What’s the one thing none of us can live without, not even for the shortest time? Food? Water? No, it’s breathing: cut that off, and we’re gone in a matter of seconds.
However, breathing is something few of us stop and think about. It just happens. It happens in, out and out 22,000 times per day, or so, one of the miracles that nature offers. It will go wrong until it does. I first experienced what it’s like when you can’t breathe properly ten years ago.
Friends had invited my family to Beaver Creek, a ski resort some 8,000 ft high up in the Rocky Mountains of America’s Midwest.
My excitement was uncontrollable. My childhood was in the shadows of the Italian Alps. Skiing was as common as going to a soccer game. A day pass could be purchased for dinner or a ticket to the cinema. You could also take the bus to the less expensive resorts. The solitude, clean air, and beauty of the mountains were all things I enjoyed.
I hadn’t done it for years, not since the children came along, and I had always dreamt of skiing the legendary peaks of Colorado. I didn’t need to be asked twice. But it wasn’t to be.
Sarah Vine shares her painful divorce, the physical consequences and how she used a book about breathing to help her get through it.
At first, I felt fine. After my first descent through the morning’s crisp air and the snow beneath my skis, however, I noticed something was wrong. My body seemed to be drained of all energy. It was dizzying and difficult to breathe. I felt a buzzing sensation in my ears, and my heart beat loudly. Crikey, I thought, I must be more out of shape than I’d realised.
As I began slowing down, other skiers passed me. It hurt my back so much that it felt as though there were concrete blankets covering my shoulders. I felt like someone had lit a match to my ankles. I stopped and tried to catch my breath in the snow.
My breath feels like it is being forced out of my lungs every time I wake up. . .
My heart beat slowed and I felt better. I stood up and continued to walk. I felt the same sensation again, almost as if every cell of my body was screaming in pain.
After more misery and a couple of minutes, I gave up. I took my skis off, unclipped them, and carried them back home.
Of course, I was suffering from altitude sickness. I didn’t realise at first, never once having experienced it — not even on the Matterhorn.
The Rockies are much more accessible and you can ski higher than me. I was also recovering from pneumonia. After several days of failing to learn how to ski again, I finally got to the medical centre.
The staff gave me oxygen so I stayed in bed for the remainder of the vacation. I felt my symptoms slowly diminish as we returned to the normal altitude for our return flight. It was a horrible sensation to feel like my body had been starved of oxygen. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.
But, this is not the only tragedy. Hundreds of thousands have died in these two years.
Coronavirus is a virus that attacks the lungs and, in some cases, prevents oxygen from reaching the body. The result is that the internal organs are put under excessive strain. This can eventually lead to death.
Even the people who have recovered from such severe illness are left with grave health problems. Poor Derek Draper is the husband to Good Morning Britain host Kate Garraway.
I think this was one of the reasons I was drawn to James Nestor’s book Breath: The New Science Of A Lost Art.
I was reminded of my miserable childhood by seeing the horrifying footage of Covid patients struggling for breath or being hooked up to ventilators and oxygen masks. I shuddered to think what they were going through, and Nestor’s book struck a chord.
It was page one that gripped me. It’s not just that Nestor can actually write — a bit of a rarity in the category of science literature, which is, I suppose, where this belongs.
He has such infectious enthusiasm for his subject and such a way with words there isn’t a dry passage in the whole book.
The author brings complexity to life with humor and humanity. He takes readers on an unplanned journey of self discovery.
After seeing the horrendous news footage from Covid-19 Wards, Sarah found herself drawn to Breath by James Nestor. (file photo).
He basically said that humans no longer have the capacity to breath properly. Forget air pollution and tree pollen; it’s not what we breathe but how we breathe that’s making us sick.
He discusses how stress can be caused by modern lifestyles. And how habitual breathing through the nose rather than the mouth is contributing to many modern illnesses, including insomnia, brain fog and high blood pressure.
