Victorious breath

[Guest guest]

I had a big problem maintaining clear breathing

when I started the practice. This lasted for some

months, due to my highly unyogic habit of heavy smoking

and working in a dust laden construction

environ...can I speak frankly here? My sinus turned into a

snotmachine wonderous in its productive output.<br><br>My

salvation was neti. It's good to have the correct pot with

the little spout and the saline solution, but not

necessary. Very effective is doing daily "shower neti" --

taking several progressive snorts of water while

showering, blowing out the mucus, and inhaling more water.

At first the water stings, but you get used to it,

and the practice becomes as vital as brushing your

teeth. Our sinuses love and need H2O.<br><br>During

practice, if needs be I stop and take a neti break in the

bathroom. A couple of times if necessary, to heck with what

the others think! I have to be able to breath

clearly, and a couple of quick snorts followed by nose

blowing does the trick.<br><br>Also worth noting for

those not into all of the above: if your nasal passage

is somewhat clogged during practice, i'm told it's

permissible to inhale through the nose, exhale through the

mouth.

[Guest guest]

i agree. the neti pot did clean my sinus too. for

the more hardcore astangis i would also recommend

using a plastic string to pull through the nostril and

the mouth. but this is more for an in-depth cleasing.

<br>if there are problems while practice i prefer a

round of kapalabathi or breath of fire, which

immediately clears the nasal cavity. <br><br>may all nostrils

be happy and free!<br>om shanti

[Guest guest]

I have similar problems - blocked nostrils,

copious snot - in early summer when my hayfever is bad.

Things that I have found helpful are:<br><br>-

single-nostril pranayama (apologies for not knowing the sanskrit

name for this) before practice<br>- a plentiful supply

of tissues by the mat<br>- just keep practicing, and

after about ten minutes even the worst hayfever

normally goes away. I think this is partly due to the

sustained ujayi breathing, partly because my hayfever is

psychosomatic to a degree and when I'm focused on the practice

I forget to worry about it.<br><br>I haven't tried

neti but, from what people have said about it being

helpful for this kind of allergy, I think I might next

year.