There are many, including my dear mother, who have shortness of breathe for reasons like asthma, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), chronic bronchitis, and immune deficiencies, which lead to sinus infections. Almost all of us can relate to a stuffed nose. Being cut off from this vital process causes damage to our health, quality of life, and, in the worst case, can cause death. I am writing this weeks article of how we might learn to strengthen this vital life force within ourselves.
“Smile inhale, smile exhale, breath that life may not grow pale!” :-)
Why Do We Want to Love Our Breath?
University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System's article “Physical Effects of Asthma” tells us that Asthma can cause many problems from the inconveniences of coughing to the deadly effect of not breathing.
- common symptoms
- cough
- wheeze
- tightness of the chest
- shortness of breathe
- awakening with coughing and wheezing
- possible indications in children
- restlessness
- trouble sitting still
- crankiness
- a worried or concerned look
- pale, sweaty skin
- rapid breathing
- slouching
- asthma severity
- mild persistent
- coughing, wheezing a few times a week, and night symptoms a few times per month
- mild persistent
- coughing, wheezing three to six times a week, night symptoms three to four times a month, and increase of symptoms with activity
- moderate persistent
- daily symptoms, daily use of inhaler, five or more times a month for night symptoms, and decreased exercise ability do to breathing issues
- severe persistent
- continuous symptoms limiting activity, frequent exacerbations and night symptoms
- mild persistent
- factors that improve asthma
- effective asthma control
- as the air ways grow with age
- factors that increase severity
- times of the year when pollen and other irritants are in the air
University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System's article “Emotional & Social Effects of Asthma” tells us that Asthma can cause many problems within one's life beyond the physical symptoms and increase health risk.
Factors that might create a physiological effect in those that suffer from asthma.
- asthma severity
- limitation of activities from asthma
- available social and familial support
- age when asthma began
- how informed the individual is about asthma control
- overall personality and coping ability
People that suffer from asthma can feel the following due to asthma.
- fear and anxiety
- hypervigilance
- loss of control
- denial
- anger
- guilt
- embarrassment
- confusion
- be active in caring for yourself
- practice relaxation exercises or meditation
- find a health care provider that you trust
- accept your feelings
The American Lung Association presents good reason for us to consider practicing breathing exercises in “Protecting Your Lungs.” Breathing becomes natural and easy when you help by using the diaphragm. A healthy diaphragm does about eighty percent of the work to take in oxygen and send out waste gasses. However, asthma and COPD cause our lungs to loose the supple quality of expansion and contraction. This causes air to get trapped in the lungs. Over time this stale air builds up and restricts the movement of the diaphragm, making it difficult to bring in fresh oxygen. In order to compensate, the body uses other muscles in the neck, back, and chest to do the impinged diaphragm's job. This will leave less oxygen for exercise and activity. Regularly practicing breathe exercises helps rid the lungs of stale air, increases oxygen, and helps restore the diaphragm to its healthy working order.
“Learning to Breathe Again: An Asthmatics Guide To Retraining Breathing Patterns” is an article where Barbara Benagh, yoga teacher of 42 years, writes about here personal experience and findings of asthma and asthma control through the yogic practice known as Pranayama or breathe control.
After a viral case of pneumonia, Barbara developed asthma. The clinical definition of asthma is a chronic lung disease characterized by coughing, wheezing, and inflamed airways. However, she found that this explanation hardly conveys the terrorizing experience of an asthmatic feeling out of control and helpless when an attack occurs.
Some statistics and facts about asthma
- Seventeen million Americans suffer from this disease,
- six percent of children under five have asthma,
- children miss ten million days of schools a year because of it,
- asthma accounts for nearly two million hospital visits in 2006,
- more than six billion dollars was spent on asthma care,
- annually there are more than one hundred and eighty thousand deaths word-wide from asthma,
- asthma has become a more serious disease in recent years leaving researchers stumped
- according to researchers it may be
- pollution
- a result of being too clean, possibly making it difficult for the development of the immune system early in life
- the same drugs that were made to prevent and cure the disease may actual be increasing incidence of asthma
- according to researchers it may be
Now let's learn how to help our breathe support us in living a healthy and happy life!
“Smile inhale, smile exhale, breath that life may not grow pale!” :-)
How to Love Our Breathe
Smoking can cause many different respiratory diseases.
I have been trying to ask my dad to quit smoking for years. I know it is a difficult addiction to break. The scope of this article does not cover overcoming addiction to smoking, but here are some reasons why one might consider quitting.
