I started doing Buteyko type breathing 2 weeks ago and have had exceptionally good results so far, but also some very unpleasant side effects. For the past 12 years I've done Transformational Breathwork. In essence I've been intentionally hyperventilating most of the time for a very long time! I literally had no idea that I was causing myself so much physical harm. It's been a shock to realize that something that I thought was so helpful and healing, is actually physically detrimental. This kind of breathing is very popular and there are so many similar styles (like Rebirthing, Holotropic Breathwork, etc.) But other than Buteyko websites, there's no one that is talking about the problems and the harm. Before I started Transformational breathing I had a paradoxical breathing pattern, which the breathwork corrected. Transformational breathing also helped me release a lot emotionally. I thought that it helped me with physical pain, but now I see that it has probably been the cause of much of my physical pain. All of my pain and inflammation symptoms get worse after I ovulate. I read that CO2 levels drop 25% post ovulation. It appears that chronic low CO2 levels might be the cause of most of my problems.
I was looking for a place where I could discuss these issues, and this forum was the only one that I could find. I would be grateful for any support or advice that anyone offers. I have read most everything posted here concerning CO2 and found a lot of helpful information.
My experience has been very similar to what Ray-Z described in this post. https://raypeatforum.com/community/threads/meditation-and-carbon-dioxide.742/ When I successfully reduce my breathing, I breath the same as when I've been meditating for 40 minutes or so. This way of breathing feels like the body's most natural baseline state when free of anxiety/stress. I'd like to develop the ability to breathe this way most of the time.
So far I've gotten the best results from just trying to breathe less, and then relaxing into the mild feelings of air hunger, until my breathing shifts. It takes a lot of time and focus, but the relaxed feelings and ease once my breathing shifts feels great. I've also done a bit of short breath holding or very slow breathing, but haven't quite found a rhythm with doing that yet. I've just done a very little bit of trying to breath through my nose while exercising. It's going to take awhile for me to be able to exclusively nose breath while exercising. I've been a mouth breather all my life. This is a long term project.
I've tried a little bit of bag breathing. So far I've liked cupping my hands over my mouth and nose as the easiest way to increase CO2. I've been nervous about doing bag breathing/hand cupping too much. Also, I really want to change my overall breathing pattern and I don't think that the bag breathing does this. It seems like my breathing reverts back to what it was soon after I stop.
I've been taping my mouth at night and that has made a big difference, too. Mostly I wake up with my body relaxed instead of tense. Chronic tension while I sleep as been a long term problem for me. My sleep seems better with my mouth taped, but dreams have been more vivid. I still think that I'm hyperventilating during the night. I typically wake up hot and revved around 4:00 am. When I wake up my breathing is deep and noisy and it takes a lot of focus to quiet it down. I'm wondering if the night hyperventilation will correct itself as my daytime breathing pattern improves. Or do I need to do something more than just tape my mouth? I thought of wearing a loose dust mask while I sleep, but so far that felt uncomfortable. Plus I don't want to do too much too fast and inadvertently increase the unpleasant side effects.
Here's a list of the positive benefits that I've noticed these first two weeks:
I now feel warm most of the time in the frigid winter. (Typically I feel cold.)
No more unbearable pain in my fingers when I drive in cold weather.
My body stays much more relaxed while I sleep.
My jaw tension is gone or greatly reduced.
I'm more physically relaxed.
My bladder functions better. I pee less frequently. It seems like it might be less inflamed.
Less bloating and water retention.
I didn't have menstrual cramps during the times when I was able to reduce my breathing.
My period was the shortest and easiest ever (but maybe that was a coincidence?)
My eyesight feels as though it's a bit better (but I'm not sure if it actually is better).
I love the still, calm, grounded feeling of the reduced breathing.
Side effects/difficulties:
Early on I coughed a lot and didn't feel well for a few days.
Increased mucus.
Lots of headaches.
One exceptionally bad headache that started during the night. (My headaches don't usually start at night.) I felt really sick and queasy with this headache.
I have to talk a lot at work and so far have been unable to change my breathing while working.
I've read that it is very common to have side effects or cleansing reactions to Buteyko breathing. The headaches are particularly troubling. Are they just a temporary adjustment or am I inadvertently making something worse? This website talks about Buteyko style breathing being a complete cure for migraines, so that makes me optimistic. http://migraineze.com/
But I wonder how much CO2 is too much? Is there a reason for only doing the bag breathing 3 times a day? If one is gentle with it, could one do more? I've also wondered about doing the bag breathing to compensate when there's been a lot of hyperventilation. When I had the really bad headache I did movement and increased breathing through my nose to help with release. Then I did a brief nose and mouth cupping to rebalance CO2 levels. I went back and forth between these two things and it seemed to help a lot. My body is really use to breathing high levels of oxygen. So maybe breathing more and then correcting for reduced CO2 levels is a good transitional technique? It seems obvious to me now that all hyperventilating breathwork techniques should end with bag breathing. I am trying to completely stop the transformational breathwork, but maybe going cold turkey is too extreme? Would it be good for me to supplement with calcium/magnesium or something else? I don't want to do too much or change too many variables at once. But I'm also looking to make the transition easier and lessen the uncomfortable side effects. Hopefully I'll answer a lot of these questions as my experience unfolds.
