Breathing The Master Key To Self Healing by Andrew Weil Flashcards
What is integrative medicine?
.
What is Pranayama?
Breath work in yoga
What is Osteopathy?
?
Where did breath work come from?
Ancient India. They discovered a way to change your consciousness through breathing techniques.
What is the involuntary nervous system?
.
What is the only thing in the body that you can do completely consciously or completely unconsciously?
Breathing you can use either voluntary nerves and muscles or involuntary nerves and muscles
What are common disorders that are a result of imbalances between nervous systems?
High Blood Pressure - Overactive sympathetic tones
What are the two divisions of the involuntary nervous system?
Sympathetic - or Autonomic - Fight or Flight
Parasympathetic -
Normally work in balance but today there is a high dominance of the Sympathetic Nervous System
Why does digestion shut down in fight or flight situations?
Because it is non-essential to survival on a short term basis
What is an obvious indication of sympathetic nervous system overactivity?
Cold hands
What are the 4 aspects of breath you want to cultivate?
Deeper
Slower
Quieter
More Regular
What are these characters?
Exhale and Inhale
Why do many cultures (India and China) think of the exhalation of the breath as the start of the cycle?
The muscles used to exhale are stronger and give you much more control over the volume of air in your lungs. The great the exhale the greater the corresponding inhale.
When you focus on the inhale first you are causing more of a sucking activity and are using weaker muscles. When you turn it around the inhale becomes natural and easy.
What is the most important thing when taking a deep breath?
That your abdomen goes out.
