Pain, Tension, Relaxation, And Breathwork

Relaxation is a basic life skill. It is the key to ending much of our suffering. In Breathwork—as well as in life—the ability and the willingness to let go is vital

Success in Breathwork, as well as happiness in life, depends on our ability to let go and relax—especially in those moments when it is the last thing that we would think to do!

And this “letting go” applies to hard feelings and separating emotions, negative thoughts and rigid opinions, the “need to be right,” as well as physical tension and muscular contractions.

The best Breathworkers in the world have mastered the art of letting go. We practice letting go of the exhale, and this triggers or supports relaxation on all the other levels of our being.

“If you cannot let go of your exhale, don’t be
surprised if you cannot let go of physical
pain. If you cannot let got of your exhale, don’t
be surprised if you cannot let go of fear or
anxiety. If you cannot let go of your
exhale, don’t be surprised if you cannot let go
of painful thoughts. If you cannot let go of your
breath, don’t be surprised if you cannot let go
of habits and patterns from the past.”

When you master the art of letting go of the breath quickly and completely, you find that you are also able to let go of pain and tension, fear and anxiety, disturbing thoughts, and negative feelings—even the past—quickly and easily.

Pain is a sign of conscious or unconscious tension. Practically speaking, pain is tension: it is a contraction. And most people don’t feel this tension, or notice their energetic contractions, until it becomes pain.

When you carry tension all the time, you simply stop feeling it. Because it’s there all the time, you stop noticing it. And as tension accumulates, it becomes pain. Chronic unconscious tension causes or worsens every kind of illness, injury and disease.

Light loving thoughts are not automatically generated in a tight tense body. (It takes practice to do that!) Dark heavy thoughts are automatically generated in a tight tense body. (That is, until we train our system to do something else!)

In Breathwork, we can heal physical tension and pain by working on our thoughts and emotions. And we can dissolve painful thoughts and emotions by working on our physical tension!

Physical tension produces unconscious fear and it triggers ancient survival mechanisms. It is very hard to give and receive love when you are experiencing fear, tension and pain.

It’s also very hard to breathe fully and freely in those moments. That’s why the ability to breathe fully and freely is so important. It gives us a way to dissolve or burn away physical tension as well as psychological and emotional pain.

It’s normal to contract your energy and withdraw your awareness from things that are frightening or painful. But healing and growth often means looking at things that are scary and doing things that are uncomfortable.

Breathwork allows us an opportunity to observe our urge to resist, deny, or contract away from “what is.” It gives us a way to expand and relax and allow instead.

In breathwork, we learn to relax into intensity; we learn to relax in the presence of intensity. We use the breath to activate and eliminate intensely negative thoughts, feelings and sensations, and emotions.

It’s important to realize that when you are very relaxed, the body naturally has little to no need to breathe. The chemical triggers or breathing receptors do not fire off because there is no muscular activity, no metabolic demand for breath-energy.

The relaxed body, left to itself, will breathe very little, if at all. There is simply no biological need, no physiological demand. And so in breathwork, we often override these normal physiological controls: we consciously, deliberately choose to breathe.

When you are involved in strenuous physical activity, your body automatically breathes more. You don’t have to think about it. You don’t have to make it happen: your system takes care of itself.

But when you are relaxed and at rest, and doing breathwork—and if your purpose is clearing, healing, or growth—then you must focus on breathing; you must make it happen.

Imagine if you were to spend a few minutes breathing fast full breaths, as if you were running up a hill, and yet you were to remain completely still and perfectly relaxed.

What do you think would happen with all the energy being generated? The body doesn’t need it; the muscles aren’t using it. It has to go somewhere. It has to do something.

Simply put, it triggers physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual healing. And in the process, it naturally produces unusually beautiful and powerful feelings and sensations, thoughts and images.

There are many forms of Breathwork, and many ways to apply it. Breathwork is a method of spiritual purification, of soul healing. It is a way to increase our energy and enhance our aliveness, to reduce or eliminate stress and anxiety.

Thru breathwork, we can improve brain and nervous system activity; we can lower (or raise) blood pressure; we can regulate cortisone and oxytocin, and various hormone levels. We can strengthen and support our immune system.

The benefits of Breathwork in cases of PTSD, ADHD, depression, chronic fatigue, physical pain, and psychological distress are unarguable.

