Deep breathing for fixing constipation

[Lord Cola]

One of the most basic chronic health problems that has been vexing me is constipation. Nothing I tried helped me eliminate that final piece of fecal matter stuck in the lower region of the colon, whether it be dietary changes, exercise, or posture, until today. I realized that I had the habit of sucking my lower belly in all the time, so today I decided to let go, and extend it as much as possible, when breathing in. Within about half an hour of consistently doing this, I could eliminate that last bit of matter that once seemed eternally stuck.

Has anyone else had similar experiences? Are there people who did good research on breathing and digestion?

 

[laleto12]

I’ve been sucking my belly as long as I have known myself and constipation is something that has been haunting me for so long. Will try this definitely!

 

[Tim Lundeen]

Have you tried more magnesium, and/or less calcium? I get constipation when my Ca:Mg ratio is too high. I use it as feedback...

 

[Perry Staltic]

I've found that slowly rocking back and forth acts like a pump to squeeze those recalcitrant lumps out. I discovered it when I was trying to emulate squatting while seated on the toilet because I read that cultures that squat to relieve themselves don't have nearly as much hemmorhoidal problems as toilet sitting cultures do. So I leaned forward as much as I could to change the thighs-to-torso angle to be more like squatting. When I sat back up straight I noticed it kind of acted like a pump. Back and forth like an old hand water pump gently squeezes those puppies out.

 

[TheSir]

Increasing my control pause to >20s with buteyko permanently fixed my bowel issues too. Now the bowel movement is very smooth and thorough, often I don't even have to wipe afterwards. Tongue lost its coating too, which I had connected to constipation in the past.

 

[Beastmode]

Squatty potties work great with deep breathing as the position will allow your body to be in position to breath more deeper.

 

[Amazoniac]

Excess loss of crapon die-oxide leads to a proportional decrease in hydrocraponate to maintain pH stable. I wonder if variations can impact mucus expansion:

- Mucus and mucins in diseases of the intestinal and respiratory tracts

"The most important moment in the generation of normal physiological mucus is the secretion and the expansion from the intracellularly stored mucin to the fully expanded secreted one (Fig. 1b). This involves an at least 1000-fold volume expansion. To accomplish this, the intracellular stored form has to be orderly packed allowing expansion without entanglement [7, 11]. This also has to be relatively fast as noncovalent and covalent interactions and crosslinking between mucins will begin once secreted. Crucial for proper secretion is the quick removal of the Ca2+-ion from the mucin, something that is accomplished by bicarbonate [12, 13]. This ion will increase pH and help to precipitate out calcium."​

---

- The two mucus layers of colon are organized by the MUC2 mucin, whereas the outer layer is a legislator of host–microbial interactions
- The mucus and mucins of the goblet cells and enterocytes provide the first defense line of the gastrointestinal tract and interact with the immune system
- The adherent gastrointestinal mucus gel layer: thickness and physical state in vivo
- Physicochemical properties of mucus and their impact on transmucosal drug delivery
- The extracellular matrix of the gastrointestinal tract: a regenerative medicine platform

 

[Amazoniac]

Was is intestinal massage?
- Can Traditional Breathing Methods Reduce Stress?

- Need Help Desperate: Need To Force Bowel Movement. Serious Constipation

 

[MetabolicTrash]

Same here as some others. I've tried tucking, sucking, deep breathing, stress relieving things/meditation, diet, supplements, stretching, massaging, squatting, hormones, magnesium, dietary changes, restrictions, surpluses, moderation, light exercise, heavy exercise, no exercise, fasting, yoga, etc. for years and nothing really works as a solution for a significant duration of time in bowel limitations. It always feels like -- while I can go to the bathroom of course -- I can't do it in a complete, fulfilling sense 100%.

I haven't really tried what's mentioned here, but I imagine a lot of people may not be inclined to due to breathing constrictions/discomfort, especially if they are bloated/chronically ill people like myself.

 

[ArnieSoderwall]

So I leaned forward as much as I could to change the thighs-to-torso angle to be more like squatting.

I can second this recommendation of leaning forward while on a traditional western style commode.
It is not nearly effective as squatting, but hey, we've got to do what we can with what we've got.

Another thing you may try is to accumulate time during the day in a deep Asian squat, a.k.a. "****-To-Grass" squat. The rationale is explained rather well here:

 

[YamnayaMommy]

I inadvertently degraded my bowel function by eating too much protein. I was following body builder advice and trying to get a gram per lb of body weight. I was eating about 140g, maybe a third of which was gelatin. Terrible. Hard, difficult bms.

So I reduced protein to about 90g, and upped carbs. So much better.

I’ve looked around and can’t tell that anyone else has had this experience however.

 

[gaze]

I inadvertently degraded my bowel function by eating too much protein. I was following body builder advice and trying to get a gram per lb of body weight. I was eating about 140g, maybe a third of which was gelatin. Terrible. Hard, difficult bms.

So I reduced protein to about 90g, and upped carbs. So much better.

I’ve looked around and can’t tell that anyone else has had this experience however.

sort of related, but i've always wondered why ray reccomends limiting fiber because it causes gas, but ignores protein. almost every bodybuilder i talk to complains of "protein farts" more so than fiber. egg whites in particular are a big one they talk about with regards to causing gas

 

[Ben.]

I've found that slowly rocking back and forth acts like a pump to squeeze those recalcitrant lumps out. I discovered it when I was trying to emulate squatting while seated on the toilet because I read that cultures that squat to relieve themselves don't have nearly as much hemmorhoidal problems as toilet sitting cultures do. So I leaned forward as much as I could to change the thighs-to-torso angle to be more like squatting. When I sat back up straight I noticed it kind of acted like a pump. Back and forth like an old hand water pump gently squeezes those puppies out.

I forgot to say, man you are a genius. Thank you. This works amazingly well wherever i go. How did i live without this? Not even the squat emulations with these feet/leg asisstance can compare to this.

Was kinda odd at first going up and down with my upper body like that but oh so worth it.

 

[Perry Staltic]

I forgot to say, man you are a genius. This works amazingly well wherever i go. How did i reach this age without knowing this?

lol Glad you found a useful tool to use. It really pumps it out doesn't it. Slow but sure.

 

[Filosofy]

Breathing should help but forced/intended breathing can tense the vagal nerve further and this is of no help. I find that Shaking the Tree gets things relaxed and going:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oArSp0WsNvw


Being able to poop without exertion first thing in the morning—no coffee—is the hallmark of health, along with deep sleep and appetite. No exceptions. Any means to get there without too denatured protocols are good; this includes fiber, abdominal massaging, salt, heavy mineral water, decreasing adrenaline in some way.

Pooping is of course seasonally determined too but we have made one season for ourselves and it's called sitting. Frequent Asian squatting will undo the anterior tilt somewhat by reshaping tissue and bones around the pelvic area. Poop stools are good too, and fun, and comfortable.