Sleep better with the right breathing technique

Many people struggle to get a good night’s sleep. Are you one of them? Does your mind race when you go to bed, and does it keep you from falling asleep?

All kinds of thoughts can keep you from relaxing properly. Or maybe you wake up several times during the night and struggle to fall back asleep? You are not alone.

A lot of people struggle with sleep – both with actually falling asleep when you go to bed, and with staying asleep instead of frequently waking up during the night. There can be many reasons for this.

When our minds race, our sympathetic nervous system becomes overactive. This is the part of the autonomous nervous system that is responsible for our fight-or-flight response, also known as the body’s gas pedal. To be able to sleep, it’s crucial that we’re in balance, so we have to step on the brake – the parasympathetic nervous system, also called the rest-and-digest response.

I have to admit, I have struggled with sleep in several periods of my life. My parents can tell you I “never” slept, and I remember wishing the day had more than 24 hours, as there were so many exciting things I wanted to do. I simply felt like I didn’t have time to sleep, and when I finally went to bed in the evening, my brain raced with thoughts of what I wanted to do tomorrow, or about what I had said or done wrong during the day. I had a very strong conscience as a child, and it didn’t take much for me to start feeling guilty.

Most people would benefit and sleep better from practising calming breathing techniques. Many of my clients say they sleep much better and wake up better rested after having used my techniques.

“I’ve been using Sleep Tape since the beginning of September and I’m very satisfied. I sleep better, wake up well rested, and my breathing has improved. It took me about a week to get used to sleeping with the tape. Now, I can’t sleep without it! My jaw has become more relaxed too, so I no longer wake up with a headache.”

– Tonje Haagensen

There are only positive side effects from practising calming breathing techniques – NO negatives!

When our brain races, we spend time in the sympathetic part of our autonomous nervous system –fight-or-flight mode. This is especially true if the thoughts are stress thoughts, where we worry about the future or regret events from the past. Perhaps you imagine over and over that time you said something you felt was stupid? Perhaps you’re stressed about something you didn’t have time to do, something you had promised or planned to get done during the day? Perhaps you replay an argument you had with a loved one? No matter what you’re thinking about, calming breathing exercises will increase the activity in the parasympathetic nervous system – rest-and-digest mode – which calms and relaxes you. This increased inner calm will quiet your racing mind, relax your body, and help you fall asleep faster and sleep deeper.

When we focus on calm breathing exercises, especially in set patterns, it’s impossible to not be present in the moment – being in the future or in the past is impossible. This helps you control your ruminations. Ruminations are about the past or the future, so by staying present in each breath, right in the moment, you will more easily relax and sleep well.

It can be difficult to find the rhythm and keep focus on your own, as many clients have told me. That’s why I’ve recorded 24 guided breathing meditations, so you don’t have to worry, just follow the instructions. You’ll find them here.

If you sleep with your mouth open, you will hyperventilate, which causes many issues. The body also loses around 40% more fluids when you breathe through your mouth than when you breathe through your nose. This contributes to a drier mouth and throat, and can make you wake up from feeling thirsty and having to drink at night. A direct consequence of this is that you will then wake up again because you need to pee.

By using Sleep Tape, you’ll make sure you breathe through your nose all night. This ensures that the air you breathe in is filtered through the nasal canals and nasal cavity, so that all unwanted substances (air pollution particles, dust and bacteria) are exhaled back out after a short while. On the other hand, if you breathe in through an open mouth, the same particles will make their way all the way down to your bronchi and lungs, where they can stay for a long time and cause damage before they’re exhaled back out.

Nose breathing requires far less energy than mouth breathing. The breathing pattern is automatically slowed, the body becomes less acidic, the blood vessels expand and we snore less. Several of my clients with various forms of exhaustion have said they wake up with much more energy in the morning when they tape their mouths shut.

I, myself, have become addicted to Sleep Tape, and now I sleep much better than I did before I started using it.

When we’re not in REM sleep (the sleep stage where we dream), which is around 80% of the time we’re asleep, our breathing is deep and rhythmical. During REM sleep, on the other hand, our breathing speeds up, and is more shallow and arrhythmic, due to our dreams.

Sleep apnoea is a condition wherein you experience breathing stops caused by blockages in the airways while you sleep. You might have just a couple of breathing stops during the night, or it can be more serious, with several hundred breathing stops in a night. As the airways are continuously blocked, less air reaches the lungs and you often wake up from not having enough oxygen in the blood.

This can cause a loud snore, or you may make choking sounds during the night. Sleep apnoea can be caused by tissue in the back of the throat collapsing, as the airways relax more while we sleep. Additionally, sleeping on your back can make your tongue fall back towards the throat, narrowing the air passage. This narrow passage will cause the tissue in the back of the throat to vibrate and produce snoring sounds. It can be helpful to practise exercises that strengthen the muscles of the tongue.

Symptoms of sleep apnoea can include:

• waking up unrested and tired, even though you’ve slept well
• feeling like you’re low on energy throughout the day
• suffering from poor concentration
• falling asleep throughout the day without meaning to.

These are caused by you waking up several times during the night because you’re not getting enough oxygen, although you may not even be aware that you’re waking up. The lack of oxygen will also make you feel unrested and tired.

If you suspect you may have sleep apnoea, you should see a doctor.

It is important to be examined by a doctor to assess whether you have sleep apnoea, and if so, how many breathing stops you have during the night. The doctor will then prescribe you a CPAP machine to use at night, to ensure even airflow, either just through the nose or through both the nose and the mouth. The machine keeps the airways open and hinders breathing stops. I would also recommend that you tape your mouth shut at night to ensure nose breathing, unless there are specific reasons you can’t breathe through your nose.

Over time, lack of oxygen at night can cause:

• high blood pressure
• cardiovascular diseases
• stroke
• depression
• diabetes.

I have seen great results in clients with sleep apnoea that have had fewer breathing stops by practising their breathing, and by sleeping with their mouth shut, even when using a CPAP machine.

Calming breathing techniques will improve sleep quality and help with dehydration in the morning, jaw tension and sleep apnoea, as they contribute to balancing the autonomous nervous system. You’ll see the positive effects of the techniques in your daily life, as they will make you more awake, concentrated and calm, for example, which again can help you get an even better night’s sleep.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/psyp.12333
(Efficacy of paced breathing for insomnia: Enhances vagal activity and improves sleep quality)

H. J. Tsai Terry B. J. Kuo , Guo‐She Lee , Cheryl C. H. Yang
First published: 19 September 2014, https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.12333)

http://sleepeducation.org/essentials-in-sleep/insomnia/overview-facts