Breathwork can immunize us against caregiver stress and burnout. It can enhance our creative abilities. It can help us to access our intuition and our natural wisdom. It can deepen our connection to each other, and produce harmony in relationships.

Breathwork opens us to higher states of consciousness. It allows us to access the deepest parts of our psyche and ourselves. And it supports us in developing and expressing our greatest gifts.

If you do Breathwork, then you already know all this! If you don’t do Breathwork, then it’s time you start! Come to one of seminars, workshops, or trainings scheduled around the world.

In the meantime, check out this outrageous offer to learn everything there is to know about breathwork!

Go to:http://www.breathmastery.com/breathmastery-inner-circle-membership

---

For more information about Breathwork, please go to www.breathmastery.com.

Download your free copy of my book, "Shut Up And Breathe!" http://www.breathmastery.com/shutupandbreathe

PS: If you are ready to get onto the Path of Breath Mastery right now, you can enroll in the 60-Day Online Course: "21 Lessons in the Art and Science of Breathwork." Visit: http://breathmastery.com/onlinecourse

Or, join my Breath Mastery Inner Circle, and freely access almost 40 years of breath and breathing research, articles, essays, audio/video files, seminar transcripts, workshop handouts, and even complete training manuals! Visit:
http://www.breathmastery.com/breathmastery-inner-circle-membership

---

(*) NOTE:None of this is meant as a substitute for medical advice. If you have a medical condition or any health concerns, consult your physician or a qualified medical professional before starting any exercise program.

Why Breathe? Why Learn Breathwork?

Many people who have never done breathwork wonder what all the fuss is about. They ask what is the point of it; they want to know what the value or the benefits of it are.

For those of us who are immersed in the practice—our direct experience makes it all obvious and self-evident. But still, it is important to remind ourselves and to inform others of the astonishing power and potential of Breathwork: so that’s what I’ll do here this month.

We use breathwork for self-improvement and personal growth; we use it to increase our physical, emotional and cognitive wellbeing; we us it to enhance our creative abilities and to boost our self-healing capacities. We apply it for achieving peak performance, for attaining optimum health, and for realizing our ultimate potential.

Breathwork gives us more energy on a day-to-day basis, and it helps us to sleep better. Breathworkers are not as tense, stressed, anxious or afraid—as often or as much—as others. Breathwork helps us to maintain a peaceful loving heart, a relaxed energized body, and a clear quiet mind—even in the most difficult moments of life.

Breathwork gives us greater physical, emotional and psychological endurance and resilience. With it, we can improve our brain and nervous system activity, and we can strengthen our immune system. Breathwork strengthens and vitalizes our muscles, tendons, nerves, bones, and vital organs.

We use breathwork to eliminate headaches, back aches and other types of pain—and without drugs. And we use it to prevent many illnesses and to avoid injuries. Breathwork is to psychosomatic illness what penicillin was to bacterial infections!

Breathwork produces more success and harmony in relationships. It gives us more patience, empathy and compassion. We have a natural tendency to forgive and forget. It immunizes us against caregiver stress and burnout, while supporting us in expressing our greatest gifts.

We use it to overcome inherited limitations and genetic shortcomings, and to free ourselves from negative habits and tendencies. It helps us to recover from birth and infancy traumas; and it helps us to get free of negative or limiting family, cultural, and religious programming.

It helps us access greater intelligence, intuition, and wisdom. Breathwork opens us to non-ordinary and transcendent states of consciousness, and to a felt sense of our own natural divinity.

It allows us to get more pleasure from sex—taking it to a whole other level! And it takes our yoga and meditation and martial art practices to new and extraordinarily high levels.

And the best part of all is that with practice, anyone can reap these benefits! With good coaching and a minimum amount of knowledge and skills, you can begin to experience life-changing results starting from your very first session!

That’s why we have created the Breath Mastery Inner Circle Membership Program: so that you can educate yourself, learn from others, and receive free coaching, consulting and training directly from me.

I invite you to take advantage of our One time—Life Time Enrollment Offer.

All the information is here:
http://www.breathmastery.com/breathmastery-inner-circle-membership

PS: For a limited time only, you can receive an outrageous discount off the regular membership price! Look for the special discount code!

http://www.breathmastery.com/breathmastery-inner-circle-membership

Good luck in your Practice!
Dan

And please go to www.breathmastery.com.

