compassion

"Promising Prospects in Chronic Diseases," plus My Top 3 Books of 2021

 
 

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4 Thoughts


1. A First Goal of Pranayama is This

“Hence, through pranayama, one attempts to do away with the effort of respiration; rhythmic breathing must become something so automatic that the yogin can forget it.”

- Mircea Eliade, Yoga: Immortality and Freedom

An excellent reminder that we train our breathing, consistently and deliberately, so we can forget about it. Effort leads to effortlessness. Ancient yogis agree.

2. Slow Breathing Offers “Promising Prospects in Chronic Diseases Management”

A 2021 review of heart rate variability biofeedback (HRVB; aka slow breathing) for chronic illness examined 29 studies with over 1100 patients, concluding:

“Given the reported positive effects of HRVB on psychophysiological outcomes in various patient profiles, it is clear that HRVB offers promising prospects in chronic diseases management.”

- Heart rate variability biofeedback in chronic disease management: A systematic review 

It looks like, once again, I’m not as crazy as I sometimes feel with this breathing stuff (and neither were those slow, rhythmic-breathing ancient yogis 😁).

***

P.S. A quick rant on HRVB vs. slow breathing for the nerds like me 🤓

3. How to Be Warm-Hearted: Slow Breathing and The 4 Elements of Compassion

In one of my new favorite books, Biofeedback and Mindfulness in Everyday Life, Dr. Inna Khazan tells us that compassion requires 4 physiological elements:

  1. “Ability to orient and bring attention toward the person in need.

  2. Ability to engage socially with others in times of stress.

  3. Ability to feel safe while engaging with others.

  4. Ability to regulate our own physiology.”

Critically, these traits tie back to our hearts, specifically HRV:

“What all four of these points tell us is that HRV is central to the physiological foundations of compassion and self-compassion.”

And, most critically, HRV can be quickly and sustainably increased with slow breathing, helping you become more compassionate:

“doing the structured, straightforward, and easily accessible HRV training will help you in developing and nurturing your ability to express and act with compassion toward others and self-compassion for yourself.”

Sounds good to me : )

4. Remember this Emotional Toil for 2022

“As far as I can tell, the only thing more difficult than the emotional toil of pursuing true excellence is the emotional toil of not pursuing true excellence.”

- Steven Kotler, The Art of Impossible

Breathing certainly isn’t everything. But, it is the starting point for pursuing true excellence in all aspects of our lives. And we wouldn’t want to live with the emotional toil of not doing that : )

Bonus Thought: My Favorite Books of 2021

“We read books to find out who we are.”

- Ursula K. Le Guin

I read 56 books this year, a new record for me. Here’s a list of them, plus my Top 3 for: Overall, Breathing, and Better Living/Philosophy.

I hope the nuggets of wisdom I have shared from some of these have helped your 2021 be better in some way 🙏

 
 
 
 

1 QUOTE

“We are all journeying through the night with plans, breathing in and out this mysterious life.”

– Tara Brach

 
 
 
 

1 ANSWER

Category: The Airways

Answer: These are the narrowest passageways air goes through before reaching the alveoli.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

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Question: What are bronchioles?

In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”

P.S. & won’t be caught slipping again

 
 
 

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Each Monday, I curate and synthesize information from scientific journals, books, articles, and podcasts to share 4 thoughts, 1 quote, and 1 answer (like "Jeopardy!") related to breathing. It’s a fun way to learn something new each week.

 
 

Box Breathing for Stress, and the Ancients’ Code to Becoming a Hero

 
 

Listen Instead of Reading

 

This week, you'll learn that breathing is only part of the solution, along with the ancient (and quite unexpected) secret to becoming a hero.

Enjoy!

 
 
 
 

4 Thoughts


1. Breathing as the XX% Solution

“Consider what life would be like if we gave up the idea of healthy or sick, zero versus one, and replaced it with the idea of multiple continuum. One minute, for example, we might score 60% on one health dimension, 30% on another, and perhaps 85% on yet a third. How would that change our lived experience?”

- Dr. Ellen Langer, Counterclockwise

I love this idea from Dr. Langer. It encourages us to forget “all or nothing” approaches and instead consider everything on a continuum. This perspective also provides a new way of finding solutions to our health problems.