I realize that this is an exceptionally long and detailed first post. Hopefully all these details will be helpful to someone else struggling to make these kinds of changes. Thanks again in advance for any help that anyone offers.
I was looking for a place where I could discuss these issues, and this forum was the only one that I could find. I would be grateful for any support or advice that anyone offers. I have read most everything posted here concerning CO2 and found a lot of helpful information.
My experience has been very similar to what Ray-Z described in this post. https://raypeatforum.com/community/threads/meditation-and-carbon-dioxide.742/ When I successfully reduce my breathing, I breath the same as when I've been meditating for 40 minutes or so. This way of breathing feels like the body's most natural baseline state when free of anxiety/stress. I'd like to develop the ability to breathe this way most of the time.
So far I've gotten the best results from just trying to breathe less, and then relaxing into the mild feelings of air hunger, until my breathing shifts. It takes a lot of time and focus, but the relaxed feelings and ease once my breathing shifts feels great. I've also done a bit of short breath holding or very slow breathing, but haven't quite found a rhythm with doing that yet. I've just done a very little bit of trying to breath through my nose while exercising. It's going to take awhile for me to be able to exclusively nose breath while exercising. I've been a mouth breather all my life. This is a long term project.
I've tried a little bit of bag breathing. So far I've liked cupping my hands over my mouth and nose as the easiest way to increase CO2. I've been nervous about doing bag breathing/hand cupping too much. Also, I really want to change my overall breathing pattern and I don't think that the bag breathing does this. It seems like my breathing reverts back to what it was soon after I stop.
I've been taping my mouth at night and that has made a big difference, too. Mostly I wake up with my body relaxed instead of tense. Chronic tension while I sleep as been a long term problem for me. My sleep seems better with my mouth taped, but dreams have been more vivid. I still think that I'm hyperventilating during the night. I typically wake up hot and revved around 4:00 am. When I wake up my breathing is deep and noisy and it takes a lot of focus to quiet it down. I'm wondering if the night hyperventilation will correct itself as my daytime breathing pattern improves. Or do I need to do something more than just tape my mouth? I thought of wearing a loose dust mask while I sleep, but so far that felt uncomfortable. Plus I don't want to do too much too fast and inadvertently increase the unpleasant side effects.
Here's a list of the positive benefits that I've noticed these first two weeks:
I now feel warm most of the time in the frigid winter. (Typically I feel cold.)
No more unbearable pain in my fingers when I drive in cold weather.
My body stays much more relaxed while I sleep.
My jaw tension is gone or greatly reduced.
I'm more physically relaxed.
My bladder functions better. I pee less frequently. It seems like it might be less inflamed.
Less bloating and water retention.
I didn't have menstrual cramps during the times when I was able to reduce my breathing.
My period was the shortest and easiest ever (but maybe that was a coincidence?)
My eyesight feels as though it's a bit better (but I'm not sure if it actually is better).
I love the still, calm, grounded feeling of the reduced breathing.
Side effects/difficulties:
Early on I coughed a lot and didn't feel well for a few days.
Increased mucus.
Lots of headaches.
One exceptionally bad headache that started during the night. (My headaches don't usually start at night.) I felt really sick and queasy with this headache.
I have to talk a lot at work and so far have been unable to change my breathing while working.
I've read that it is very common to have side effects or cleansing reactions to Buteyko breathing. The headaches are particularly troubling. Are they just a temporary adjustment or am I inadvertently making something worse? This website talks about Buteyko style breathing being a complete cure for migraines, so that makes me optimistic. http://migraineze.com/
But I wonder how much CO2 is too much? Is there a reason for only doing the bag breathing 3 times a day? If one is gentle with it, could one do more? I've also wondered about doing the bag breathing to compensate when there's been a lot of hyperventilation. When I had the really bad headache I did movement and increased breathing through my nose to help with release. Then I did a brief nose and mouth cupping to rebalance CO2 levels. I went back and forth between these two things and it seemed to help a lot. My body is really use to breathing high levels of oxygen. So maybe breathing more and then correcting for reduced CO2 levels is a good transitional technique? It seems obvious to me now that all hyperventilating breathwork techniques should end with bag breathing. I am trying to completely stop the transformational breathwork, but maybe going cold turkey is too extreme? Would it be good for me to supplement with calcium/magnesium or something else? I don't want to do too much or change too many variables at once. But I'm also looking to make the transition easier and lessen the uncomfortable side effects. Hopefully I'll answer a lot of these questions as my experience unfolds.
I realize that this is an exceptionally long and detailed first post. Hopefully all these details will be helpful to someone else struggling to make these kinds of changes. Thanks again in advance for any help that anyone offers.
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