Download your free copy of my book, “Shut Up And Breathe!” http://www.breathmastery.com/shutupandbreathe

PS: If you are ready to get onto the Path of Breath Mastery right now, you can enroll in the 60-Day Online Course: “21 Lessons in the Art and Science of Breathwork.” Visit: http://breathmastery.com/onlinecourse

Or, join my Breath Mastery Inner Circle, and freely access almost 40 years of breath and breathing research, articles, essays, audio/video files, seminar transcripts, workshop handouts, and even complete training manuals! Visit:
http://www.breathmastery.com/breathmastery-inner-circle-membership

(*) NOTE:None of this is meant as a substitute for medical advice. If you have a medical condition or any health concerns, consult your physician or a qualified medical professional before starting any exercise program.

The Three Basic skills in Breathwork

People often ask me: “What is the single best exercise to practice—what is the most important technique we need to master?”

Actually, there are three basic skills I think every Breathworker needs to learn—three things I teach to just about everyone who comes to me for Breathwork training.

The first skill is Breath Awareness: I teach people to become more conscious of their breathing. You can call this mindfulness training—meditation. Simply observe the breath. Sense it, feel it, watch it, listen to it. Tune into the details of your breathing.

What feelings and sensations occur when you breathe? What moves when you breathe? Is your breathing quick and shallow or slow and deep? What muscles do you use? Are the inhales longer than the exhales, or vice-versa? Are there pauses in the breath?

The idea is to just sit and turn your attention to the breath. Look for details in the breathing. Then you can take the practice into your everyday life. Observe how you breathe in different situations and circumstances.

How do you breathe when you are upset or in pain? How do you breathe when you are peaceful and calm? How do you breathe when someone insults you, or praises you? How do you breathe when you are listening to music?

How do you breathe when driving your car—or stuck in traffic? How do you breathe when you are confused, drowsy, excited, etc.? How do you breathe when you are trying to solve a math problem, or when you are having sex?

Begin to notice how your breathing pattern changes according to your psychological, emotional or physiological states. Begin to notice when it is affected by different thoughts and feelings and activities, by the food you eat, and by other people’s energy.

This is Breath Awareness. It’s the first basic skill: becoming more aware of your breathing. Notice it, listen to it, watch it, sense it. Don’t breathe in any certain way. Let it come and go by itself. Develop the habit of witnessing. Meditate on your breathing. The more breath awareness you have, the more benefit you will get from Breathwork.

The second skill is “Engaging the Exhale.” This means we practice using the exhale to relax—to trigger relaxation. We practice releasing the breath. It’s the skill of letting go. Master the art of letting go of the exhale go. Learn to set the breath free, to reflexively release it.

This second skill looks and sounds and feels like an exaggerated sigh of relief. The idea is to not control the exhale, but instead to let it go quickly and completely. When you let go of the exhale, let go of your muscles: the jaw, neck, shoulders, etc.

If you can’t let go of your exhale—fully and freely, quickly and completely—then don’t be surprised if you can’t let go of pain. Don’t be surprised if you can’t let go of fear or anxiety. Don’t be surprised if you can’t let go of thoughts that are going around in your head, keeping you stuck or obsessing.

However, when you master the skill of letting go of the exhale, you will surprise yourself at how easily you can let go of many other things on many other levels.

It help’s to take a full, deep, expansive inhale in order to trigger a powerful reflexive release on the exhale. And that leads us to The third skill.

The third skill is Conscious Breathing, or Breath Control. Here, we explore and experiment; we play with the breath. We gently test the range and the limits of our breathing. We practice giving the breath a certain pattern, a certain quality; or we breathe with a certain intention.

We practice breathing slowly as well as quickly. We practice breathing thru the nose as well as thru the mouth. We practice breathing high in the chest as well as low in the belly. We discover what feels easy, natural, or automatic; and what feels difficult, requires focus, or takes effort.

We can add visualization, or we can combine breathing and movement. We can also begin to practice some advanced techniques, like “connected breathing.” This means taking away the pauses between the breaths; it means circulating the breath—getting it to turn like a wheel. This is a very powerful breathing technique that I believe everyone needs to learn.