Let’s say I only sleep 5 hours a night. Then, I start mouth taping and begin sleeping 6.5. That’s a 30% improvement. But let’s say you’re already sleeping 7 hours, and mouth tape gets you to 7.5. That’s only a 7% increase. But, that 7% might be all you need to feel your absolute best.

The point is that we’re all unique, and we’re all on different spots on the health continuum. My 80% solution might be your 30% one, and vice-versa.

So, instead of wondering what breathing (or the latest diet, the sauna, etc.) can fix for you, perhaps consider what percentage of the solution it is. “How would that change your lived experience?”

***

Related Quote: “The people I distrust most are those who want to improve our lives but have only one course of action.” - Frank Herbert

2. Test Like a Pro

“You may feel your anxiety turning to panic. … To tackle this, watch your breathing. Just before you might go into panic mode, put your hand on your belly and try to draw air so deeply into your lungs that your hand moves up and down. This deep breathing can allow you to grow calmer and steadier.”

- Dr. Barbara Oakley and Olav Schewe, Learn Like a Pro

Last week, we discovered that to learn like a pro, we need to sleep like a pro. This week, Dr. Oakley and Olav Schewe give us their advice for testing like a pro: slow deep breathing.

This technique isn’t just for school tests, either. This is for any big event you’re facing. Of course, sometimes anxiety is good (see Kelly McGonigal’s amazing book, The Upside of Stress). But, in moments when you’re panicking, and it’s hampering your performance, here’s the perfect trick.

Place one hand on your belly and use your breathing to make it move. This activates the calming parasympathetic nervous system, helping you relax and gain mental focus. It’s free, available anytime, anywhere.

Here’s to approaching whatever tests life throws at us like pros, today.

***

Related: A better state-of-mind: deep breathing reduces state anxiety and enhances test performance through regulating test cognitions in children (Check out the last two sentences of the abstract)

Related: This 2-Minute Breathing Exercise Can Help You Make Better Decisions, According to a New Study

3. From the Cleveland Clinic: “How Box Breathing Can Help You Destress”

“Box breathing’s simplicity is its greatest strength”

- Melissa Young, MD, How Box Breathing Can Help You Destress

The Cleveland Clinic is one of the most respected hospitals and research centers worldwide. So, it was awesome to see them release an article on box breathing this past week.

It’s a quick yet comprehensive guide on box breathing. Enjoy!

4. The Ancients’ Secret to Becoming a Hero (it’s not what you might think)

“True heroism, as the ancients understood, isn’t about strength, or boldness, or even courage. It’s about compassion.”

- Christopher McDougall, Natural Born Heroes

Heroes are compassionate. In fact, the word hero itself actually means “protector” in Greek, not “strength” or “courage.” That’s why we call our parents, big brothers and sisters, military, police, firefighters, doctors, nurses, and especially our dogs, heroes. They protect us.

And these heroes don’t just rely on boldness or brute strength, like movies and the news might make us believe. They rely on empathy and compassion for those they are protecting. As McDougall puts it:

“Empathy, the Greeks believed, was a source of strength, not softness; the more you recognized yourself in others and connected with their distress, the more endurance, wisdom, cunning, and determination you could tap into.”

Thus, we can all be heroes because we can all develop these traits. Sitting and breathing, meditating, or doing some yoga will increase your compassion and awareness for yourself and those around you. That’s how heroes are made.

So who can you show compassion and empathy for this week? You might just become their hero.

 
 
 
 

1 Quote

“In a crunch situation, I recommend you collapse your concentration to your breathing while maintaining relaxed awareness of the surroundings. Breathing deeply will greatly reduce the stress, slow your heart rate, and bring your nervous system back into balance.”

- Mark Divine, Retired Navy SEAL Commander

 
 
 
 

1 Answer

Category: Word Etymology

Answer: The word “breath” is derived from the Old English “brǣth,” which has this meaning.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

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Question: What is ‘smell or scent’?

P.S. Thus, the word breath itself is related to the nose : )

In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”

P.S. wow, respect to these teen parents

 
 
 

Sign Up For The Breathing 411

Each Monday, I curate and synthesize information from scientific journals, books, articles, and podcasts to share 4 thoughts, 1 quote, and 1 answer (like "Jeopardy!") related to breathing. It’s a fun way to learn something new each week.