‘Mouth-breathing’, as he calls it, can even alter our physical appearance, causing dark shadows under the eyes, an elongated long face, a high narrow palate, gum disease and tooth decay.
Nestor conducts experiments on himself in order to observe these effects. It’s painful, but fascinating.
Our noses are designed to protect our lungs from the outside world — pathogens, pollutants — and yet between 25 and 50 per cent of the population are ‘mouth-breathers’.
I feel it most acutely in my chest. I struggle to fill my lungs
This leads to a much lower oxygen intake, and can even trigger certain automatic stress responses, with the result that we develop all sorts of problems, ranging from the annoying (bad breath and hoarseness) to the downright debilitating (snoring, irritability, tiredness, sleep apnoea, and so on).
An astonishing 60-70 per cent of the population sleeps with an open mouth, which, says Nestor, probably accounts for why so many of us wake up feeling more exhausted than we were when we went to bed.
There’s much more to the book than that, of course — and I really do recommend it as an absolutely fascinating read, full of tantalising little nuggets of science and astonishing facts. But what I took away from it was the benefits of mindful breathing — and how it can transform not only the way we feel, but also our overall health.
I’ll be honest. It’s been a difficult year for me emotionally. My husband and I finally decided to go our separate ways, and however amicable our separation, it’s still been a painful process. You don’t unravel 20 years of marriage without experiencing a few long, dark nights of the soul — especially when, given who we both are, half the world is pointing and laughing.
There have been times when keeping the show on the road has felt hard. And when this happens, for some reasonIt is most intensely felt in my chest.
Even opening a tricky email, or having a mildly difficult phone call can trigger it.
My throat tightens in a bolus of worry, the muscles either side contracting. It is difficult to get my lungs full., my breathing becomes quick and shallow, and my mind and body feel restless and irritable.
I sleep a lot, but I don’t sleep well. Children tell me that I snore and wake up with dry throat and almost choke on air.
Sarah also mentioned that James Nestor speaks about stress apnoea and the effects of modern lifestyle strains. She also discussed how breathing through the nose rather than the mouth can contribute to many modern illnesses.
It’s as though there’s something pressing down on my solar plexus, a sense that the breath is being squeezed out of me.
My passion for swimming was when I was younger. I was a very good swimmer. My lungs can take in huge amounts of oxygen and I can go underwater for miles. Or, I can dive into the ocean, knowing that my lungs will carry me wherever I need to. But lately, I’ve felt as though I was drowning. This is what I did: I started reading this book.
Nestor has taught me that, through simple exercises, I can reclaim my breath — and with it control over my life and emotions. He helped me understand the science behind breathing techniques such as Nadi Shudhana, alternative nostril breathing, Wim Hof, and yogic breathing.
I understand now that they are not just silly woo-woo ideas practised by hairy eccentrics in loincloths (although, let’s face it, they often are), but real, practical solutions to the everyday stresses and strains of life.
But perhaps the most useful technique I’ve learned from Nestor, the bit of the book that has been most transformational for me personally, is mouth- taping. Although it may sound crazy, this simple method of preventing my mouth from opening while I sleep has had a profound impact on my life quality.
I realised after reading Nestor’s book that I must have been a mouth-breather from a young age. All my life, I’ve suffered from throat infections and other upper respiratory diseases, and despite rigorous oral hygiene, my teeth had been pretty much destroyed by the time I reached the age of 30: all clear symptoms.
He was right. I went online and bought myself a packet of mouth-tapes — these are little strips made out of surgical tape that gently seal the lips during sleep.
After a while, they were easy to rip off. They were not more bothersome than a brace or mouthguard after I persevered for a couple of nights.
No illusions. I can’t help but feel deranged lying on the floor with tape around my lips. In fact, it’s probably just as well that no one has to share a bed with me any more.
The results were amazing. I am encouraged to breathe through my nose by the tape, which has a notable effect.
I don’t wake up repeatedly in the night, gasping for water. When my alarm goes off, I no longer feel like I’m being roused from the dead, my legs and joints aching and stiff.