So, those are the three basic skills: breath awareness, relaxation, and breath control. They are the three pillars of breathwork. You master them and then you build on them.

So, what is the most important technique? What is the best thing to practice?

1. Practice observing your breath. Do some “breath watching.” Tune into the details of your breathing.

2. Practice engaging the exhale—releasing the breathing mechanism. Get good at letting go, at relaxation.

3. Practice conscious breathing. Explore, experiment. Breathe deliberately, in a way that is interesting, challenging, or simply feels good.

For more info: http://www.breathmastery.com/

Rebirthing-Breathwork: A Proven Method for Healing and Transformation

Birth and infancy traumas can affect people well into adulthood, and even for their entire lives. Many emotional and psychological issues, and dysfunctional patterns and tendencies can be traced back to birth, infancy, and early childhood.

For the first few years of our lives we are basically in a hypnotic trance. We have no discriminating consciousness. Everything that happens, to us and around us, is downloaded directly into our subconscious mind.

 

We form conclusions about life and ourselves, and we make unconscious decisions about others and the world while we are in this very open, vulnerable and impressionable state. And then we are often driven and controlled by these factors for the rest of our lives.

We “inherit” the unconscious fears, limitations, aspirations, and the hidden or suppressed desires of our parents and grandparents. We take on the core beliefs of those around us. We form and define ourselves in relation to others.

In essence, we receive programs that limit who and how we are. And what’s more, these impressions and this programming actually begin not at birth when we take our first breath, but while we are still in the womb.

All this is now well proven and widely accepted in most medical/scientific circles. But when I first began to teach Rebirthing-Breathwork in the mid 1970’s, this was not the case. And the notion that a few “conscious connected breathing sessions” could result in profound healing and growth was considered “new age nonsense.” Breathwork was looked upon with great skepticism, if not outright hostility.

At the time, most mainstream medical professionals believed that the only way to treat deep-seated psychological or emotional issues and problems was thru long-term counseling or psychoanalysis, and/or with psychotropic drugs. And the same held true for anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorders.

Today, leading psychiatrists, psychotherapists and medical professionals from all over the world, practice or prescribe breathwork for these conditions. Of course I am very happy to see this because I have been shouting about it from roof tops for many years, and I often felt like a voice crying out in the wilderness.

But thanks to pioneers like Bernie Siegel, Herbert Benson, Deepak Chopra, Andrew Weil, Richard Brown, Stan Grof, Bruce Lipton, and many others, “transpersonal psychology” and “mind-body medicine” has come of age, and Breathwork has finally made its way into the layers of the mainstream.

The fact is we have always had the ability to lift ourselves up by our own bootstraps. There are ways to clear and resolve the long-standing effects of trauma, negative impressions and limiting subconscious beliefs. We can replace them with positive and empowering states and attitudes. And you don’t need years of specialized training, permission or a license to do this, or to support others in doing the same.

Through Rebirthing-Breathwork, anyone with a belly button, and a normal attention span, together with the willingness to learn and practice, can drop ancient deep-seated habits and patterns, conditioning and programming. We can all reclaim our original essence and purity, our natural power, perfection, and boundless joy!

If we relax in a safe environment with someone we trust; if we breathe in a conscious continuous way, while remaining alert and aware, open and relaxed, we can process our own thoughts and feelings, our own emotions. We can unravel, dissolve, or release all of our early traumas and any limiting programs.

After witnessing thousands of “breathing miracles,” I have utter certainty of the therapeutic power and potential of Rebirthing-Breathwork. And yet, I am itching to move on, and to take breathwork to new levels: because in many ways, I have come to realize that restoring and renewing ourselves is just the beginning.

While most medical professionals, healing arts practitioners, and even many breathworkers are still focused on problems and pathology, on the illness and disease model, I am devoted to using breathwork for a higher purpose: and that is “transcendence.”

We are coming to the point where we can simply drop the game of illness and suffering all together, like a snake sheds its skin. We can shift our awareness and energy away from dis-ease, and focus on a completely different level. By doing so, all our psychological and emotional issues—even serious physical medical conditions—resolve themselves, or simply fall away on their own!

I no longer see birth and infancy traumas, painful early life experiences, and negative and limiting programs as problems. They are in fact gifts. Breathwork transforms them into natural springboards to higher consciousness, to spiritual enlightenment, self-realization, and ultimate liberation.

