Breathing

[kjohop]

Hi all-
I have been trying to pay attention to my body more.. like when I start to feel symptomatic.. what am I doing? Am I tense? Where is my tension being held.. so I can try to release it a bit.. relax my shoulders or whatever.
I notice that I hold my breath a lot! I sigh a lot.. I can start to feel bad and sure enough.. I am holding my breath.. which of course brings on more symptoms.. 1/2 the time I start to feel derealization symptoms it is b/c I am holding my breath. 
Anyone have this and what are you doing to combat it.. yoga? relaxation? meditation?
Just wondering.
Hope everyone is having a good day.
Thanks! :)

[dbirm77]

Nancy,

A lot of my physical symptoms come from poor breathing.
I have practiced breathing for a while now and I breath deeper now without even trying.
Many of the symptoms have gone away completely.

Deep slow breaths in through the nose...
(You will know you are breathing right if your belly grows on the inhale)
Pause at the top....
Slow breath out
(As slow as you can and still feel comfortable)
Concentrate on the exhale.
Contrary to popular belief, the exhale actually helps your breathing far more than the inhale.

I know it sounds weird, but practicing how to breath really helped.
The DP is always always related to your breathing.

Good luck and let me know how it goes.
It does take time but it does work!

Drew

[introvrtd1]

Nancy,

For me it was the hyperventiliation....I often catch myself doing it and resist the urge to. Another thing is the sigh of deep breaths. Like Im convinced Im not getting enough air. I am however, again, its the hyperv thing.

concentrate and breathe normally. Try and distract yourself during to take your mind off until breathing becomes normal again.

Intro

[PM93]

when i get something similar i often play around with it. Chest tightness + breathing problem usually goes away
quickly for me. If i feel i need more oxygen i go outside and breath some air, if it doesn't work then i usually
go for the "bag" trick and a glass of water. Usually if it persists i noticed staying occupied also quickly gets rid of it.

[kjohop]

Thanks!
 
I made an effort to practice last night and this morning while laying bed. My in breaths are big and my out breaths are quite shallow.. I have to force my out breaths a to be a bit longer. It is a pretty constant state for me.. big in breaths and short shallow out breaths. I can get myself to a better breathing pattern.. but it seems a few seconds after I stop "practicing" or if I try to distract myself it reverts right back to the shallow breaths.

If anything I think I am getting too much oxygen. I read somewhere that drinking carbonated drinks can help? I rarely do soda.. I will try to drink more LaCroix or something. Can't hurt?

I haven't tried the bag yet.. I should try that one too. I think my brain is just stuck in this breathing pattern and it has become second nature for me to breathe this way. This one will take lots of practice, but I will keep at it. I am going to try and find a yoga class as I think that will help too.

I appreciate the replies!