigh implied. Typically, they interpreted it to signify something unpleasant, most commonly sadness. People viewed the sensation as more powerful if the narrative was about someone sighing alone. When participants were told to envision themselves in the scenario, however, they came up with a wider range of reactions, such as being annoyed, exhausted, or bored. So, when you hear someone sigh, it might suggest they're sad— but it's also important to remember that there are a variety of other options. They could be anxious, irritated, or even having a moment of tranquility and taking a deep breath. Or it might just be an automatic response to keep their lungs in good operating order.

Do you sigh frequently? When and why was the last time you sighed?