How do you breathe? Really breathe? What functions does breathing really have? And at the bottom of this page there’s some tips on how you can improve your breathing with something so simple as a piece of surgical tape.

Did you know that when you clear your throat you take a breath and that snooring is a breath and that only a couple of minutes of oxygen deficiency kan ruin the brains ability to process information. That was some of the stuff I learned as I took a course in conscious breathing for Anders Olsson (www.consciousbreathing.com). The knowledge I got on the course helped me keep calm during my worst moments 2015-2016. As I lay in bed, unable to rise and feeling mostly useless, the thing I could do was breathe and think of how I breathed and that I actually still breathed. So, I want to share a little bit about what I learned from Anders. If you want to know more about this, I recommend his book “The Power of Your Breath” and that you take a look at his websight. I have taken parts of the book for this article.

So, how do you breathe? Really breathe?

What I learned was that the signs of optimal breathing is:

• Nose breathing, closed mouth
• Deep breathing
• Relaxed
• Rythmical and steady
• Quiet
• Slow with few breaths
• Long exhalation
• Straight body posture
• The diaphragm stands for 70-80 % of the muscle work
• The lower part of the chest expands sideways, forward and backwards

Signs of deteriorated breathing:

• Mouth breathing, open mouth
• superficial chest breathing
• Tense, hunched shoulders
• Lacking in rythm and irregular breathing
• Loud
• Fast breaths
• Short, tense exhalation
• Leaning forward, collapsed posture
• The help muscles of the chest, neck and shoulders ar overactive
• nly the lower part of the chest expands

So, how are you doing checking off the list? Anything you find familiar? To notice something is the first step to change. What you notice you can make a decision about if you want to have the pattern or if you want to change it and get a new pattern.

What functons does breathing really have?

• It supplies the body with oxygen and transports carbo dioxide out of the body.
• It gives pain relief if we breathe rythmical and deep. Test it next time you are in pain. It reduced my pain when it was at its worst and I sceam bloody murder, so my mom became worried (I have a high pain threshhold, so when I scream like that it’s really really bad).
• It reduces stress. If you calm your breaths down, you can get control of you brain if it runs wild.
• The diaphragm’s rythmical movement supports organs.
• The breathing is the most important function when it comes to keeping the pH-balance in the body.
• It makes noice and the better the breathing is, the more distinct and clearer voice.
• When you exhalate, your power is largest and you get strength. If you want more strength, you can press out the air through constricted vocal chord or tight lips.
• If worry and fear takes over you, you can calm your feelings bu deep diaphragm breathing.
• A good breathing increases the possibilities that you grow and develop as a human being.

So, what can you do to improve your breathing. Buy surgical tape, see photo, in Sweden we can buy it at the pharmacy, and put a tape on your mouth. You can put the tape either vertically or horisontally, see photos below. Then you can choose if you want to have the tape on for shorter or longer period, awake or asleep. I tape my mouth at night for some weeks and then I sleep without for a while. What I have noticed is that I no longer have a stuffed nose, I have a better singing voice and I feel more alert. Anders Olsson has also developed a thing called Relaxator, see photo below. You put it in your mouth and it will prevent you from breathing in through the mouth. I have used it working out and have felt good. So, test and see how taping affect you. Good luck!