We have many extraordinary powers and untapped abilities latent within us; and we have a simple and easy way to unlock, awaken and embody these higher capacities.

I like to say that Rebirthing-Breathwork is easy but not simple, or simple but not easy. However, it can be described simply and easily. It is “conscious connected energy breathing.”

The breathing is continuous: which means that there are no pauses or gaps between the breaths. The inhales are active and the exhales are passive. And furthermore, we are consciously breathing energy and not just air.

Moment to moment “open relaxation” is also a key factor in the process; as well as a willingness to feel deeply and to be totally present to what is, as it is.

A good breathing coach, guide, or facilitator is a priceless ally when we embark on this transformational journey. And a well-trained “Rebirther” can teach the average person to rebirth themselves in as little as five to ten training sessions.

If you are serious about peak performance, optimum health, or ultimate potential, then you owe it to yourself to take on Rebirthing-Breathwork as a life skill. You would be wise to add it to your spiritual arsenal or toolbox!

There are thousands of good breathworkers in the world. And if you would like me to refer you to one, I’ll be happy to do that. But what I really would like is to invite you to become one!

I suggest that you to take the first step by scheduling a private session or by attending a public seminar, workshop, or training.

My best advice is to join the Breath Mastery Inner Circle, so that you can access over 30 years of breath and breathing materials and resources: articles, essays, audio-video files, seminar transcripts, session notes, workshop hand-outs, and even complete and detailed practitioner training manuals.

Visit: http://www.breathmastery.com/breathmastery-inner-circle-membership/

I also encourage you to enroll in the Online Course: 21 Lessons in the Art and Science of Breathwork.

All the information on that is here: http://breathmastery.com/onlinecourse

If money is an issue, I will be happy to give you a special discount coupon code. Just send your personal request to me (danbrule1008@gmail.com)

And if you are really serious and ready to take a quantum leap in your personal growth and professional development, then I suggest that you make plans to come to Baja Bio Sana in beautiful Los Cabos, Mexico. (www.bajabiosana.org).

We will be offering basic and advance Breathwork Immersion Programs between November 2014 and April 2015.

You are also invited to participate in any of the upcoming seminars and sessions in Russia, Lithuania, Romania, and France. Check the summer schedule for details.

All for now.
Love and blessings,
Dan

PS: I just completed a new book, called “Shut Up and Breathe!” You are welcome to download it free, with my compliments!

Just go to: www.breathmastery.com/shutupandbreathe

PPS: I would be very grateful if you would share your impressions of the book. I thank you in advance!

For more info: http://www.breathmastery.com/

Sneezing Snoring Hiccups And Some Fun Facts About Breathing

Newborns babies breathe between 30 and 60 times per minute. The average adult breathes about 15 times per minute, or about 900 times per hour. That’s over 20 thousand breaths a day.

It’s a good idea to
practice breathing at half that rate, because 6 to 8 breaths per minute has proven to be a “therapeutic” zone. And many conditions like stress and high blood pressure, PTSD, ADD, chronic fatigue, asthma, anxiety, nervous disorders, and behavioral problems can be improved or even eliminated with Breath Control.

When we breathe, oxygen in the air is taken into the lungs and carried in the blood to every single cell of our body. Oxygen is used to burn glucose: and this is called cellular respiration. The blood returns waste products like carbon dioxide to your lungs to be breathed out of the system.

By the way, the body creates and kills an astounding 15 million blood cells every single second! Read that again! I love this stuff!

During a hard run, your respiratory rate can climb to 80 breaths per minute.

A normal adult at rest takes in about ½ liter of air per breath. With a deep breath we can take in 10 times that much.

We breathe about
11,000 liters of air per day. We also breathe out ½ liter of water each day. In all, the lungs process about 4 million liters of air per year.

And you will inhale about 45 pounds of dust if you live to the age of 80.

The lungs are amazing. They can survive outside the body longer than any other organ. And it’s the only organ that can float!

The word “lung” comes from the 13th century European language, which means “light,” as in not heavy for its size.

There are 300

to 400 millions alveoli in the lungs. (Those are microscopic air sacs that look like tiny clusters of grapes out at the tip of the smallest branches of the bronchial tree.)

The total surface area of the lungs is almost 100 square meters, or about the size of a tennis court! Fully developed adult lungs contain about 1500 miles of airways!

