It’s a well known fact that humans can exist without food a weeks and without water for days. But without air, serious brain damage and/or death can occur after only a few minutes.  Because of such a huge demand for air, shouldn’t it be reasonable to pay closer attention to how we breathe? Sounds like a common sense, doesn’t it? But, as in the words of Voltaire, “common sense is not so common.”
There are volumes of literature and published material on the importance of diet, exercise and hydration. However, there is relatively little information on the importance of breathing, which is one of the most important physiological functions of our body. Our life depends on our breathing! When most people are asked if they are aware of their breathing, the answer is usually, “I am breathing”. Those of you with breathing problems may also add, “But I want to breathe better!”

Common misconceptions about breathing mainly include:

• breathe in more air, bring in more oxygen and get rid of carbon dioxide as a waste gas.
• hyperventilation only occurs when I’m anxious or “stressed out”.

The issue is not only to be aware of breathing, but to understand and learn how to control breathing for better health, management of symptoms and performance enhancement. People are in great need of proper re-education, on the value of breathing. With this knowledge and practice comes a clear awareness of how our health significantly depends on how we breathe.
The first step in obtaining a clear understanding of your respiratory health is through the completion of a breathing profile. This will provide you with plenty of information covering several aspects of your breathing, including breathing mechanics, chemistry, physiology, breathing patterns and habits, and the overall interplay between your symptoms and your breathing. You will learn how your breathing mechanics and respiration compare to ‘healthy breathers’, whether or not you over breathing from a long term perspective, and how to identify symptoms of over-breathing.

Who can benefit from breath retraining and education?

• Everyone with breathing difficulties or disorders
• Athletes searching for ways to improve their performance
• Professionals in high-stress careers
• Anyone in a profession that requires a significant amount of speaking
• Anyone with sleep problems or other health issues that are impacted by breathing
• Anyone who would like to improve breathing control