I don’t feel like an old phone that will not charge fully, but instead, I feel rejuvenated.
The snoring stopped, according to my kids. It’s more of a ‘snorfle’ now, my daughter says. I’ll take that.
Better sex, great teeth and an end to snoring — how mastering your breathing can transform your life
James Nestor is an author who shares his revolutionary guide for breathing.
At our own peril we assume that breathing is passive, something we do.
The way that you breathe has a big impact on your health, including blood pressure and snoring.
Sarah Vine said she felt ‘hooked’ from the very beginning of James Nestor’s Book’s Breathe.
Even if you’re fit and healthy, knowing the right breathing techniques could improve your performance in the gym, keep you calm in stressful situations, or simply help you fall sleep more easily. No matter what we eat, how much we exercise, how skinny or young or wise we are — nothing matters unless we’re breathing correctly.
FALL ASLEEP SHORTLY WITH THE 4-7-8 METHOD
- You can take a deep breath, and then exhale into your mouth making a “whoosh” sound.
- To count four, close your mouth. Inhale slowly through your nose.
- Keep going for seven.
- To count eight, exhale.
- You should repeat this cycle at least 4 times.
- Use Box Breathing to calm your nerves
This is simple but so effective that Navy SEALs — the U.S. equivalent of the UK’s Special Boat Service (the sea-based version of the SAS) — are taught this technique to stay calm and focused in tense situations.
- Hold 4 for 4 counts. Exhale and hold the breath. Repeat.
- You should try at least 6 rounds. If necessary, you can do more.
THE YOGA TECHNIQUE FOR BREATHING STRESS
This yoga breathing method is well-known for improving lung function, as well as lowering blood pressure and stress.
- Put your right thumb on your right nostril, and your left thumb on your left. Between the eyebrows, place your forefinger (or middle finger) and your middle finger.
- Inhale very slowly from the left nostril by closing the right one with your thumb.
- Take a short pause at the beginning of each breath. Keep both nostrils shut, and then exhale through your right nostril.
- Hold both nostrils open at the end of your exhale. Then, inhale through the right side.
- Keep going for 5-10 cycles of alternate breathing through the nose.
STOMP YOUR SLEEPING WITH YOUR NOSE
Both snoring as well as sleep apnoea can be caused by the habit of breathing through your mouth and not your nose.
The reason may be that the nostrils are constantly being used, which trains the tissues in the throat and nasal cavities to stay open and flex.
Other benefits are also possible. ‘One of the many benefits of nose-breathing is that the sinuses release a huge boost of nitric oxide, which plays an essential role in increasing circulation and delivering oxygen into cells,’ explains Dr Mark Burhenne, who has been studying the links between mouth-breathing and sleep for years.
‘Immune function, weight, circulation, mood and sexual function can all be heavily influenced by the amount of nitric oxide in the body.’
How do you accomplish this?
Start by trying to only breathe through your nose in the day. At night, you can tap your lips shut. You can do this by using a piece of postage-stamp surgical tape to cover your entire mouth in the night.
You’ll probably hate it at first, but persevere and you’ll soon reap the benefits.
BREATHE SLOWLY to Improve Your Health
Konstantin Buteyko, a Russian physician, discovered that patients with the most severe health problems were those who inhaled and exhaled through their mouths. He was able to pack in up to 15 litres of air every minute.
The healthiest people inhale and exhale air ten times per minute. They take in between five and six litres.
Today, you’re considered medically normal if you take from a dozen to 20 breaths a minute, with an average air intake of six to ten litres.
Disruptions in metabolism, blood pH, circulation are all associated with heart disease, chronic inflammation, and ulcers. The way we breathe can affect all these functions.
Breath by James Nestor (£9.99, Penguin Life). To order for £8.99 (offer valid to 31/1/22; free UK delivery on orders over £20), go to mailshop.co.uk/books or call 020 3176 2937.