While horses can win by a nose, they also win with a nose! Babies also know the secrets of nose breathing.
So why is it that so many adults today, are mouth breathers?
Why have we lost the subtle art of breathing through our nose?
Mouth Breathing
I became aware of this myself when my daughters were getting their orthodontic treatment. I sat through countless consultations and treatments with them. During the process I was made aware that they didn’t naturally breathe through their noses but were mouth breathers instead!
Which may have contributed to them needing orthodontic treatment in the first place. To simplify and paraphrase*, because they didn’t naturally put their tongues on the roof of their mouth, as you do when you are nose breathing, their palates and jaws didn’t form or stay in shape fully.
[* Please forgive me for this if you are a dentist, orthodontist or medical professional of some type. I am not professing to offer any medical advice, I am just trying to raise awareness. And to everyone else, this is not medical advice, so please seek appropriate medical advice if you have any concerns.]
Having been made aware of this, I was to remind my daughters to breathe through their noses and I also consciously started breathing through my nose more and more. I also noticed around me how many adults don’t breathe through their noses.
Do you breathe through your nose most of the time?
If you’ve seen any of my videos on Facebook, you may have noticed I’ve been going through some orthodontic treatment myself. One of my reasons I decided to have the treatment at my age is I discovered that I didn’t have space for my tongue on the roof of my mouth, because my jaw was so small and consequently I was always biting my tongue!
As a result, I am very focussed on everything to do with breathing and my mouth. So, let’s get to the juicy part.
Breathing Through Your Nose – Why & How To Do It
Breathing through your nose (as long as there no impediment to you doing so) is natural.
Babies, unless they have blocked noses, naturally breathe through their noses. Their noses are even shaped so that they can still breathe while breastfeeding – it’s just amazing how cleverly we are designed!
We were designed to breathe through our noses most of the time – our mouths are a back-up option for when we need extra oxygen or if our noses are congested!
Today, just become aware of whether you are breathing through your nose or mouth.
If you talk fast (like I do) you may notice that when you do stop to take a breath – is it through your nose or mouth?
There are so many benefits of breathing through your nose – google it, you will be amazed. It’s your first line of defense for anything airborne!
It does take a bit of getting used to, I just worked to focus on making sure my tongue was on the roof of my mouth and my lips closed. And not pushing it, if it is uncomfortable, try 10 breaths to start with.
It really won’t be long before you are breathing through your nose almost all of the time.
Night-time can be a bit more challenging, but persevere, it’s well worth it.
If you do have any night time breathing issues be sure to get those checked out, because it could be something serious.
Overachievers: Google “Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy” (OMT) for more information about all things breathing and teeth! It’s fascinating and for me life-changing.
One day I will share, how I ended up discovering OMT – it’s really interesting the thin threads that lead you to something that changes your life.
Here’s to your free breathing fulfilling future,
LIVE, LOVE & THRIVE