Struggling with breathing

[Joe_17]

Hey guys

For some reason I'm not breathing properly, I've had problems with palapatations and I think it may be because of that.


Anyway, if I'm out and about I don't seem to have many problems, but when I'm layed down or focusing on my stomach/inner self when negative thoughts/feelings come up (not wanting to avoid them) I struggle.

The feeling is like...I'll lay and try and watch my breath.....but when I wait and watch for it I can't hear/feel the inhale and exhale and what happens is I wait for about 6/7 seconds and then I get to the stage where I'm out of breath.

I try not to force it and I just feel it and lose my breath.

How do I get back to my default rhythm?

Thanks

[Itlandm]

Hello!
I have also had a problem with watching my breath, because of my childhood asthma (which started very early, before I learned to think rationally). Luckily, watching your breath is just one of many, many techniques to bring about meditation. You can also count silently to 4 (as I did) or to 10 (as I have seen recommended elsewhere). Or you can focus on a mantra, as taught in the free meditation course here at this website. (In fact, you should see a link to it on this very page.) What is important to watch is not really your breath but your mind. You - the part of you that observes all things - should keep track of where your mind is. This is why you bind it to your breath, or to some very simple mental process: So you can keep track of your mind, and it doesn't run all over the place. The breathing is not important.

Incidentally, you will start breathing again automatically after a while. If your strength of will is great, you may be able to keep your breath until you lose consciousness, at which point your body will breathe on its own. To end your life by not breathing, you need to be a master yogi and have reached the end of your natural lifespan, in which case you may go into Mahasamadhi and exit your body voluntarily. You and me are probably both a bit away from that.

[Panthau]

Hi,

What about a bit pranayama to train your lungs? If you have a ios device, theres a nice app which i use regulary, its called "Universal Breathing" and has different levels, from beginner to advanced.

Atb,
Phil