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Buteyko Breathing Method workshop: Correct your breathing and regain your health

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Testimonials, Feedback & Comments

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Sent: Monday, December 31, 2007 10:08 AM
To: Orna Adriaansen
Subject: Re: Life goes on 

היי אורנה

 

...

א. סיפרה לנו על הצלחה מסחררת שנחלת בטיפול בנחירות של בעלה ,  היא גם אמרה שאת מוכנה לטפל רק אם יש מחוייבות מלאה של המטופל לתרגול היומיומי הנדרש, ואמרה שמבחינה זו הוא מצויין כי יש לו משמעת עצמית מדהימה

היית צריכה לראות איך כל הנשים שם זקפו אוזניים. זאת בעייה מאוד קשה, שינה עם בן זוג נחרן, ולא מדברים עליה או מתייחסים אליה מספיק. גם התרופות הרגילות בשוק לא ממש עוזרות.

...

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Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2007 3:01 PM
To: Orna Adriaansen
 Subject: Re: Dear F.,

 

Hi Orna,

...I use the breathing awareness a lot through the day, to cope with any challenge!

It is invaluable to me, so I am very grateful for everything that I have learnt.

It helps me hugely to stay more calm and relaxed.

 

Thanks for keeping in touch. Wishing you all the best, 

 

 

F.

 

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Sent: Tuesday, October 30, 2007 1:29 AM
To: Orna Adriaansen
Subject: Re: Hello L., hello A.

 

 

Dear Orna,

 

…I've been thinking about you every day since our last lesson (even when I didn't practice ;-))

Practicing Buteyko, feeling better every week and thanking God I read the announcement that you had put at the British school last winter.

 

I didn't feel good all the time: I was practicing up to the last week or so of my holidays, then due to busy time and conditions I decided to stop and continue when I return to Holland. Up to that point I was already feeling better than any time since my joint and muscle pains started more than a year before. Few days after I stopped practicing the full pain returned again and the first night back in the Netherlands was a real nightmare. I am glad now that it happened that way because it proves that the progress that I have made is related to practicing the Buteyko. After I continued practicing, I was gradually feeling better again, up to now. I still have a pain but not all the time like before and with far less intensity. The good thing is that for most of the days (and nights!) now I manage to forget about it.

I am already very happy with the progress I've made so far. It feels great to be pain-free! I can't predict the future but I can only hope that it stays like this.

A. was going to write too (maybe she already has!).

 

Best wishes,

 

L.

 

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Sent: Thursday, August 09, 2007 12:52 PM
To: Orna Adriaansen
Subject: Re: best wishes  

 

I want you to know that you made a big impact on us, teaching the Buteyko method to C. We were talking about you only recently during our holiday… You planted a seed and gave us hope that he can control his asthma. 

 

I also got a lot out of watching you teach C. Just changing the way I breathe has made a huge difference to controlling my allergy for dust and stuffed up nose.

 

We will always remember you and wish you all the best in your new life in Israel.


Kind regards, K.

 

 

 

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Sent: maandag 16 juli 2007 0:36
To: 'Orna O. Adriaansen'
Subject: Buteyko

 

Thank you very much for teaching us, we both think it was an excellent course and a great thing to do. Knowing from music that whenever you do the practice, the teacher and his words keep coming back to you with all its positive or negative influence, we feel fortunate that we have had such a wonderful inspiring Buteyko teacher.

 

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Sent: woensdag 4 juli 2007 16:33
To: 'Orna Adriaansen'
Subject: RE: A personal note

 

Dear Orna,

 

… I think you did a pioneer’s work. I benefit from if daily.

 

I enclose digital form [of my ideas]. Shall we give such lessons in Israel, would make a nice combination, Buteyko and this stuff? I still have to rewrite this: some pieces are too explicit and others need mending.

 

We will stay in touch indeed; I wish you a good transfer (or at least as good as possible). It will be good to hear from you again!

 

All the best,

H.

 

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Sent: Friday, July 06, 2007 6:27 PM
To: Orna Adriaansen
Subject: Re: A personal note

 

Hi Orna,

 

Thanks for the support you have offered and are offering. J. and I are continuing to practice our breathing. We have our ups and downs but generally feel we are on the right track for our health. The boys will get back to it when time allows and the desire returns.

 

 

Regards,

 

C.

 

 

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Sent: Wednesday, July 04, 2007 5:33 PM
To: 'Orna Adriaansen'
Subject: RE: A personal note

 

Dear Orna,

I think you did a pioneer’s work, I learnt a lot from you. There are some spectacular successes and failures with the general trend being one of gradual improvement.

 

I enclose my text in digital form.

Shall we give such lessons in Israel, would make a nice combination, Buteyko and this stuff.

 

All the best,

H.

