Breathe Life Into Your Lungs

About Breathing

If you wishto master the art of self-hypnosis, you first must learn to breathe properly. The breath is essential for inducing the hypnotic state. This is something that is not always emphasized enough by those who teach self-hypnosis.

“To draw air into and expel it from the lungs.”

This is the definition you will find in the Oxford Dictionary if you look up the word “breathe.” Although it’s common knowledge that one needs to breathe air in order to stay alive, you must also recognize that breathing is far more than simply drawing air in and expelling it out. It is the first most essential tool at your disposal for creating in your mind and body a sense of well being. Especially when dealing with aspects of living such as stress management. It is a function of the body that works both voluntarily and involuntarily. Contrary to the dictionary explanation, a true breath is firstly created by exhaling slowly and completely. The reason we begin the breath by exhaling is because in order for an object to be filled, it first must be emptied. Removing tainted impure air through the out-breath allows your lungs to be filled completely with fresh air when the time comes to inhale. Although people naturally tend to breathe in first, whenever you wish to consciously breathe for relaxation purposes etc. the breath should begin by exhaling, followed by inhaling. This allows you to inhale a complete lung full of fresh, pure air. The out-breath triggers the parasympathetic nervous system: the relaxation response. The in-breath triggers the sympathetic nervous system: the arousal response.

The out-breath should always be longer than the in-breath. The difference in time should be about eleven seconds for exhaling and seven seconds for inhaling. By breathing out slower and longer you increase the relaxation response. In doing so you, you also decrease the arousal response.

Breathing and Self-Awareness

Breathing is an unconscious activity just like any other natural phenomenon such as blood circulation or food digestion. But in times of increased physical or mental stress its rhythm is affected. When presented with stressful or difficult environments, very often a person will begin to hold their breath and as a result fail to breathe normally. Thoughts of a fearful nature have the ability to encourage poor breathing. It is in these times of increased mental and physical stress that we need to be even more aware of our breathing than normal. It is therefore important to raise our levels of self-awareness each time we come in contact with stress, whether internal or external. This is achieved by spot-checking.

Spot-Checking

Spot-checking is done by noticing if you are holding your breath, taking short little breaths, or breathing faster than is necessary for the given situation. If you are doing any of these, it’s now time to switch to a conscious and deliberate mode of controlled breathing. The way to breathe steadily and completely is by using the correct breathing technique.

The Correct Breathing Technique

This technique is very useful for concentrating your mind upon your breathing. Take your time learning it and enjoy the way it makes you feel. This is your first step on the road to self-discovery through self-hypnosis. Find somewhere quiet and comfortable to practice and remember; this is your time now.

Exhale slowly, smoothly, silently and completely through the nose

Expel all the air out of your lungs and contract your belly
Now pause. Neither inhale nor exhale for a few moments

Wait until your lungs naturally demand the air

Inhale slowly, smoothly, silently and completely through the nose

Allow your belly to rise until you are full

Do not hold your breath when you are full

Exhale slowly, smoothly, silently and completely through the nose

Expel all the air out of your lungs and contract your belly
Pause. Neither inhale nor exhale for a few moments

Wait until your lungs naturally demand the air

The breath should be one whole sequence from start to finish. Do not hold your breath in between inhaling and exhaling as some practitioners recommend. Holding the breath is unnatural, unhealthy and achieves nothing. If you get light-headed you may be approaching the technique too forcefully. Slow down and think of the words smoothly and silently. While you are consciously breathing you shouldn’t be able to hear yourself inhaling and exhaling, for when the breath is silent it automatically slows down. If you can hear yourself breathe, you are breathing too fast and too forcefully.

The Correct Breathing Technique(explained)

Air is expelled from the lungs by exhaling slowly, smoothly, silently and completely. This action is aided by the contraction of the abdominal muscles, expelling any last traces of air. Allow this important exhalation to happen with ease. The more of this air that is expelled from the lungs, the greater the amount of pure fresh air that is received when inhaling. Now you must pause and wait for your breath to come naturally because you feel you need it. This is the only time that the breath is held, not after inhaling, but before inhaling.
Now the breath is drawn through the nose and the diaphragm lowers itself while the bottom sections of the lungs fill with air. At the same time the abdomen swells out with the rising of the belly. The belly remains inflated until the last stage of exhalation.
After the lower sections of the lungs are filled, the middle sections receive air by expanding and raising the ribs. Now you are almost full to capacity.

By raising the collar-bones and lifting the shoulders, optimum lung capacity is achieved. Lower, middle, and upper sections are now ready for exhalation.