The chemistry of breathing is fascinating. For example, the primary stimulus for breathing is carbonic acid (H2CO3): this is what you get when
you mix carbon dioxide with water. It’s the fizz in champagne and soda. It’s also found in rain.

Carbonic Acid plays a vital role in keeping your pH in balance. The bicarbonate ion released from acid serves as a buffer—this means it can act as an acid or a base, depending on what is needed in the moment. Amazing, isn’t it?

You turn over in your sleep every half hour or so, mostly to balance the breath thru each nostril. And, in case you are interested, the nose produces about 2
eggcups or shot glasses of mucus every day!

Did you know that a row of buttons was first sewn onto sleeves to keep soldiers from using them to wipe their noses! Some people say Napoleon came up with the idea; others credit George Washington.

Sneezing

The medical term for sneezing is “sternutation.” It is sort of a re-booting of the nose. It’s an automatic expulsion of air through the nose and mouth, usually caused by foreign particles irritating the nasal mucosa. Sneezing helps keep your body safe.

The sneeze center is in your lower brain stem. It’s a complicated and coordinated event, involving muscles in your back, neck, abdomen, diaphragm, throat, vocal cords, face, and chest—with some muscles contracting and others relaxing. Even your eyelid muscles are involved. We close our eyes when we sneeze.

The ancient Greeks thought that sneezing was a sign from the gods. And this theme cuts across many cultures.

In some people, sneezing can be triggered by sudden exposure to bright light. These people are called photic.

Plucking your eyebrows can trigger a facial nerve, resulting in a sneeze!

It is believed that sneezed air travels up to 100 miles per hour, and the spray can travel more than five feet!

Most people sneeze once or twice or three times in a row. The longest sneezing spell is said to be 978 days: a record set by a woman named Donna Griffiths.

New research suggests that

if we pinch our nose shut while sneezing, the backpressure triggers a surge in the production of nitric oxide (NO) in the sinuses. Nitric oxide is a natural vasodilator and a powerful antibacterial.

And here’s an interesting fact: We never sneeze in our sleep. It cannot occur when we are sleeping.

Snoring

Forty-five percent of normal adults snore occasionally, and 25 percent snore habitually. Twice as many men snore as women. And the louder you snore, the higher the odds are that you are overweight.

The loudest snore (recorded in the Guinness Book of Records) was 92 decibels, by Melvin Switzer. That’s about the same as a pneumatic drill or a food blender.

Snoring can occur when we are in a very relaxed sleeping state, or when there is poor muscle tone in the throat and tongue. Alcohol, certain drugs and too much fat tissue can cause it.

When muscles are too relaxed, the tongue falls backwards into the airway and/or the throat muscles draw in from the sides, narrowing the passages. When air tries to pass through these obstacles, the snoring sound results.

The UK patent office lists over 2000 devices to prevent or treat snoring! Yet in many cases, simply turning onto your side may be all that is needed. By the way, learning to play the didgeridoo strengthens the throat muscles and can cure snoring!

Sometimes snoring can be a sign of Obstructive Sleep Apnea or some other serious medical condition. So, heavy snorers may want to seek medical advice.

Hiccups

Food and breath can enter the body thru the same channel—up to a point. Then the passage separates into the esophagus, which leads to the stomach, and the bronchial passage, which leads to the lungs.

Standing guard at that fork in the road is a very important little flap of skin called the epiglottis. When we swallow, the epiglottis closes off the windpipe to prevent food and liquids from getting down into the lungs.

Sometimes, if we eat or drink too quickly, the epiglottis can’t do its job and we say something “goes down the wrong pipe.”It has probably happened to all of us at some point.

If a serious chunk of food goes down the wrong pipe, the airway can become completely blocked. This is a life-threatening event and the “Heimlich Maneuver” may be required. (If you have not learned this procedure, you should! And you should also learn CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation), because, well, you just never know…

Anyway… From time to time the diaphragm contracts due to spasm. When this happens, an inhale is inadvertently triggered. Normally when we inhale, the epiglottis gets the message that breathing is happening and it remains open to allow air into the lungs. However, when a spasm of the diaphragm occurs, the epiglottis isn’t notified that a breath is happening, and it slams shut.