 

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Sent: zaterdag 26 mei 2007 19:02

To: ‘Orna O. Adriaansen’

Subject: Feedback

 

Learning the Buteyko method, for correctly coordinating breathing and talking, has helped me enormously in my work as a trainer and coach:

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Sent: donderdag 24 mei 2007 21:30

To: 'Orna Adriaansen'

Subject: Buteyko training

 

Dear Orna,

 

I am writing to say how beneficial I have found the training I did with you to learn

Buteyko breathing.

Before doing your training I was having problems with a number of health issues including abdominal bloating and pain, sleeping problems, light headedness, poor circulation, aching joints. I can clearly say that after 2 months of practicing the Buteyko I have seen an improvement in all of these areas.

 

I would have to say also that I used to be quite stressed at work and that my stress levels have decreased and I have seen a definite improvement in my wellbeing. I have also found it to be very helpful in teaching me techniques to improve my public speaking especially nervousness and correct breathing while presenting.

 

Thank you for teaching me some of the most important health knowledge I have ever know.

 

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Sent: maandag 21 mei 2007 18:23

To: Orna O. Adriaansen

Subject: Inspiration

 

Hi Orna, herewith is my evaluation for the last year.

More than a year ago, after 3 different antibiotics treatments the family physician diagnosed me with chronic rhino-sinusitis infection. Following him the next step would have been strong medications or an operation.

 

Those days I had difficulties breathing through the nose; I was coughing and had mucus in my lungs. As a result I slept badly which caused concentration problems on the following day. Therefore my studies deteriorated and less and less could I engage in physical activities. Cycling against the wind was hard and my work in a restaurant, which involves a lot of walking, suffered.

 

In that period you told me about the Buteyko method and was ready to teach me. Strong medications and surely an operation did not appeal to me, so I was ready to overcome my health issues in another way.   

 

I have to say that to begin with I was skeptic but decided to continue.

Following the first stage I sensed that I was sleeping better and the coughing was totally gone. The mucus in my lungs diminished and after few weeks I could do everything again.

 

It is indeed a question of self discipline, one has to continue exercising & after several weeks of exercises the sinusitis reverses. It is nice to realize that following few days of good exercises things are improving.

 

(Translated from the Dutch original)

 

 

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Sent: zondag 6 mei 2007 18:35
To: 'Orna O. Adriaansen'
Subject: RE: update on progress - article

 

Last November I attended a Buteyko work shop in the club rooms.  I had never heard of the Buteyko method but had been searching for a solution to my increasingly severe asthma with a resultant deterioration in my singing stamina.  I had concluded that my breathing was wrong so I was interested to hear what the lecturer had to say.

 

The work shop was given by Orna Adriaansen.   She is a certified Buteyko method practitioner as well as being a certified physical education teacher for over 20 years.  The Buteyko method is the result of research by Russian physician Buteyko.  His research followed on from earlier research on the relationship that carbon dioxide levels in the body have on oxygen levels.  He found that people living in western society hyperventilate.  Hyperventilate actually means breathing either too much or too deeply.  This actually decreases the amount of oxygen our bodies are able to use and causes a change in the ph of the body.  Mouth breathing adds to and compounds the problems of hyperventilation.  I was astonished to learn the effect incorrect breathing has on our bodies, but as a nurse know this to be scientifically correct. 

 

I never realized I hyperventilated. I frequently felt I didn’t have enough air, I sighed, wheezed, yawned, gasped, panted, snored, suffered lack of energy, would wake up feeling exhausted, had a constantly blocked nose, asthma, muscle cramps, felt stressed.  Orna gave us a check list to fill out.  As I filled it out I was horrified to see how many items that are symptomatic of hyperventilation I ticked ‘yes’ to.

 

I decided that the Buteyko method was what I had been searching for to correct my breathing problems.  So since January I have been having sessions with Orna to learn the method.

 

Has it made a difference? Yes

 

Would I recommend the Buteyko method to others?  Definitely.  I am even considering arranging for my children to be instructed in the method. 

 

* * *

13 years old J. suffered from asthma for 9 years. Some days he used his rescue puffer 8 times.

 

Within the first day of practicing the Buteyko breathing exercises he went down to using the rescue puffer once a day, and within a week – to none. In the last 6 month he used it 5 times all together.

 

Lately, after running in a gym lesson in school he said:

'I’m running now with my mouth closed; it is amazing to see how the others run with their mouth open!'

 

 

* * *

 

I have found a gathering about the Buteyko Method in the fitness center where I give Yoga lessons. I was immediately drawn to it. The details of the practice were not explained in depth as this gathering was towards offering a course. Pity but reasonable. Later I got a better understanding of the practice and am very happy with it.

I fight against allergies as long as I can remember and by using Echinacea tablets I keep my immunity reasonably under control, but not totally. I feel it directly in my lungs.

