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The Buteyko Method of Breath Reconditioning Professor Buteyko is a Russian Doctor who noticed early on in his career that many sick people seemed to have very laboured breathing. Although it was clear that they were getting more than adequate amounts of air they would insist that they could not get enough. Professor Buteyko wondered whether this obvious over breathing had anything to do with their condition and whether or not, by getting them to reduce their breathing, it would help them. Being a true pioneer he first experimented on himself by teaching himself to breathe less. Even though he was only in his twenties he had high blood pressure and this normalised after decreasing his overall breathing for a while. He also found that the migraine headaches he had experienced for many years disappeared. After a time he deliberately increased his breathing again and his migraines came back and his blood pressure went up again. When he started to apply what he had found on himself to others he was quite amazed by the number of different health problems that could be helped simply by learning to breathe less. The symptoms associated with over-breathing or "hyperventilation" include:-
By now you may be thinking that you are a over-breather but how do you know for certain. Well try this simple test. Sit comfortably in an upright chair. With your mouth closed take an ordinary breath in through your nose (not a deep breath), relax and let it out. (Don't force it out.) When the breath is out use your thumb and index finger to hold your nose closed so that you cannot breathe. Continue to hold your nose until the first sign of discomfort, the first sign that you are getting uncomfortable and you would like to breathe again. Then just let go of your nose. Time how long you can hold your breathe in this way. Remember you are not being asked to see how long you can hold your breath, only how long you can hold it without any discomfort. (Don't try this on a full stomach, wait till 2 to 3 hours after a big meal.) If you held your breath in this way for less that 30 seconds then you are a chronic over-breather and many of the above symptoms probably apply to you. The shorter the time the more symptoms you are likely to have. Ideally you should be able to hold your breath in this way for a full minute. Many people experiencing some of the symptoms outlined above have sought medical help only to be told, even after many different tests, that nothing can be found to explain their symptoms. The relief that is often seen on their faces when they are presented with the above list of symptoms and they learn that most of it can be put down to breathing too much. The joy also seen on their faces when they have learnt and practised the Buteyko Method and have started to feel so much better. The Buteyko Method helps people to recognise their over-breathing pattern and then, through breathing exercises, to retrain and recondition their breathing to a healthier norm. Information on the effects of lifestyle and behavior on breathing and how to breathe during exercise are also given. So if you think you are an over-breather you could well benefit from learning the Buteyko Method of Breath Reconditioning. The method has been shown to be particularly helpful for people with
It can also help improve the health of people with heart conditions and with mature onset diabetes. For
more on the Buteyko Method or
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