That’s what a hiccup is: spasm of the diaphragm followed by the sudden closing of the glottis.

Did I tell you I love this stuff?

Sometimes hiccups can go on for quite a while. The average is five minutes—regardless of what “cure” you employ to stop them.

When I was young, I hated the hiccups! I found them to be very painful, so I learned to prevent them by keeping my epiglottis open. As a result, I experience a rush of air into my lungs with each spasm of the diaphragm instead of the usual hiccup! And the spasms stop after only two or three “rushes.”

We will get back to some “serious” stuff next month! In the meantime, if you come across any interesting information or fun facts about breathing, please send them my way!

And please go to www.breathmastery.com.

Download your free copy of my book, “Shut Up And Breathe!”http://www.breathmastery.com/shutupandbreathe/

Enroll in the Online Course: 21 Lessons in the Art and Science of Breathwork. http://breathmastery.com/onlinecourse

For more info:   http://www.breathmastery.com/sneezing-snoring-hiccups-and-some-fun-facts-about-breathing/

Ten Ways to Improve Your Breathing

Dan Brulé is a pioneer in the field of Breathwork. He is an expert in Prana Yoga (The Hindu Science of Breath) and Chi Kung/Qigong (Chinese Medical Breathing Exercises). He is one of the originators of Breath Therapy, and the Founder of the Spiritual Breathing Movement. Over 100,000 people in more 40 countries practice Dan’s Breathing Exercises and Techniques. 
 

Ignorance is not bliss! When it comes to your breathing, what you don’t know could be hurting you, both in the short and long term.

 Your breathing habits can have a surprisingly negative effect on your health, and wellbeing, on your athletic and creative abilities, on your performance at work, and in your everyday life.

Here are just a few signs of “bad” breathing—problems and conditions caused or made worse by poor breathing habits:

anxiety, tension, asthma, headaches, chronic fatigue, panic attacks, sleep disorders, high blood pressure, irritability, poor concentration, shortness of breath, phobias, lack of mental clarity, dizziness, cold hands and feet, immune disorders, poor digestion, constipation…

You owe it to yourself to improve your breathing! And as it turns out, there are many simple and easy things you can do to dramatically improve your breathing—and with it—your health and happiness. (*)

To start, there is one thing—an all-important thing you need to do—and that is: Become more conscious of your breathing. You need to practice “Breath Awareness.” You need to pay more attention to how you breathe.

Establish the habit of consciously observing your breath at different times, in different situations, and during different activities. Do it now. Tune into your breath. Notice how you are breathing.

Are you a mouth breather or a nose breather? Are you a chest breather or a belly breather? Are you a shallow breather or a deep breather? Is your breathing fast or is it slow? Is your breathing rhythmic or irregular? What muscles do you use when you breathe? Do you hold your breath at times without realizing it?

The fact is you cannot improve your breathing if you are not aware of how you breathe now. And here is the ruthless truth: if you are serious about improving your breathing and your life, then you need to practice something for at least five to ten minutes, two or three times a day.

Frankly, it seems that most people are either too lazy or too busy to learn and practice healthy breathing. I guess they prefer to wait for a crisis, until they need a doctor, a therapist, drugs or surgery. I hope you are different!

And if you are, if you are willing to make a commitment to yourself, then I’m willing to make a commitment to you: to forever serve and support you in your Breathwork practice.

Visit: www.breathmastery.com. Download a copy of my new book: “Shut Up And Breathe!” Subscribe to my Monthly Newsletter. And browse thru the archives of breathing articles. All this is free!

In the meantime, here are ten commonsensible ways to improve your breathing:

1. At the top of the list are good old-fashioned aerobic exercises. Get someone to kick your butt and get you moving and breathing! Choose your activities and adjust the intensity of them to match your abilities and your level of health.

2. Take a hike! And breathe to the rhythm of your footsteps. Start with a 2-2 pattern: breathe in for two steps and breathe out for two steps. Then gradually increase your pace and the count to 3-3 and 4-4.

Fred is a retired restaurant owner. He said this to me recently: “I walk every day. If it rains I walk. If it snows I walk. I do yoga and I meditate. Every day.” Fred is seventy-two years old, and he barely looks fifty. He started his breathing practice when he was sixty-five.