This is some of the information I found on the US Department of Health & Human Services website about the hazards of smoking. http://betobaccofree.hhs.gov/health-effects/smoking-health/#lungs Smoking causes scaring of the lungs, and can lead to
- COPD
- emphysema- a condition where the lungs lose their ability to stretch, making it difficult or impossible to breath
- chronic bronchitis- causes less air flow to and from the lungs do to the swelling of the bronchial tubes
- Pneumonia
- Asthma
- Tuberculosis
Air pollution also plays a major role in the health of our respiratory system.
Be mindful of pollution in rural areas with a dense population, industry and motor vehicles contribute to higher levels of pollution, putting you at higher risk of developing a breathing condition. Keeping the household clean, dusting, vacuuming, decluttering, is a great way to ensure your breathe's health.
Below are some exercises that one can do to deal with asthma and COPD.
The American Lung Association recommends “Pursed Lip Breathing” and “Belly Breathing, aka Diaphragmatic Breathing” for healthier airways, especially for those suffering from asthma and COPD. Both are done through the nose with the mouth shut.
- “Pursed Lip Breathing” -breath in through the nose and out through the nose, making the exhales twice as long as the inhales. The goal of this exercise is to keep the airways open for longer periods of time.
- “Belly Breathing, aka Diaphragmatic Breathing” -breath in a similar way that you did for “Pursed Lip Breathing” but focus the air that fills your lungs into the belly area so that you can be sure to give the diaphragm a good work out. You can put your hands on your stomach or a object to make sure that you are focusing your breath into the belly, feeling its' raise and fall. You can also increase the exhale to three times the length of the inhale for greater effect.
When it became clear that her medication was no longer helping, Barbara Benagh began to intensely study the breathing process and just how yoga might assist in prevention of the painful symptoms of asthma that had even brought her close to death. She experimented with many different breathing techniques until she found a routine that would restore her breathe to its' normal rhythm. Her article, “Learning to Breathe Again: An Asthmatics Guide To Retraining Breathing Patterns” offers us five exercises to increase the duration of our breathes, and many helpful tips to assist the asthmatic in practicing breathe exercises safely.
Barbara's tips for practicing breathe exercises with asthma
- practice the exercises in order until you become familiar with theses exercises
- don't be too ambitious
- exercises work best with an empty stomach, but sipping water helps the airways
- wear comfortable loose fitting clothing in a comfortable room where you can lie down
- STOP doing the exercises if you feel anxious or shortness of breathe
- if you get frustrated, reminder yourself that you can change your breathing habits over time with patience and persistence of practicing breathe exercises
- practice once or twice a day
- breath through the nose, to prepare air for airways
- clearing the airways can help make this easier
- Barbara recommends Sirsasana or headstand to do this,
- but standing on your head is not always accessible to everyone, so I have another asana or posture that worked wonders for me when I had a sinus infection, Matsyasana or fish pose (read about it near the end of “How to Love Yourself by Healing Yourself of Sickness” http://forselflove.weebly.com/blog/how-to-love-yourself-by-healing-yourself-of-sickness )
- Barbara also recommends a mild saline solution to wash out your sinus (http://www.yogajournal.com/video/video/nasal-irrigation/ ),
- I have found hot tea to do that pretty well too (do not pour the tea in your nose like you do with the solution!)
- Barbara recommends Sirsasana or headstand to do this,
- clearing the airways can help make this easier
Barbara's breath exercises
- Deep relaxation -
- lye down with a pillow and blanket,
- bend your knees,
- rest your feat on the floor,
- adjust your position if you are uncomfortable,
- play relaxing music if you would like,
- place your hands on your belly,
- close your eyes,
- draw your attention inward, and
- let go of any thoughts or worries that you are holding onto.
- Breath gently in and out
- feel the movement of the air as it travels to and from your belly
- The wave -a soothing movement up and down the spine as the body settles into natural breathe
- after deep relaxation, place your arms on the floor along side your torso,
- close your eyes
- move your attention to your belly with each exhale
- lower your lower back to the floor on the next exhale and lift it on the next inhale
- hips stay on the floor
- maintain slow and steady breathing
- notice how this movement feels on the entire spine
- Softening the inhale
- start with your normal relaxed breathing rate
- count the length of your inhales and exhales
- after some minutes, modify the length of your inhales and exhales so that the exhales become twice as long as your inhales
- over-breathing is a bad habit that perpetuates asthma, so instead of lengthening your exhale shorten your inhale
- If you feel anxious or strained, return to your normal breathing rate
- Complete diaphragmatic exhalation -helps with shortness of breathe
- lie on your back
- close your eyes
- breathing through your nose, make a slow steady exhale that is longer than normal
- feel the abdominal muscles work in the exhale
- do not push so much that the effort becomes strained
- pause briefly after the exhale
- relax the abdomen
- keep the throat open as you inhale through the nose
- feel the breath being drawn down into the lower chest
- count the length of your inhales, exhales, and pauses
- start by making the inhales and exhales the same length
- maintain a strong breathe in both directions
- eventually make your exhales twice as long as your inhale
- imaging a breeze of air flowing through the lungs might help the effort
- repeat this cycle five to ten times with normal breathes in between each cycle
- Extended pause -helps regulate CO2 levels in the body, gives a similar effect as an inhaler, and can prevent an asthma attack if done early enough
- this exercise especially takes patience and persistence
- lie on your back, bend your knees, feet on the floor like in deep relaxation
- inhale for one or two seconds
- exhale for two to four seconds
- pause, consciously relax whenever you feel tension building up
- repeat five to ten cycles with normal breathes in between cycles as needed
Barbara has found that this practice has help her embrace her yoga asana practice with new strength and vigor. It has also allowed her to embrace a past Love of cycling, crossing Colorado's Loveland Pass (11,990 ft) and riding from Boston to New York City in a weekend without breathing through the mouth once!
