...expand your ribcage rather than your abdomen. Inhale again, this time trying to keep stomach muscles tucked.
These sound like the complete opposite of what the book and all the online sources say I should be doing! Apparently, my problem is that I do all my breathing in my ribcage rather than my abdomen. Also, that I take "big" breaths instead of "deep" breaths. I think this exercise would make me about a hundred times worse.
What I need to learn is how to breathe deep inside my abdomen rather than only in the top part of my lung. I managed to do it today lying on my stomach, which is the easiest way for hyperventilators to learn to breathe properly, but it took all my concentration. (I spent a fun hour in bed doing breathing exercises, which would have been the most boring hour of my life if I hadn't needed to concentrate so hard). Trying to do it on my back, sitting up or standing up - let alone whilst having a conversation - will take a LOT more practise, and like I said, having a physiotherapist or nurse holding the various bits so I know what it is supposed to feel like.
This is why I'm really quite reluctant to go to anything like yoga and pilates until I've seen a specialist several times and know what the breathing is supposed to feel like. And this, plus every other problem I have, means that "gym"-style classes, where there are 20 or 30 people in the class, would probably do me more harm than good. I need the intensive kind of class, where there are only 5 or 6 people, so the teacher can make up exercises suitable to each individual's ability and problems, and constantly correct each person. At the moment, I don't have anything like the money for this, or any way of getting to it, but it's definitely something to look into over the summer.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2003-03-20 07:07 pm (UTC)Inhale again, this time trying to keep stomach muscles tucked.
These sound like the complete opposite of what the book and all the online sources say I should be doing! Apparently, my problem is that I do all my breathing in my ribcage rather than my abdomen. Also, that I take "big" breaths instead of "deep" breaths. I think this exercise would make me about a hundred times worse.
What I need to learn is how to breathe deep inside my abdomen rather than only in the top part of my lung. I managed to do it today lying on my stomach, which is the easiest way for hyperventilators to learn to breathe properly, but it took all my concentration. (I spent a fun hour in bed doing breathing exercises, which would have been the most boring hour of my life if I hadn't needed to concentrate so hard). Trying to do it on my back, sitting up or standing up - let alone whilst having a conversation - will take a LOT more practise, and like I said, having a physiotherapist or nurse holding the various bits so I know what it is supposed to feel like.
This is why I'm really quite reluctant to go to anything like yoga and pilates until I've seen a specialist several times and know what the breathing is supposed to feel like. And this, plus every other problem I have, means that "gym"-style classes, where there are 20 or 30 people in the class, would probably do me more harm than good. I need the intensive kind of class, where there are only 5 or 6 people, so the teacher can make up exercises suitable to each individual's ability and problems, and constantly correct each person. At the moment, I don't have anything like the money for this, or any way of getting to it, but it's definitely something to look into over the summer.