3. Another obvious way to improve breathing are exercises that stretch and increase chest flexibility and those that strengthen the abdomen and condition the diaphragm. If your chest and spine are stiff and rigid, if your diaphragm is weak or frozen, then you are robbing yourself of breath and life.

4. Do Tai chi, Yoga, Chi Kung, or any other practice that involves slow graceful movements coordinated with breathing. Pilates is an excellent way to improve breathing by developing more flexibility and core strength.

5. Stop wasting energy. Don’t use “accessory muscles” to breathe. Your neck muscles, shoulder muscles and back muscles are not breathing muscles. Putting too much effort into breathing is an exhausting exercise in futility!

The habit of rapid and shallow “chest breathing” is a good example of wasted breath energy. Imagine running a business where it costs you two dollars to make every one! 

6. Learn and practice “diaphragmatic breathing.” Most of your blood flow and air exchange takes place in the lower portion of your lungs. And so, practice “belly breathing” until it is an unconscious habit—until you literally do it in your sleep!

Slow diaphragmatic breathing results not only in in deeper and more restful sleep, but it also makes for sweeter dreams! Many people report blissful “flying” dreams when they make the switch from chest breathing to belly breathing. 

7. Practice lengthening your exhales. Make your exhales longer. Take time to stretch them out. When you focus on exhaling slowly and completely, your inhales automatically become fuller, deeper, and without any extra effort.

8. Breathe more slowly. Breathing less than 12 breaths per minute correlates with good overall health. The rate of 6 to 8 breaths per minute is considered a “therapeutic zone.” It improves everything from high blood pressure to asthma.

Breathing more slowly actually increases cellular oxygenation! And it activates the vagus nerve, which controls heart rate, digestion, and it is associated with a relaxed restorative state. Slow breathing also increases alpha waves in the brain. That’s a very good thing!

9. Learn “Bellows Breathing” to energize yourself. This ancient yogic technique stimulates the natural production of epinephrine. It involves breathing quickly and actively: 2 to 3 breaths per second (120 to 180 breaths per minute). You should sound like a busy bicycle pump! Do it for a minute or two, then rest for an equal amount of time. Several cycles of this will give you a healthy burst of energy.

10. Master the Full Yogic Breath. Fill up all three breathing spaces: lower, middle, and upper. When you breathe in, think of how you fill a glass with water: from the bottom up. Fill up your lungs in the same way. Then relax and release the breath, letting it pour out fully by itself.

A breathing coach can shorten your learning curve and accelerate your progress. To master some of these exercises you may require some hands on training. For help in locating a good Breathworker, email me at:danbrule@breathmastery.com

Some Additional Tips for Improving Your Breathing

Apply the “Two to One” Pattern: Make your exhales twice as long as your inhales. Experiment with different counts, but keep the same ratio. For example: Exhale 4, inhale 2. Exhale 6: inhale 3. Exhale 8, inhale 4. Mix it up and vary your rhythms. (You can count using seconds, heartbeats, or your footsteps.)

Blowing up balloons is good exercise to increase your lung capacity. And so is simply exhaling against pursed-lips. This creates natural resistance and pressure in the airways, which helps to maximize oxygen absorption.

You can also practice blowing out a candle. Start by holding it at arms length. And then try to blow it out from further and further distances. And singing, humming, and playing wind instruments are also easy and fun ways to improve your breathing.

You can also simply practice counting on the exhale. Take in a deep breath and then count out loud until you run out of air. “One, two, three, four, five, six… (Squeeze the last few counts out in a whisper) fifty-six, fifty-seven, fifty-eight, fifty-nine…” Practice every day. Increase your count till you get to one hundred!

Good luck in your practice!

Dan

PS: If you are ready to get onto the Path of Breath Mastery right now, you can enroll in the 60-Day Online Course: “21 Lessons in the Art and Science of Breathwork.”Visit: http://breathmastery.com/onlinecourse

Or, join my Breath Mastery Inner Circle, and freely access almost 40 years of breath and breathing research, articles, essays, audio/video files, seminar transcripts, workshop handouts, and even complete training manuals! Visit:

http://www.breathmastery.com/breathmastery-inner-circle-membership/

(*) NOTE:None of this is meant as a substitute for medical advice. If you have a medical condition or any health concerns, consult your physician or a qualified medical professional before starting any exercise program.

For more info: http://www.breathmastery.com/