“Smile inhale, smile exhale, breath that life may not grow pale!” :-)
How Urdhva Dhanurasana can Help Us Love Our Breathe
Additional benefits of Urdhva Dhanurasana
- stretches
- chest
- lungs
- chest
- strengthens
- arms
- wrists
- legs
- buttock
- abdomen
- spine
- arms
- stimulates
- thyroid
- pituitary
- thyroid
- increases energy
- counteracts depression
- therapeutic for
- asthmatics
- back pain
- infertility
- osteoporosis
- asthmatics
Let's Practice Urdhva Dhanurasana! :-)
CAUTION: Those suffering from any one of the following should avoid this pose
- back injury
- carpal tunnel syndrome
- diarrhea
- headache
- heart problems
- high or low blood pressure
Technique
- lie on the floor
- bend the knees, setting your heels close to your buttock on the floor
- bend your elbows, put your hands on the floor, palms spread out, and finders tips near the tops of the shoulders
- press the inner feat and hands into the floor
- exhale and push up with your upper arms and thighs so that you lift you pelvis toward the ceiling as high as you can manage
- CAUION: do not push up so much so that it causes acute back pain like a sharp burning
- Alignment: make sure that your legs are not splaying out to the sides
- Remember to relax and breathe while in this pose. Enjoy the stretch. Hold this pose for as many breathes as you would like or are able to. Make sure that you come out of this pose if it becomes too stressful for you or any part of your body is experiencing a sharp pain.
- Recommended feel good practice: First, only follow these suggestions if they help you relax more. Remember the goal is relaxation. Simply breathing is enough in many cases, but these might deepen your experience.
- As you breathe try thinking to yourself the following sentence with each breath. “Smile inhale!” inhale. “1” exhale. “Smile exhale!” inhale. “2” exhale. “Breath that life... “3” exhale. “may not grow pale!” inhale. “4” exhale. Continue this as long as you would like.
- Smiling will help you relax even more.
- This asana can save one from the heavy burden of mucus filled lungs for a time, welcoming in new breath and life! It is one of my favorites! It always inspires me beyond my current state because of how it opens my chest up, bends my back more incredibly than I ever thought possible, and works so many different muscles of my body. It really does brighten my mind and lift any doldrums that I had been feeling. May this pose bring brightness to your day, new vigor to your body, and abundant life through your breath! :-) “Smile inhale, smile exhale, breath that life may not grow pale! :-)”
- Recommended feel good practice: First, only follow these suggestions if they help you relax more. Remember the goal is relaxation. Simply breathing is enough in many cases, but these might deepen your experience.
- When you feel that you have held this asana long enough relax the effort, and gently lower your body back down to the ground. This may be the perfect time to practice Savasana (Learn how to perform Savasana or corpse pose here: http://forselflove.weebly.com/blog/january-10th-2016 ) or you might find it a better idea to carry that energy that you are experiencing immediately on to what ever is next. Thank your body for carrying you through a wonderfully uplifting practice today! Remember to “Smile inhale, smile exhale, breath that life may not grow pale! :-).”
“Smile inhale, smile exhale, breathe that life may not grow pale!” :-)
I hope that the article this week was a breathe of fresh air for you! May goal is to offer you something that will help improve your lives through self knowledge in some way, and there is know better way that I have found than through strengthening the breathe. It is our tether to life and its quality directly reflects the quality of life that we experience.
If there is ever anything that you would like to hear about please let me know in the comments area here or on the Facebook group “For the Love of Self.” I am always happy to hear comments on how to improve or to hear what you enjoyed about the current article. May your breathe grow healthier day by day now that you have read “How to Love Yourself by Loving Your Breathe! :-)” Have a wonderful week! Do your best to breath fully no matter what you might come across in your journey through life! Aaron Szczurek <3 :-)