Fwd: Her Breathing Affected Her Asthma - Not the Other Way Around

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Bea - per your request!! Get stuff from the woman below

every month. Like her approach to certain

things..............Lynn

 

Her

Breathing Affected Her Asthma - Not the Other Way

Around

 

Over the years, I have worked and corresponded with

a number of people who suffer from asthma.

Why?

Well, I too suffered from a severe case of asthma for

years. Overcoming my asthma was the catalyst for my

interest in the power of breathing...because focusing

on my breathing was the first, most significant step I

took that eventually freed me from the bondages

of a very serious and chronic health condition.

If you have asthma, you may feel like your asthma

controls your breathing.

This sense that you are not in control can actually

do more damage than the asthma itself, at least

on a mental and emotional level.

The thing is, your breathing can actually control

your asthma.

That's right, the quality of your breathing can

determine how severe or frequent your asthma symptoms,

episodes or attacks are.

I heard from a wonderful lady, Pat, in March. She

wrote in about a discovery she had made about her

asthma.

 

Even if you don't have asthmsa, I think what she

has to say will be of interest and value to you.

Here's what she wrote:

Karen,

I love your tips. I have had a lot of problems with

asthma in the past, and more recently with anxiety...which

I THOUGHT was an asthma related breathing problem.

After discovering that my bad breathing was a result

of my anxiety and that I was not REALLY sick, it was

an amazing breakthrough for me. I would not have

even thought about it but for some of your

breathing tips.

In trying to take control of my anxiety issues I

learned that the bad breathing created by anxiety

actually causes real physical symptoms...a feeling

of pressure on my chest, a choking sensation, cold

sweat, racing heart - about like a heart attack.

We are such weird and wondrous creatures, aren't we!

I love you! Can you comment on this sometime.

Thanks again,

Pat R.

Well, Pat, you definitely experienced a breakthrough

in how your own anxiety, breathing and asthma are

all intertwined. Congratulations on this new

area of self-awareness. I often say that becoming

aware of the what we are doing - for example,

how we are breathing, how we are carrying ourselves,

and how we are reacting to the stresses in our lives -

is half the battle.

There's no question that stress, and your response

to it, can have a significant impact on your asthma -

or any other health issue, for that matter.

Western medicine has been slow to catch on to this.

Their typical modus operandi is to medicate or

perform surgery.

What those of us with asthma or chronic health

problems need is a more balanced approach, one which

recognizes that (1) our bodies have amazing healing

powers, and we need help in tapping into this; and

(2) there are natural, constructive approaches that

can complement and enhance the effects of the meds

and inhalers that are so often prescribed - but that

only treat the symptoms of asthma.

Getting back to anxiety and stress, breathing and

health - these totally tie in together.

Even though I teach and write about this stuff,

I still catch myself every day doing things like

breathing shallowly when I am feeling stressed, or

hunching over, or furrowing my brow...when I know,

both intutively and from experience, that I

should be doing the opposite.

I should be breathing fully, deeply, in a gentle

and relaxed manner. I should be sitting or standing

up straight, my posture demonstrating to me and

the world that I am ready, willing and capable.

And I should be smiling - if not always visibly

on the outside, I should at least picture myself

smiling and enjoying my day as it unfolds before

me...enjoying and welcoming the good, the bad,

and the mediocre...taking the day as it comes

and meeting it where I am.

What is our typical reaction to stress or anxiety?

We tense up, we tighten our face, and our breathing

becomes more shallow. We may eat poorly and gain weight,

causing us still more stress.

These reactions to stress steal away our vital energy and

weaken our immune system. They also cause us to feel less

in control and less confident. This change in mental

outlook can be a vicious cycle, causing us to spiral

down into increasingly frequent and consuming periods

of anxiety, worry, impatience, and fear.

On the other hand, when you observe yourself and

become more self-aware, you may discover some

surprising things about yourself.

Try this simple exercise: observe yourself at random

times of the day.

For example, take a look at your posture. How are you

standing or sitting? Are your shoulders, neck and

back tight or uncomfortable?

Are you hunched over? Do you frequently stand or sit

with arms folded (a protective mechanism)?

Also attend to how you are breathing.

Is your breathing rapid and shallow? Do you feel

tightness in your throat or chest? Discomfort in your

stomach?

Do you sometimes hold your breath? (Most people do

without even realizing it.)

Your breathing is involved in every aspect of your life:

physical, mental, emotional, even spiritual.

I'll say it again: poor breathing directly affects

your health.

It also causes you to live at a lower level of vitality

and prevents you from achieving your full potential.

My belief is that you first have to face up to your present

condition. By facing it, acknowledging it - like Pat

did - and then literally " breathing into it " , you begin

to assert power and control over it.

Then you can move on to creating, first mentally, then

physically, the reality you want to have in your life.

You Can Do It!

Karen Van Ness

 

http://www.BestBreathingExercises.com

P.S. You can cut through all the stress and mental

tension, and relieve tight muscles naturally and easily

with the exercises in the Secret Power of Dynamic Energy

Exercise Course, Volume I. The first CD of the program

guides you through a series of deceptively easy but powerful

movements combined with proper, complete breathing and

visualization.This combination allows you to literally

breathe your way through stress, tension, and worries.

For more information, or to pick up your own program CDs,

go to

 

http://www.bestbreathingexercises.com/dynamic_energy1.html

Copyright, KVN Enterprises, Inc. 2008

**The contents of this daily email are not to be considered

as medical advice. Always consult a physician before

beginning or changing any health or fitness regimen.**

This email is protected by copyright, 2008, KVN Enterprises

Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any portion of this

email is strictly prohibited without the express written

consent of KVN Enterprises, Inc.

Karen Van Ness

KVN Enterprises, Inc.

P.O. Box 382

Annandale, VA 22003-0382

USA

Phone: 1-703-207-1566

Fax: 1-703-207-9379

 

http://www.BestBreathingExercises.com

KVN Enterprises Inc.

 

P.O. Box 382

Annandale, VA

22003-0382

US