How to be smart with our breath
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- Опубліковано 21 бер 2020
- It goes without saying that we need our breath. It keeps our cells fed and free of waste products. To quote one of the pioneers in neuroplastic healing, the late Moshé Feldenkrais :
"Do nothing that resembles breathing."
So, the other thing that goes without saying is there’s a LOT of confusion around the best way to breathe, how to practice breathing, and how we can use it to heal trauma and restore nervous system goodness. I wish this was a simple subject to break down, but it’s not. Actually, it is simple, if we follow Dr. Feldenkrais’ advice and just, ‘do nothing that resembles breathing’ but we’ve already let the cat out of the bag on this topic and our higher brains have been conditioned to think there is a right, a wrong, and a better way to breathe. Today’s vlog is my attempt to help shed some light on this topic and offer you a little bit of ease around how to best be with, follow, and ‘work with’ your breath and breathing.
Resources I mention during this video:
► Did you know that taking a deep breath to relax is actually counter-productive? irenelyon.com/2012/12/24/did-...
► The environmentalist in me has this to say
irenelyon.com/2014/10/06/envi...
► What's the nervous system got to do with it?
• [Trauma Tips #1] What'...
► Get to know your (many) nervous systems
• [Trauma Tips #2] Get t...
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Thank you for being here!
1. Leave a comment and let me know how this video impacted you. Feel free to leave a question (my team answers them each week!)
2. To get more nervous system health resources, plus learn more about me and my credentials, plus the many ways you can work with me at the practical level, head to my website: irenelyon.com
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4. GOT QUESTIONS? Send an email to: support@irenelyon.com
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Please know that…
The statements on this UA-cam channel or in videos are simply opinion. Content presented or posted on this channel is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment or a professional therapeutic relationship. Content presented or posted is intended to provide general health information for educational purposes only and you should contact the appropriate healthcare professional before relying on any such information.
My website is a wealth of free resources and information on how to start this work, so here it is one more time: irenelyon.com
Hello Irene, could you comment on the techniques Wim Hof (the "ice man") uses?
So grateful for this.
Irene, can you make a video on how to know the difference between real danger and perceived danger. Because when my fight or flight response/panic is on, and people would say: "Calm down, it's not dangerous", I would always think: "How do you know it's not? Can you be 100% sure it's not dangerous?".
Love this! Thank you :) I experience a lot of people focusing on deep breathing and micro-managed breathing, and it has felt counter-intuitive to me. I appreciate your insights, knowledge & wisdom about just allowing our breath to show us the way naturally.
Thanks Irene this answered so many misunderstandings about breath. So many of my clients have been taught to take a deep breath as a way to manage emotions.
Hey Candice,
Nicole here from Team Lyon.
So great that you found this answered so many misunderstandings about breath. Hopefully it provide some insight to those, like your clients, who have been told to do otherwise!
Thank you Irene
This is really helpful information Irene. Thank you 🙏
oh my gosh this resonated with me so much. Thank you Irene! during this self quarantine time I am learning much more about neuroplasticity and anxiety, etc. and this was super helpful. All of your videos have been really great! Thank you so much!
So wonderful that you're exploring Irene's videos!
What a great thing to explore while in quarantine :)
If you're after some more in-depth exploration I would suggest checking out her Healing Trauma Series - irenelyon.com/healing-trauma
Here's to more learning and insights!
Nicole - Team Lyon
Thank you!
Awesome information ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Thanks for this. You mention that talking helps us breathe. I find the opposite- when I talk to others it often makes my chest tight and breathing gets more constricted. Would you have any thoughts or suggestions about this? Thanks!
Thank you Irene! I'm curious what your thoughts are on breathing practices such as conscious connected breath, including Transformational Breathing for trauma release. I have experienced break-throughs and release with this technique. Does what you're saying in this video about controlling the breath apply to such techniques? If yes, what is the explanation behind their effectiveness? Thank you.
CO2 is not just a “waste gas”. That’s a common misunderstanding. If you breathe heavily and discard most of your carbon dioxide, you’ll start to have tingling in the extremeties, lips, etc.. and start to feel like you will pass out. This isn’t because you’re getting too much oxygen, but because your actual cells aren’t getting near as much. It’s the rich presence of carbon dioxide in the blood that dilates blood vessels and also causes the oxygen to be released into the cells (The scientific principle is called “The Bohr Effect”). This is why people who are hyperventilating in a panic are directed to breathe into a paper bag... so that they can get some of the co2 they’re breathing out back into their blood stream and not pass out from lack of oxygen.
Modern Americanized yoga has falsely taught that more breathing is better, whereas genuine classic yoga teaches that the less one breathes, the more healthier, robust, and aware one becomes. Many traditions teach this.
“A perfect man breathes as if he is not breathing” - Lao Tsu
Totally right! Thank you!
Thanks for sharing that Andrew!
