On the one hand, technological progress has greatly simplified our lives, but on the other hand, year after year it inexorably disrupts our natural biorhythms.
It is especially difficult for residents of megacities to fall asleep on time, since in large cities the night light is so bright that it is almost impossible to find yourself in complete darkness, which is necessary for proper sleep.
According to statistics, 50% of the world’s adult population suffers from sleep disorders, and children and adolescents are increasingly at risk.
Breathing technique for sleep 4-7-8
Every day we are bombarded with information attacks from all sides, as a result our brain is overloaded and our mind is constantly busy with all sorts of thoughts. Therefore, to quickly fall asleep and get quality sleep, it is vital to learn how to relieve psycho-emotional stress and stop the thought process.
Our breathing will help us with this. More precisely, the 4-7-8 breathing technique, developed by Andrew Weil, MD, of Harvard.
This breathing practice is based on the ancient practice of Pranayama (link to article st 0001) and is controlled breathing according to a certain pattern.
Deep, slow breathing during practice activates the parasympathetic nervous system, whose task is to reduce stress and mental anxiety.
The author of this breathing technique called his method “a natural tranquilizer for the nervous system.”
Breathing 4-7-8. How to fall asleep in 1 minute
“I’m very impressionable, I let all troubles pass through my heart, because of this I started having problems sleeping, I can spend hours trying to fall asleep, everything is in vain...” (from the comments)
To fall asleep quickly and get a good night's sleep, you must relieve psycho-emotional stress before bed.
I suggest you learn a simple, but most importantly, safe technique for effective relaxation and easy falling asleep; it will allow you to improve your sleep and control your mental balance during the day.
Breathing 4-7-8 is a simple exercise that can be performed in any conditions, literally on the go.
At the end of the article there are detailed instructions on how to perform and a video that will help you master the technique. Contents:
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- 1. Briefly about the causes of poor sleep
- 2. Technique 4-7-8 - breathing meditation for health
- 3. How to do exercise 3.1. Important!
Briefly about the causes of poor sleep
Insomnia and other sleep disorders have become a real problem for many contemporaries.
The statistics are impartial:
- 50% of the world's adults experience sleep disorders,
- about 10% suffer from insomnia,
- serious honey 20% of Russians need help in this matter,
- Those at risk include older people, women, teachers, lawyers, and representatives of creative professions.
- Children and adolescents are increasingly experiencing sleep disturbances.
How much sleep do you need at each age? Night sleep norms for children and adults (table), which deviations are dangerous. How to improve sleep - simple measures.
Technological progress inexorably destroys our natural biorhythms:
night lighting allows people to go without sleep around the clock without thinking about the consequences.
We easily sacrifice sleep in favor of work, study, and pleasure.
Meanwhile, insufficient sleep leads to inevitable destruction of health :
- failure in all organs and systems,
- depression of the central nervous system,
- paranoia,
- diabetes mellitus,
- deterioration of brain function and memory.
To maintain health and be active into old age , a person needs to:
- sleep at night rather than work or have fun.
- Get enough sleep, observing your individual sleep measure.
- Get enough melatonin, a natural sleep hormone, every night. It is produced by the body itself only at night in complete darkness.
I advise you to read the article, which explains why doctors in all countries are concerned about the growing number of cancer diseases and what they attribute it to:
Why is it necessary to sleep in complete darkness?
Normal sleep is also disrupted by constant mental and nervous overload.
A flow of often unnecessary and harmful information, from which it becomes increasingly difficult to isolate ourselves, accompanies us everywhere, and this gives rise to irritation and nervousness.
From the above we conclude:
To be healthy, you need to get quality sleep at night.
To fall asleep without effort, you need to relax, distract yourself from everything that worried you during the day, remembering the proverb: “The morning is wiser than the evening.”
Technique 4-7-8 - breathing meditation for health
Developed by Andrew Weil , MD, Harvard, a health expert and proponent of breathing techniques to combat stress, anxiety and sleep disorders.
It is controlled breathing , consisting of a deep inhalation, a long exhalation and holding the breath.
Based on the ancient Indian practice called pranayama, which means regulating vital energy through breathing.
Andrew considers his method a “natural tranquilizer for the nervous system,” helping to quickly reduce tension and calm down.
“Give your full attention to your breathing and move in the direction of relaxation,” advises Weil.
The nature of our breathing depends on:
- physiological and mental processes,
- immunity,
- mood,
- Blood pH and blood pressure.
When we are nervous, we breathe shallowly and quickly into the upper third of the chest.
This type of breathing activates the sympathetic system, which is responsible for the synthesis of stress hormones, adrenaline and cortisol.
People subject to frequent nervous shocks suffer from oxygen starvation, because... shallow breathing is not able to provide the body with the required amount of O2.
The deep, slow breathing used in the Weil Technique, on the other hand, activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for reducing anxiety and stress.
A deep breath fills the lungs with air completely, and not just their upper sections, this provides the body with an influx of oxygen, which helps to calm down.
Holding your breath slows down the heart rate, allowing oxygen to better penetrate the blood.
Prolonged exhalation removes carbon dioxide in a larger volume than normal. At the same time, the muscles of the body are relaxed.
By concentrating on breathing, it is easier to distract yourself from exciting thoughts, experiences, thinking about past and future events, adopting the attitude “we will think about this tomorrow (later), and now we will fall asleep (or calm down).”
Use this exercise every time:
- when someone upsets you,
- if you are tense, anxious. Mild to moderate anxiety subsides easily.
- To curb your appetite.
- When you can't sleep.
It may take some practice and persistence to achieve results. However, the long-term benefits are worth the effort.
