How Do You Do The Breathing

[chucklehound]

I am finding it difficult to do the 7/11 techique I cant breathe in for that long and havnt got enough air in my lungs to breathe out that long.

I was taught 4 in 4 out breathing and found that helpful - shall I carry on with 4 in 4 out or try 7/11 again until I get it right???[xx(]


All the best

Feel free pm me if you want to chat

steno -x-

[Alton]

I would do what ever feels comfortable for you. As long as you are breathing through the diaphram and not doing short, shallow breaths I don't think it really matters how long.

Stick to what you know. If it ain't broke - Don't fix it!

[Martin]

Yeah, do what makes you feel good :) Or count faster? I count fairly fast when doing the 7 11 thing. But stick with what works for you, definitely good advice.

-Martin

------------------------------
I'm not insane.. really

[Jenny]

Hi,
Its whatever suits you. Just relax and breathe from your diaphram. It isn't set in stone how many you should count.

Jenxx

J. Farmer

[Deeko]

Hi again Steno,
This how it works. Quote:
You can practice a special type of breathing, not into your chest but deep into your tummy or diaphragm which is below your chest. The important thing here is that the out breath must be longer that the in breath. This causes stimulation of the part of your nervous system responsible for relaxation. This is a basic law of biology and if you breathe in this way then your body will have no choice but to relax.

It may take a few minutes but the body will respond regardless of what your mind is thinking. Experience this now. Sit down and close your eyes for a little while. Just become aware of your breathing…and breathe in to the count of seven… and breathe out to the count of eleven. You can hold for a couple of seconds at the bottom of the out breath if that's comfortable for you.

It may be a little difficult at first, but doing this regularly causes your general anxiety level to come down. You may also find that you begin to breathe this way automatically if you feel anxious. Regular relaxation actually starts to inhibit the production of stress hormones in the body so it actually becomes harder and harder to panic. As you become more generally relaxed the 'baseline' of arousal from which you are starting lowers. It actually becomes harder to get stressed!

Hyperventilation responds very well to this technique. If you practice this daily, hyperventilating should cease to be a problem very quickly. It can also give you much more control over panic attacks.

Hope helps.



Take Care Dee.

[chucklehound]

Thanks every1. I will try the 7/11 agen

All the best

Feel free pm me if you want to chat

steno -x-

[mjh74]

Steno, I found the 'counting' method uncomfortable to do. What I tend to do now is take a steady deep breath into my belly, the sort you do when sighing. Hold it for a while then release a steady breath at about half the speed you took it in. I find this slows my anxiety down a lot quicker than trying to follow a set pattern and also when a bad attack sets in I find a set pattern goes to pot. :D

Mark x

[chucklehound]

mjh74,
that sounds very good i will b trying that

All the best

Feel free pm me if you want to chat

steno -x-

[Meg]

I also used to just hold my breath for a bit after a smooth deep abdominal in breath and then let it out as slowly as possible but not get hung up on any counting.

It has the same end effect of keeping the blood gases stable .

Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com

Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...

[Karen]

My therapist told me it doesn't matter what count you use, as long as the out breath is longer than the in breath.


Karen



It is not easy to find happiness in ourselves, and it is not possible to find it elsewhere.

[nomorepanic]

Try this ....

One of the most important things that will help you during a Panic Attack is to control your breathing. Although it is the last thing on your mind, and very hard to control, it is very important as it will calm you down. Panic Attack sufferers will almost inevitably suffer from hyperventilation and must learn abdominal breathing.

Slow, abdominal breathing alone has been shown to abort panic attacks and prevent them. But for a person with panic disorder, learning slow abdominal breathing can be quite difficult. People with panic disorder are almost always chest breathers. The worst thing you can tell a person during a panic attack is to breathe deeply. It takes a lot of practice to breathe with the diaphragm without a great deal of training, but if you can learn to breathe slowly with your diaphragm, you will not panic!

You must practice abdominal breathing so that when you have a Panic Attack you can put it into action.

Here are some tips on learning diaphragmatic breathing. Start while lying on your back. Place one hand on your chest and one hand on your belly (between navel and ribs). Focus on allowing the belly to rise easily when inhaling and fall when exhaling. HOLD THE CHEST STILL with your hand on your chest. The objective is to breathe all the time with the belly (diaphragm) and not the chest. You are aiming at about 6 breaths per minute. This is a slow relaxed process. There should be no sense of effort.

If the belly won't move and the chest continues to move, put a weight on the belly between the navel and ribs (where the hand was). A heavy book will do, but something that is not painful and weighs 3 - 5 pounds is best. Focus on allowing the weight to rise on inhale and sink on exhale. Again - no effort!

If still no success, kneel on all fours, i.e., assume a position of a four-legged animal. In this position, the chest tends to be locked in place, forcing the diaphragm to take over the breathing task. Slow and easy, no effort. Once you learn to breathe with your belly, you must practice, practice, practice.

The first week, you should practice for only a few breaths at a time while lying on your back. Then gradually extend the practice time to 15 minutes. When this can be done comfortably, you should start to practice while sitting. Then standing. Then walking.

After you can breathe with the belly in all positions, you should practice in different situations. Start with easy situations like sitting in a car. Then sitting in a restaurant. Progress until you can breathe with the belly in situations that previously felt un-natural and uncomfortable.

IMPORTANT: If at any time during the breathing training, you feel dizzy or light-headed, then stop the exercise, rest, and try again in a few minutes. The breathing training is not about being tough or facing your fear. It is about learning to breathe to normalize the bodily functions.

You may find it helpful to have someone doing this breathing exercise with you as they 'take control' and get you to breathe on their command.


Nicola

"Nearly all happiness comes into our lives through doors we don't even remember leaving open"