Nicole - Team Lyon
I like this. I'd kind to add the idea of not expecting to defeat the impulse/emotion, but to develop a relationship where with each interaction you learn more about it and integrate with it better slowly over time so you don't continually end up beating yourself up each time you fail to conquer the feelings like we often do
Hi juntjoo nunya, Jen here from Team Lyon. In this nervous system work we do a lot of work with the underlying impulse and learning to feel what wants to arise - be it sensation, emotion, movement, or something else - in titrated ways while staying embodied and connected to the present.
We don't try to conquer feelings - and we do find that the underlying patterns usually shift quite significantly over time. If you haven't yet seen Irene's free Healing Trauma training, you might consider giving it a watch.
free Healing Trauma Training - irenelyon.com/healing-trauma
Very helpful, my eldest opened up about deep breathing exercises incorporated at school and how he was just going to breathe as normal with what we were doing, our breath (increased) so notoced my natural shorter inhales and longer exhales, normal? (we were doing an exersise that involved an inhale and an exhale.) He explained when doing those type of exercises that it took him 40 minutes or longer to feel like he was breathing right and how it was more scary then. Back then i had no idea of this education. So i just told him that sounded scary, and explained breathing, how his body naturally knew what to do. And that was okay and normal.
Having watched you for a while i remembered these types of videos and facebook q and a . I had to continue with him how that was normal to feel because whether it be anxiety/excitement paired with his body by forcing calm and not authentically felt, Back then it was like trying to force his excitement an element of the new ness and fear of school and control his excitement. Now after alot of trauma and re traumas he has alot of stored flight fight energy. As do i, though he is just now and recently starting to conciously differentiate triggers and understanding of them.
Am i doing right by making noises i am even naturally feeling to do. Sometimes silly on the out breath yet also like a grr of frustration or "ooos" that naturally want to come out with?
As he is just recently interested and cork popping (been going about healing in ways so backwards because of my own traumas still very hard to this day- even if i was consciously aware of it. like over sharing with me young and didnt want to over burden as a caretaker had done- so i stall/freeze alot on the open dialogue paradigm with shared experience with him- focused more on validating him yet smaller opening up on the issues of the past. It had been working against our healing too, even if i am prepared for the emotions it can bring up for him too.
Thank you for your work. I notice if im frustrated i take a shorter inhale and longer exhale. And had totally forgot with just doing the noticing and them which came up last night my ah derr and then how i had got out of it in the pandemic and ptsd cycle myself and how needed the work and continued of all of it is important. Thank you for all yall do.
Hi Ayaime 33, Jen here from Team Lyon. You ask some interesting questions here and I respect your awareness of how you're relating to your son and his experience.
As for breath, there isn't really a "normal" way to breathe as the breath is designed to change based on our state and what we're doing or experiencing. For example, the breath pattern when we're taking a nap will be very different from the breath pattern when we're out for a brisk walk.
Generally speaking the inhale initiates the SNS (sympathetic nervous system) and the exhale initiates to the PNS (parasympathetic nervous system), so when the exhale is longer than the inhale we're inviting in a more parasympathetically dominant state (and vice versa).
It can also be helpful to know the intention in paying attention to the breath. Sometimes we're wanting to make space for a pattern and/or heal an existing traumatic pattern, other times we're wanting to support ourselves in moving to a calmer or a more energized state, and certain ways of breathing can be helpful in doing this. Irene's teachings are focused on healing trauma and nervous system regulation so she focuses more on the former.
As far as the "grr of frustration" goes, if that's what's arising and what wants to come out, go for it. You might also notice what your body wants to do, if anything. I'll also link to a few of Irene's related resources that might be of interest. Hope this helps and that I answered your questions.
ua-cam.com/video/tqGsbFjihHo/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/4wdeBJ39Cuw/v-deo.html
Great video! So if the breath wants to stop/hold for a while, should i let it and see what happens? Same with hyperventilation? That’s what my intuition says, but literally everybody wants you to breathe «calmly and steadily» 🙄
What about if I breath out continuously till it creates a panic feeling then I am left with trying to calm down this happen often throughout my days.
It hurts so much in my chest
LaMar la, if you're experiencing pain in your chest while breathing, I would suggest getting that checked out by a medical export.
Wishing you less hurt in your chest.
Nicole - Team Lyon
Pullleez !
RE.search Wim Hof breathing & the Autonomic Nervous System
very interesting. what you say about the breath finding a natural rhythym.also about kids. i saw a video of a girl recenty, having a big emotion because her ice cream broke. she was really mad and frustrated with her mother. her mother did not abandon her, but she was with her and guided her through her emotions. would you say this is a good thing? the mother has to be able to not take it personally, i find it interesting because it wakes up different emotions in people, seeing the video.
@abcek6006, Jen here from Irene's Team. Generally speaking yes, we want to be there with kids, present and holding our own regulation, as they move through their feelings. I'll share a few links to related resources in case you want to check them out.
The Ill Effects of Dysregulated Parenting - irenelyon.com/2022/10/23/the-ill-effects-of-dysregulated-parenting/
How to help children who have anxiety, depression, and ADD - irenelyon.com/2020/02/23/how-to-help-children-who-have-anxiety-depression-and-add/