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proficiency you can try doing what the chimps do and vocalize not just on the exhalations
but the inhalations as well
As you do this you will notice that every few times you switch your breathing will falter
Your timing will be off because you dont have fine enough control over the transitions
between inhalations and exhalations This kind of poor respiratory coordination may be a
contributor to autonomic dysregulation Use this exercise to iron through these irregularities
and unbrace and strengthen the muscles involved After a minute of panthooting intensely
your chest and voice will feel agitated However if you concentrate on letting the muscles go
limp afterward they will relax deeply You will feel calmer and notice that your voice is
stronger and deeper for up to a day
believe that humans and chimps add tension to the aspect of the diaphragm responsible
for the panthoot as a function of their social standing They do this as part of a submissive
display that selfhandicaps the bark and roar both of which are powered by the diaphragm
This is why only the most dominant chimps are capable of performing an optimal panthoot
Panthooting loudly and forcefully will drive this underused aspect of your diaphragm into full
fatigue allowing it to recover from the tension you have imposed on it for years strongly
believe that after just a handful of sessions you will realize that the panthoot achieves a
diaphragmatic detox reaching into and purging the nucleus of your anxiety
PROGRAM PEACE Self Care Exercises to Reprogram Your Mind and Body
Completely avoiding breathing at short intervals is like being an endurance runner who
never sprints think it is important to spend time every day not trying to lengthen or even
control the breath Let it get as shallow as it wants and breathe through your mouth if it feels
right Forget about the rules of diaphragmatic breathing sometimes and let the unconscious
breath regulation modules do what they will Stated simply allow yourself to breathe shallowly
once in a while as a form of crosstraining
Stretch and Flex the Diaphragm
The next exercise provides a great maneuver to stretch and contract your stale stiff diaphragm
This stretch will bring it blood and help make it stronger and better at its job Think back to the
hiccup activity from Chapter When simulating a hiccup you sealed off your glottis the vocal
opening in the throat and contracted your diaphragm Using the following maneuver you will
similarly close the glottis so no air can enter the lungs and contract the diaphragm as if you
were inhaling creating a brief vacuum
By restricting the flow of air closure of the glottis isolates the diaphragm in a fixed
position allowing it to contract isometrically To contract it you only have to try to breathe in
With the glottis closed you wont be able to but trying will pull the central tendon of the
diaphragm down toward the abdominal cavity stretching the entire diaphragm as well as the
organs near it Again thought originated this exercise but after entering a description into a
search engine found that it is a variant of an ageold yoga pose called uddiyana bandha or
flying abdominal lock
Breathing Exercise sometric Contraction of the Diaphragm
Lie down and breathe out completely blowing on your fingertip until you cannot blow out
anymore Then close and seal your glottis This makes it impossible to breathe From here
you can fully engage the diaphragm by trying to either breathe in or out
Attempt to breathe in You will not be able to and the harder you try the better stretch
you will get Try to extend this contraction up into your rib cage and hold it for at least five
seconds This may make you cough which is fine While contracting the diaphragm alter the
position of your trunk and thoracic spine This will allow you to flex hard into your diaphragm
at different angles This may lead to a satisfying crack
Attempt to breathe out forcefully pressing the stomach outward at the same time Again
the harder you press the better the stretch Try to hold this for at least five seconds
From either of these two positions you should be able to find a very achy contraction This is
the cramp in the diaphragm that has formed as a consequence of bracing and chronic
hyperventilation Now that you have isolated it you can gradually work through it
There are other ways to isolate and contract the diaphragm isometrically Breathing deeply
from some yoga positions offers challenging opportunities for diaphragmatic stimulation want
to strongly encourage you to try a full inhalation from either a forward fold or plow pose
Chapter Breathe Less Nasally and without Pharyngeal Tension
because these yoga positions decrease the volume of the abdominal cavity forcing the
diaphragm to work harder than it normally does Full breaths from these positions are hard
work with a big payoff
Intraoral Myofascial Release for the Nasopharynx
You have an extensive muscular knot behind your face that comes from constricting the
nasopharynx The nasopharynx is an opening in the back of the throat just behind the uvula
My nasopharyngeal sphincter was highly tense and painful Contraction of the nasopharynx is a
natural reflex that occurs during swallowing to prevent food or liquid from going up into the
nose but bracing it is another manifestation of trauma People brace it out of fear of appearing
too calm This knot becomes tighter every time you feel stressed It contributes to wincing
and grimacing and it gets worse every day because it is never massaged or even touched
advocate that you perform compression and selfmassage specifically for your nasopharynx
It is very uncomfortable at first but it gets easier every time and it only takes a few weeks to
get rid of the pain completely
Nasopharynx
Uvula
The Pharyngeal Airway
Trachea Esophagus
Illustration The nasopharynx is a small opening just behind the uvula that connects the oral cavity with the
nasal cavity
You can provide compression to your nasopharynx by donning a plastic glove putting your
thumb into your mouth and up into your nasopharyngeal opening This opening is where your
nasal passage connects with your throat To do this insert your thumb into your mouth as if
you were sucking on your thumb To find the opening you must feel around the roof of your
mouth traveling away from the teeth and toward the area where the hard roof of the mouth
hard palate turns soft soft palate An inch behind posterior to this border is the uvula
a fleshy hanging structure Just behind the uvula is the opening of the nasopharynx
The nasopharynx is an invagination that you want to explore and massage using one of your
thumbs The opening will feel tight and painful and pressing against it will initiate a gag reflex
The best way to bypass the gagging is to breathe diaphragmatically preferably to a breath
PROGRAM PEACE Self Care Exercises to Reprogram Your Mind and Body
metronome Within the first week you will notice that it is less painful to probe that your face
feels and looks calmer and that mucus clearance is easier
Breathing Exercise Massaging the Nasopharynx
Put ona plastic glove With your thumb inside your nasopharynx you can place strong pressure on
many muscles and soft tissues in the nasopharynx and nasal cavity When you start simply insert the
thumb past the first knuckle and keep it still It will feel sore itchy and scratchy like a sore throat
Next try to swallow a few times and feel the nasopharyngeal sphincter tighten and loosen around
your thumb The first few times this may be very uncomfortable but it should be painless within a
few weeks
Next you want to gently press your thumb into different areas massaging the soft tissues
stimulating the nerves reducing tension in the accompanying muscles and bringing needed blood to
the area You want to press against each of the walls and folds of the nasopharynx and even up into