After about four to six weeks you will see favorable changes :
- a calm and relaxed body when you need it;
- clarity of thoughts;
- habit of conscious control of emotions and actions in stressful situations;
- normalization of pulse and blood pressure;
- improved digestion and overall health.
Relieving mental stress with the help of breathing meditation , we provide our body with enormous benefits by stopping the “fight or flight” reaction in it, reducing the level of stress hormones and neutralizing their harmful effects.
How to do the exercise
You should study the technique while sitting, keeping your back straight, feet on the floor. In the future, you can perform it sitting, lying, standing, or on the go.
We place the tip of the tongue on the tubercle of the upper palate behind the front teeth and fix it for the entire process of the exercise.
1. Exhale air through the mouth, trying to completely empty the lungs of air.
You should get a noisy whistling sound. If it turns out to be uncomfortable to exhale while maintaining the position of your tongue, purse your lips a little.
2. Close your mouth and inhale the air as deeply as possible, counting to 4.
3. Hold your breath and count to 7.
4. Exhale noisily through an open mouth, counting to 8.
This is the first cycle. You need to repeat the same thing 3 more times to get a total of 4 cycles.
Important!
We take breaths calmly, only through the nose,
exhale audibly through the mouth.
We keep the end of the tongue on the palate constantly.
Exhalation is 2 times longer than inhalation.
The absolute time spent on each cycle is not important, the main thing is to maintain the proportion 4-7-8.
If holding your breath is difficult, you can speed up the count, speeding it up at all stages to maintain the 4-7-8 ratio.
Over time, you will be able to slow down and hold your breath with ease, and your exhalations will become longer.
During training, perform the exercise no more than 2 times a day for two months, and also use the technique for anxiety or worry.
It is not recommended to exceed the norm (4 cycles) in the first 4 weeks of training. Subsequently, if desired, you can increase the exercise to eight inhalations and exhalations.
Summary
4-7-8 breathing is a surprisingly simple method, does not take much time, does not require any equipment, and can be performed under any conditions.
Having mastered it, you will be able to control your mental state, resist stress, improve your health and well-being, and fall asleep easily and quickly in 1 minute, as the creator of the technique claims.
I suggest watching a video in which Andrew Weil shows by his own example how to breathe and count correctly. The video is in English, but this does not prevent you from understanding the information.
I wish everyone strong nerves, easy falling asleep and good sleep!
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Breathing technique for falling asleep quickly or how to fall asleep in 60 seconds?
At first, it is best to practice while sitting. When you master this breathing technique well, you will be able to perform it lying down, standing, and even while walking.
- Sit so that your back is straight and your feet touch the floor.
- Place the tip of your tongue on the tubercle of the upper palate and keep it there throughout the practice.
- Take a deep breath in through your nose and exhale through your mouth, completely emptying your lungs of air, maintaining the position of your tongue on the upper palate.
- Take a deep breath in through your nose for 4 counts.
- Then hold your breath for 7 counts.
- Exhale through your mouth for 8 counts.
This is one breathing cycle, you need to do 4 such cycles in total.
This breathing method can be done anytime and anywhere as it does not take much time and does not require special training or additional equipment.
You can count faster or slower, the main thing is to maintain the proportion 4-7-8.
For the first month of training, we recommend doing this exercise 2 times a day, no more than four breathing cycles. Then you can increase to 8 cycles.
Regular practice will help improve digestion, normalize blood pressure, relieve anxiety and even stop a panic attack.
4-7-8 breathing: benefits
This breathing practice can be used not only before bed, but also in moments of nervous tension and stressful situations. When we are anxious or scared, our breathing quickens, causing the level of adrenaline in our blood to increase. Holding your breath and exhaling slowly slows your heart rate, so 4-7-8 breathing works as a sedative.
During practice, all attention is directed to the process of breathing and counting; this calms the central nervous system and normalizes the pulse, as a result of which the feeling of anxiety decreases and clarity of thought occurs.
This breathing technique helps curb your appetite and improve digestion. So, if you have a goal to lose weight, be sure to include this breathing technique in your daily workouts.
Tangible results of practice are noticeable after 3-5 weeks.
The dangers of lack of sleep
Each of us wants to be healthy and stay young as long as possible. But not everyone understands that this requires quality sleep. And sleep at night, because only in sleep and only in the dark is the necessary portion of melatonin produced.
Many people would be happy to go to bed early, but they can’t; their active brain doesn’t allow them to fall asleep, replaying the events of the past day, meetings, conversations before their eyes... Breathing according to the 4-7-8 pattern will help you quickly calm your mind, relax and fall asleep effortlessly.
Lack of sleep can lead to:
- Failure in all organs and systems
- CNS depression
- Paranoia
- Diabetes mellitus
- Deterioration of brain function and memory
- Premature aging
- Obesity
- Osteoporosis
- Dementia
If you have trouble falling asleep, be sure to try the 4-7-8 breathing technique according to Dr. Andrew Weiss.
Breathing exercises using the “4-7-8” technique
A unique technique for developing the habit of falling asleep quickly. To obtain lasting results, it is recommended to do this type of breathing exercises in the morning and evening every day for 2 months. First, the maximum exhalation is done through the mouth, but it should not interfere with breathing or cause a cough. Then comes a nasal inhalation with a slow count to four. This is followed by holding the breath for a count of seven, which is carried out at a similar speed. The last step is to exhale with a count of eight.
For the first time, it is enough to perform 2-3 repetitions, gradually their number is increased to 7-8. The pause between approaches is arbitrary, but no more than a minute. An important point is that during the entire exercise, the tip of the tongue should touch the palate directly behind the teeth.
The 4-7-8 technique will help you fall asleep quickly.