The breathing exercises are working wonderfully when I begin piping. Within 5 minutes the piping is gone! Without medicines. A miracle :-)

 

 

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Rugby player Con Barrell suffered from chronic asthma and from Exercise Induced Asthma. During a game Con carried an inhaler in the top of his sock, and would often use it in breaks of play. Even when having a match relatively free of asthma he would use the inhaler at least once every four minutes.

 

Con found the constant use of an inhaler annoying, however, the real problem was the effect of other minor illnesses on his condition. Whilst on high doses of preventer medication, a cold would be very hard for Con to get over, dramatically effecting his ability to train. Periodically, he would also suffer from very poor control over his asthma, making his training even harder.

 

Asthma has been Con's long-time unwelcome companion. His rugby successes are a tribute to his outstanding dedication and determination. Con discovered Buteyko days before he was due to play in South Africa in May 1997. Con's family saw Buteyko on the television, and suggested to Con that he talk to the local practitioner. As a result Con spent four days learning the technique prior to his trip to South Africa.

 

Con was able to master the method well enough to make an enormous difference to his game in South Africa. Even whilst playing at altitude opposite the formidable South African prop Os du Randt, he used ventolin once only, and felt incredibly well. He was able to play the full game, something that he had struggled to do previously on the high veldt. With control over his asthma, Con was able to achieve the consistency in his play that had often eluded him. This earned Con a place on the subsequent 'All Blacks' 1997 tour of South Africa, fulfilling a dream that looked likely to only remain a dream before he learned the Buteyko method.

 

Con's comment six months after learning the Buteyko Technique:

"I still take a preventer regularly but simply do not need so much reliever. I have not had prednisone since learning Buteyko. I sleep better, my pulse rate has dropped 10-12 beats on a regular basis, and I feel well. Buteyko has made a huge difference to my rugby. I can prepare and play without worrying that asthma will prevent me from playing to my full potential".

 

 

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Even though I am doing the breathing exercises for allergies, there have been substantial and surprising benefits:

 

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I have been studying Buteyko for about two months. I am pleased with my progress thus far:

* * *

Check it out! My asthma is gone!

I went in for another pulmonary function test today, and my lung function is at 100%. The doctor I saw was one of the top specialists on the island, in fact, I hear he's one of the best pulmonary doctors in the Navy.

When he looked at my old pulmonary test and then the one I took today, he said it was amazing. he said he's never seen anything like it.

 

He asked me what I was doing, and I told him I started Buteyko breathing. He was so amazed that he asked me to email him more information about Buteyko.

 

I gotta tell you, when I first discovered Buteyko, on the internet, I was sceptical, but after doing it for three weeks, my wheeze went away, and now I have the pulmonary function tests to prove it works.

 

The doc said, there's nothing I can do for you because there's nothing wrong with you! I was like okay, and started to walk out, and he was like, no come back here, I want to show you something. He showed me how on my test last month, my lung function was only at 60%, and now today it's 100%. He was amazed at the dramatic change I got in such a short time, without medications.

 

I cured myself by learning how to stop hyperventilating (which by the way I didn't know I was chronically doing). Not only is my asthma gone, but so are my night sweats, and it has greatly improved my panic disorder too.

 

so many people die needlessly from Asthma. (5000 deaths a year) I really feel I need to get the word out about Buteyko, because it has helped me so much. So the next time you see someone puffing on an inhaler please tell them about it.

If you want to be healthy than you better take responsibility for your own health.

 

If you want to be healthy than you better take responsibility for your own health.

 

* * *

I was suffering from CFS/ME - a bewildering cocktail of debilitating symptoms. After a false start in DIY Buteyko, C. D. sorted me out and through obsessive attention to breathing all the time and taking care over my diet - all my symptoms had vanished. There is hardly an hour that passes without conscious attention to some aspect of my breathing.
 

I have watched with fascination the changes that have accompanied my journey up what I imagine is the Buteyko ‘mountain’: Fitness and endurance which surprises much younger colleagues at work, enhanced sensory abilities, less sleep, reduced need for food and drink, emotional detachment and ability to soak up stress without ill effect.

I’m amazed at the transformation I have gone through, which continues to this day.

 

Just being is enough - to feel the wind on the skin and hear the birds sing. Corny but true. I appreciated these things before but that was nothing like now. Since Buteyko my value system has shifted. Material things are less important. The grass is no longer greener elsewhere. I am more ready just to live for the moment. I am more tolerant and
understanding.

 

A few stats:

6 years ago, before Buteyko, I weighed 10 stone. I'm now rock steady at a bit under 9 stone. 5ft 11 ins - yes I'm very thin. Pulse always under 60 sometimes around 45.

I am 53 and have never felt healthier in all my life.

V.

* * *

I’d previously been in excellent health.