Now You Exhale in this Order:
Lower the collar-bones
Relax the rib cage
Contract the belly, pause

Now the diaphragm returns to its normal position. When the diaphragm has done its job, there are a few crucial moments of respite you must allow before drawing in your second breath. Remember this is the one and only time that the breath is held. It is when you have fully exhaled, and before you inhale, not the other way around. Relaxation in the region can only be felt when the abdominal muscles are at rest. It is at this moment of respite between the breaths, when you are neither inhaling nor exhaling, that relaxation is most felt throughout your body. After waiting a few seconds in this period of respite, the air will automatically and naturally want to enter your lungs. The pause between breaths is essential in correct breathing. The ribs, intercostals and chest muscles only have a limited amount of room to expand. This is why you must breathe diaphragmatically, for when the diaphragm is lowered through the action of the abdominal muscles pulling it downward, the lungs then have more room to expand at the base.
You may be thinking that this seems like a lot of work to do in order to take a single breath. But in time this will become a simple and effective way for you to achieve full respiratory potential, thus increasing your quality of life. A good way to rehearse the correct breathing technique is in the lying down position without using a pillow. A pillow may hinder the passage of air through the windpipe. The best place for your pillow is under the knees. If you can lie down on a carpet floor instead of a bed when learning, a firm support is preferable. When you feel you are proficient at it and understand its method well, you can break down the detailed explanation of how it works into this easier format for remembering.

The Correct Breathing Technique (simplified)
Exhale, contract belly, pause
(a) Inhale, belly rising
(b) Ribs rising
(c) Collar-bones and shoulders rising
(a) Now exhale, shoulders and collar-bones relaxing
(b) Then ribs
(c) Then belly, pause

Take your Time

Learning to breathe consciously and correctly takes a while to master. At the beginning you may encounter some resistance from the muscles that are involved, particularly the intercostals between the ribs. But within a few days, through continued expansion and relaxation, these muscles gradually stretch, allowing for sufficient space to breathe in a comfortable manner.

As you practice slow, smooth, silent and complete breathing on your back, bear in mind that it’s done in three separate sections. Each section of the respiratory apparatus must be concentrated on individually and in succession. This is how the sections are divided up:

Abdominal (breathing from the diaphragm)
Intercostal (breathing from the ribs)
Clavicular (breathing from the top of lungs)

Incorrect Breathing

Some people make the mistake of pulling in their bellies when inhaling because they think this will help move the air up into their lungs. Contracting the abdominal muscles while inhaling is the incorrect way to breathe. Relaxing the region and allowing it to fill up naturally by flattening the diaphragm and letting your belly rise is the correct way to breathe. This lets the air fill the base of the lungs. When your belly has fully inflated, it should remain that way until the final phase of exhalation.

In the past I have observed people holding in their stomachs when trying their best to disguise their weight. On occasion I’ve even witnessed men doing this even when they were already in good physical shape. I can only conclude that they do this so as to accentuate their upper body, thus drawing attention to their chests instead of their stomachs. Women are also guilty of this sucking in of the belly when seeking to draw more attention to their upper body. This painful procedure, often driven by self-consciousness, should be avoided at all costs by those seeking to breathe correctly. It’s a contradiction of sorts. On one hand the person contracting their stomach does it to look well and feel confident. But on the other, it’s hard to feel confident and relaxed when you can’t breathe properly. Sucking in the belly and holding the breath restricts air flow, causing the brain and nervous system to send the wrong signals. The body only tightens up when oxygen can’t reach the muscles. A lack of clarity in thought is felt when the breath is held forcefully like this. These, along with a multitude of other side effects, are brought on by sucking in the belly for the sake of looking well to the observer. God has made you the way you are. If people can’t derive pleasure from looking at you, well frankly it’s their problem and they’ll just have to live with it.

Breathing through your Nose

Correct breathing is done through the nose because the nose has a filter which warms up the air as it passes into the lungs. Your nostrils also help control the speed flow of the air. If you find it difficult to breathe through your nose, perhaps because of a sinus condition, you can alternatively use your mouth, although it is not the most recommended method of breathing. You often hear health practitioners say,

“in through the nose and out through the mouth.”

But from now on I want you to think

“in through the nose and out through the nose.”

By breathing out through the nose, air is just as controlled leaving your lungs, as it was going in. It also means you are not expelling it too quickly. This helps you to focus on the different sections of your lungs being used because of the measured control and concentration you are applying. Taking breaths in and out through the nose can also help disguise the fact that you are consciously breathing to the onlooker. For example, in an interview situation or addressing a large group of people where the nerves might be heightened, breathing in and out through the nose is an effective way to clear the thoughts and relax the body. Now you can settle into your environment without any fear of self-consciousness. By breathing slowly, smoothly, silently and completely, an instantaneous calmness comes over you, paving the way for clear thoughts and actions.

This article is an extract from “POWERFUL MIND THROUGH SELF-HYPNOSIS” by Cathal O’Briain.

You can find this book at www.amazon.com and in all good bookstores throughout the world.

This book will literally change the way you think, feel, act and behave…forever. www.o-books.com