I was introduced to Conscious Breathing by my Tai Chi instructor, Janna Whitton. Janna is also a Conscious Breathing Instructor and when she asked if I would be interested in participating in the 28-day study, I was glad to do so. My initial thought was: “How much could there be to breathing?” My curiosity was peaked regarding the possible benefits. After reading your thoroughly researched book and participating in the study for 28 days straight it became more evident, as the days went by, that Conscious Breathing definitely makes a difference in several areas. Your Conscious Breathing Retraining Program is outstanding!

A big realization to me was the change in the stiffness in my feet when I would get out of bed in the morning. Early in the first week the stiffness diminished entirely and I have not experienced it since. During the third week I had a very intriguing and unexpected result; when I did a pulmonary test the results indicated a 10% improvement in lung function in the small airways. Overall I found the program to be very easy to participate in and would highly recommend it to everyone who wants to improve their overall health.

Progress week by week

WEEK 1:
Typical foot pain and stiffness in the morning diminished more and more each day. Sinus congestion began to lessen and drainage was more fluid. I Used 4.5 on the Relaxator from day one; experienced mild headaches during the first few days. I traditionally have not experienced headaches so I am thinking that using the new techniques are creating these. Mental clarity began to increase by weeks end.

WEEK 2:

Little change in sinus congestion. Headaches diminishing. Early half of week two showed no noticeable improvement in body energy but was definitely higher than normal. Later in week two a greater sense of focus, mental clarity and organization was observed. From day one I was only breathing through my nose as often as possible each day, except when using the Relaxator. Coughing began to decline halfway through week two

WEEK 3:

No major changes by week three. Energy upon rising becomes noticeably improved a bit each day since I started the program. In addition, I am experiencing a decrease in knee pain and no tightness or pain at instep. Shoulder pain same as ever. The breathing does not seem to have decreased the shoulder pain, which I did not expect it to do. To date, the Conscious Breathing practice has made a positive difference in energy level throughout the day, elimination of foot pain and tightness, increased alertness, knee pain has diminished slightly. Focus and concentration have gradually improved a bit each day. Visualization, thinking, overall planning and determination have noticeably improved by end of third week.

WEEK 4:

This week I experienced obvious improvement in the following areas: acting on priorities, energy, mental clarity, focus and concentration. Productivity seems to have increased in all areas vis a vis getting more done in less time. By the end of week four, it became obvious that the overall change in all areas mentioned became more solidified over the four week period.

Summary of the Breathing Retraining

This program was extremely surprising in the results that I experienced. The most significant benefits that I derived from the Conscious Breathing Program were a complete reversal of tightness and pain in my feet. For nine months I've had what is called Morten's neuroma, which is a very painful condition in your foot. It hurt so much I didn't even want to leave my home, since I then had to put on shoes, which made it worse. 24-48 hours after starting to use the Relaxator and taping my mouth at night, the pain just disappeared and never came back.

When waking up in the morning I used to be very stiff. Before getting up and going to the bathroom I had to wiggle my toes, move my ankles and extend and flex my knee and hip joints to get the circulation going. When I tape my mouth I can just get straight out of bed to the bathroom. No stiffness. Whenever I stop taping I notice that my stiffness is back.

I have a more elevated mood and greatly enhanced focus, concentration, organization and productivity – all of which appeared to be progressively better as time goes on. The breathing retraining also made it easier to breathe lower, using my diaphragm.