Posted by BarbaraCat on September 6, 2003, at 17:45:40
In reply to Re: I feel bad..., posted by fluffy on September 6, 2003, at 17:17:35
>>--sleepy, wired, and a weird feeling of being unable to yawn--Is that hyperventillation??
**Funny you should ask. There is a thing called Hyperventilation Syndrome and it causes anxiety, depression, fatigue. It's when, from whatever reason, the Oxygen/CO2 balance is off and Ox is too high and CO2 too low which causes a screwup in intercellular calcium and blood pH. There are a couple books I've read on it because one of my main symptoms when I'm bouncing off the walls is not being able to take a full breath, and then I'll sigh alot. In fact, I do this alot no matter how I'm feeling because my tendency is to hold my breath in when I'm concentrating on something. Now, I've done yoga for years and I know breathing, but I was missing something until I found it described in the books!
Here's how to retrain things:
1. Slowly inhale from the nose from the lower lung area, front and back.
2. Slowly exhale from the nose completely and when you get to the end of the exhale
3. Pinch your nose to retain the air, but try not to tighten around it, just hold the air in for as long as you can. Count how many seconds you can hold it.
4. When you feel like you're going to burst, let the air back in, but do not gasp or gulp the air in, even though you'll want to. As slowly as possible, inhale through the nose (but don't torture yourself) otherwise the gasping/sighing in a big inhale will defeat the purpose.
5. Wait 5 minutes and then do it again. Wait another 5 minutes and do it again.
6. Practice this cycle once a day, gradually increasing the retention time.You'll probably start being able to retain your breath for less than 10 seconds. You're supposed to work up to around 30 seconds while sitting, and then work up to 30 seconds while walking. This is supposed to retrain the breathing reflex and rebalance the pH balance and OX/CO2 ratio. I haven't done it enough to say 'wow, it really works' because I don't remember it when I need it, but when I've done it I've been able to breathe normally, feel less anxious, and it even clears my sinuses. Worth giving a try for a while. I'm going to start doing it again. Wouldn't it be funny if something so simple could help alot?
Anyhow, don't lose the BF. Good luck with your show. Do this breathing retention before and it should really help with the anxiety (as long as you don't pass out - just kidding). - Barbara
poster:BarbaraCat
thread:9730
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030902/msgs/257663.html