Breath, The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor.

Thoughts about a book. A book that has influenced us greatly. Literally changed our lives. Thanks James Nestor. We highly recommend it to you as we do for others. A must read.How did it change our lives? What did we learn? How have we joined the dots with breathing and other aspects of our lives and knowledge?* Breathing has direct access to our nervous system - the power of the long exhale. 3 breaths later I had completely relaxed (Anita). * Nasal breathing - no waking with dry mouth (from mouth breathing when I slept) AND it has wiped out my snoring! I now tape my lips together when I sleep to ensure I nasal breathe (Anita). * We breathe more efficiently using our nose not our mouth. And it slows our rate of breathing down too.* We don’t get oxygen hungry (when we can’t hold our breath for long), we become less tolerant of carbon dioxide. * Our nasal cavity is lined with the same sorts of cells as we have in the penis, clitoris and nipples! Different functions for sure but there is a link.* Nitric Oxide - nasal breathing promotes this - the importance of this vital gas we produce to help our cardio vascular health and so many other bodily systems.* How we breathe impacts our bony skeleton. People with scoliosis have changed their spine shape with purpose designed breath work and movement. Hard and soft palettes, face shape - influenced by how we breathe! * We take in about 25,000 breaths and 14kg of air a day. Consistent action (like breathing) will have an influence on our body. Mind blowing - we don’t think of it that way.In the book James outlines not only the scientific facts and professional practices he talks of the ancient art of breathwork and the various ways to breathe for effect and impact. We also acknowledge there is a spectrum of different ways to breathe - breathing practices. Some are easy to access and do, others we need to work up to. Start out slow and learn as you go - with curiosity. It’s wise to get professional support if you’re wanting to go deeper faster, because it can bring out unexpected reactions (to trauma for example). Respect the breath. What if we could consciously breathe in ways that are best for our health, just like we consciously choose the best foods to eat? Our health and wellness would benefit greatly. Breathing right influences our life and health spans - because from the age of about 30 our lung capacity starts to decline/reduce. But like our muscles and bones, we CAN change that with conscious action and practice. Breathwork is something we ALL have access to. It’s free. Available any time. What other forms of ways to look after ourselves, can do that?How are you breathing?Go out and grab this book. It’s a life changing read. Find it on Jame’s website as well as online wherever you get your great books from.https://www.mrjamesnestor.com/"Our breath is a beautiful, healing, mysterious gift, and so is this book. I already feel like it’s going to change my life." Elizabeth GilbertAmen Elizabeth. We couldn’t agree more. It did for us. I’m sure it will for you too.Thank you James.Erica & Anita xxThank you to everyone who tuned into our live video! Join us for my next live video in the app. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit midlifeunfiltered.substack.com