In May 1996 I developed asthma as a result of exposure to latex.

In March 2001 I was angry, not working and ill with a severe chest infection. I took inhaled steroid, preventer medication, long acting bronchodilators and I’d just finished a course of oral steroids. 

 

It was high time to regain some control of my health.

One of the biggest turning points was learning the Buteyko Technique. I first heard about it in Australia. It sounded like a load of tosh, but what had I got to loose?

 

It took 12 months, but since April 2002, I haven’t used any asthma medication.

 

So the Buteyko Technique is not a quick fix.  It takes patience, determination and effort.  The more I analyze it, the more sense it makes and the proof is in the pudding. 

 

My Chest Physician confirmed my lung function had measurably improved and, whilst I have an open appointment with him, I now only visit him once every two years routinely.  My blood pressure decreased, I lost weight and my overall fitness and sense of well being increased. In addition, my dentist remarked that my gums were much improved.

 

***

More than four years ago I did a course in the Buteyko breathing technique. Before that I had been diagnosed as a moderately severe asthmatic and had been on regular medication for 40 years.

 

Within days of learning the Buteyko technique I achieved a level of control over my asthma that I had never had before. Now four years later I can exercise without getting wheezy. I never wake up with asthma, even when I get a flu - which seems to be less often than before, and less often than many of those around me, I do not have to resort to drugs.

 

Konstantin Buteyko was a Russian Doctor with decades of research behind him. His claims are bold, but that hardly disqualifies him. The history of medicine and science in general is full of radical ideas which have been denounced only to be proven correct in the fullness of time. Buteyko says that asthma is not a disease at all, but a result of excessive breathing. Correcting the breathing can eradicate the disease. Buteyko practitioners train people in simple but rigorous techniques which enable them to stop hyperventilating.

 

 

***

 

Pam had her first asthma attack at age 4, than used Intal & later Ventolin. From about age 20 she used a steroid 'preventer'. At worst, she was using Ventolin 4 times a day.

 

Acupuncture and homeopathy was not helping her. Then she saw a documentary on the Buteyko breathing method. 'They taught it to 5 people with asthma, and they all improved.'

 

Pam signed up and followed a course: 'It is hard to change the way you breathe,' she said ‘A Buteyko workshop is just the beginning, you than have to put the technique into practice.’

 

To date she hasn't used her Ventolin in 18 months. She still carries it wit her but delights in being drug free.

She experienced another health bonus: 'When I started Buteyko, I had an irregular heartbeat, maybe it was the drugs. Now my heartbeat is normal and I have taken back control of my life.'

 

 

***

Three months ago I heard about Buteyko, a programme of breathing exercises for asthmatics. Since I began 12 weeks ago I have only needed to use my Ventolin inhaler six times in total instead of the four times a day (often more) that I have used it for the past 25 years!!! I used to feel that a day without my inhaler would mean hospitalisation; two days and I would be dead! Now if I get breathless I no longer use my Ventolin as I am able to restore my breathing by using the Buteyko exercises. This major change in my asthma management is a revelation. I feel in control of my breathing and can see a way forward to increasing health. I would encourage everyone with asthma to contact a Buteyko practitioner.

 

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I was diagnosed with asthma at age three. At 18 years of age one of New Zealand’s leading asthma specialists suggested that among other recommendations I should not do strenuous exercise as it exacerbated my asthma. I ignored this advice and took up jogging. Despite a high level of fitness I still got asthma and exercise made me breathless. I would often need to use an inhaler to overcome breathlessness in the first 15 minutes of my run and again 30 to 40 minutes after.

Five years ago I did a Buteyko breathing course which changed my life. Within days my asthma symptoms disappeared. Within weeks I started reducing my preventer medication.

 

I am 48 years old now and have been free of asthma symptoms and need for medication since doing the course. I can now exercise without getting breathless. Buteyko’s strategy for exercising without asthma is to breathe correctly. In addition to the breathing exercises, that help normalise your breathing, Buteyko instructs you to exercise at a pace where nasal breathing is possible (keep your mouth shut when you exercise). This will mean a drop in performance initially but the rewards are enormous.

 

I only wish I had been told that I could control my asthma through correct breathing thirty years ago.

 

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"A few of our patients have recently been trained in this method, and they have all found benefit in terms of reduced medication and symptoms: their lung function has not been formally evaluated.

 

Clearly such small-scale anecdotal evidence is inadmissible in the wider debate, but there does seem to be some published evidence that confirms these impressions.

 

All of us will have seen asthmatics whose dyspnoea during an exacerbation is made worse by anxiety and consequent hyperventilation: any technique that reduces this should be of benefit to such patients.

I would be interested in other peoples' experiences of the method.

 

Competing interests: Our practice has hosted a Buteyko training course, but has no financial interest in promoting the method"

 

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