A prescription
Western medicine has a similar view of the practice.
Guo, who specializes in treating autonomic nerve dysfunctions, says that the autonomic nervous system regulates more than 90% of organ functions, including peristalsis, blood pressure, body temperature, and muscle relaxation. While these functions cannot be directly controlled by the mind, they can be adjusted through breathing exercises.
"How you breathe can affect your pulse rate," says Guo. Inhalation stimulates the sympathetic nervous system, making you excited and emotionally aroused. Exhalation stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, calming you and prompting feelings of joy and peace. You can use conscious changes to the rhythm and depth of your breaths to modulate your autonomic nervous system and bring it into balance.
"Proper breathing is a convenient, effective, and cost-free prescription to good health," says Guo. He adds that practitioners of yoga who perform the poses beautifully but make no changes to their breathing are doing nothing to harmonize their autonomic nervous systems.
Guo stresses that those who learn the proper breathing technique and find an appropriate rhythm can improve the function of the autonomic nervous system. He has applied his theories to patients in treatment and achieved very good results.
His most impressive case to date involves a 50-some businessman who was spending virtually all his time in the emergency room. Frightened of having a heart attack, he gave up flying, riding high-speed trains, and traveling anywhere at all that was more than a 20-minute drive from a hospital. He ultimately had to work from home. But a treatment regimen that combined anti-anxiety medication with training in abdominal breathing brought about a marked improvement in his condition in just two months. Nowadays, he's excited to have found relief, but a little upset at having wasted five years living in fear. "I had no idea that I could find relief in just two months."
In another instance, a woman in her sixties who weighed 80 kg in spite of being just 150 cm tall lost 20 kg by practicing abdominal breathing for six months. The weight loss reduced the burden on her heart and knees, enabling her to give up her walker.
How does deep breathing help you lose weight? Guo explains that people suffering from autonomic nerve dysfunction eat all kinds of things to relieve anxiety. Fullness initiates peristalsis, stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system, which causes you to relax. But overeating often leads to obesity, which reduces both self-confidence and activity levels, leading to depression and more overeating. This kind of vicious circle cannot be broken by diet drugs, but can be turned around by breathing techniques that link body, mind, and spirit.
The Sudarshan Kriya breathing exercises created by Indian spiritual leader Guruji teach students to regulate the rhythm of their breathing and harmonize their energies. Pregnant women, victims of heart disease, and glaucoma sufferers should not practice the exercises, nor should anyone learn from a teacher only partially versed in the techniques.