A trip to Alonissos-Greece

    

A colleague and I decided in July 2007 we would undertake a five-day training course with George Vithoulkas on the beautiful island of Alonissos, Greece.  What more could a homeopath wish for, sun, sea and homeopathy taught by a master and a true advocate of classical homeopathy.

The long awaited day arrived in June 2008 and off we flew to Athens, we are two grown women all excited like children on Christmas Eve.  On arriving in the afternoon we were greeted by a massive thunderstorm, not something we expected or wanted but in true Greek fashion within a couple of hours it was all over and the sun was shining again!

The following day we made our way to the wonderful island of Alonissos where we were to spend the next five days studying.

The first day at the international academy of classical homeopathy was exhilarating.  There were 150 people from all over the world from as far as Singapore and Canada including Dr’s, student homeopaths, homeopaths that have only been practicing a few years and some with over 20 years experience all hoping to be inspired by this great man.

We weren’t disappointed!  We saw many live cases and great results from the homeopathic remedies.

 

George Vithoulkas is truly a master of this wonderful medicine and a great advocate for classical homeopathy.  Patients came from all over Europe and one from South Africa to be helped by this truly caring and spiritual man.  When taking patient cases George reaches deep into the soul of the person and knows the exact questions to ask, it is like he is reading their mind.  The one remedy is selected and the patient leaves.

I felt very honoured to have experienced the training by George and I am attending his 2009 course.

Thank you

Post Graduate Course, India

 INDIA

What better place to experience the magnificent healing of this wonderful medicine than in India. So in January 2005 I decided to under take a postgraduate course in Kolkata.  It turned out to be the trip of a lifetime!

It doesn't matter what time of the day or night you arrive in Kolkata the city is alive.  With no apparent traffic regulations  and the roads filled with potholes we dodged our way to the hotel.  The pavements were littered with homeless people trying to sleep sharing their little space curled up amongst the dogs.  Their owners, ready for market, were guiding herds of goats through the narrow streets. The odd cow would casually wonder in front of the cab making you gasp with fright. It was impossible to believe you weren’t dreaming. 

 “Allah Akbar” at five o'clock in the morning having only had an hours sleep was certainly the wake up call I could have done without on that first morning, I soon realised this was going to be my morning wake up call for the duration.  You could hear the stallholders setting up their tiny kiosks, they seem to stock everything you could possibly ask for.  Rickshaw pullers rang their hand bells, hoping for passengers that will hand over the payment, which would provide food for the pullers and their families, people laughing, chatting, dogs barking and the constant beeping of car horns.  

 Walking or taking a taxi to the institute each morning became my daily routine.  The walk took me through scenes that seemed to us to be quite astonishing but obviously an everyday occurrence to the commuters and the school children, who walked to school by themselves. 

 My route led first through the poultry market, where the chickens were cooped up in baskets and tied to the handle bars of bicycles, whilst groups of women by the kerbside, dressed in beautiful coloured saris, sat on their haunches plucking, cleaning and dressing the dead ones.  No part is discarded; even the feathers are washed sorted and dried. The fish market seemed quite pleasant after this, but the smell isn’t for the faint-hearted!  After this came the fresh fruit and vegetable sellers, quite refreshing after the others!  All the market produce, including the fish, is spread out on the uneven pavements for buyers to see, so whilst walking through the market it is never safe to look up for fear of stumbling.  After the market come the chai and freshly squeezed sugar cane sellers along with the coolies who carry huge loads on their heads.  I saw one man with an eight-foot by six-foot pain of glass on his head. 

Crossing the road is an experience in itself.  All you can do is close your eyes and run and hope you don’t get hit by a car, taxi, bus, tram, motorbike (carrying whole families of four!) bicycles, rickshaws, hand carts and of course the odd goat or cow - all jostling for the same space in this crazy city. 

People flock to Kolkata hoping for work, from villages and other countries but that hope is soon diminished and they find themselves sharing the pavements with the others.  Whole families eat and sleep in a space just big enough to lie down in.  There is no privacy at all, not even for washing.  The street people use the standpipes in the road for washing themselves and their clothes.  Children are children and when they get water on their faces they scream the same no matter where you are in the world. It’s impossible not to stare at them and they look back at you with the widest of smiles and a sparkle in their eyes that makes you tingle. 

 

Part of the criteria of the course was the opportunity to visit the many slums that the college supports through donations.  The college supplies not only homeopthy but also fresh milk and fruit for the children to help maintain a healthy diet.  The word spreads quickly when the college van has arrived and the children come running to be served.  I was privileged to hand out the free food and drink to those gleaming faces of thanks.

The slums are a community and are a step up from the pavement. The concrete boxes that are no bigger than a cupboard under the stairs are separated into two floors, the top for sleeping and the bottom for cooking.  For cooking a portable cooker called a Chula is used or a hole is just dug in the ground.  The amazing thing is whole families share this tiny space but at least you have a roof over your head. 

Whilst taking a case you could have up to ten onlookers but no one seemed to mind.  I saw all sorts of health problems ranging from Cancer, Asthma, Diabetes, Arthritis, TB and even a case of Schizophrenia, all of which had responded well to homeopathic treatment.  I remember one day a lady coming to the clinic of Dr B's for a check up, she looked no different to anyone else who had visited that day.  However, She was a miracle, she had had a brain tumour which conventional doctors had given up on and as a last resort came to Dr B for homeopathic treatment and 18 years on she was proud to bring her family from miles to say thank you.  This was a very emotional experience and a realisation of what homeopathy can offer people.

I found Kolkata an amazing place and certainly unforgettable.  Having felt pity for the poor people when I first arrived on reflection I envy them for their simple expectance of life and their happiness when they seemed to have nothing of material value.  They were very warm and welcoming people that would give you anything for nothing in return.  Truly amazing!

                                   SUPPORTING MENTAL HEALTH

Which breathing exercises help alleviate stress?

Intuitively most people would agree that breathing exercises can help with stress. The links between the two are many and intimate and in this article, guest writer Anastasis Tzanis – a yoga and breathwork teacher, and a registered nutrition practitioner – will aim to shed some light into the types of breathing that can help us relieve stress and those that do not.

Skip to Key Takeaways

Prior to delving into the breathing techniques, I would like to offer a crash-course on respiratory biochemistry as I expect this will come handy for some readers. Ultimately all types of breathing have an effect in our blood’s biochemistry. There are three gasses in the blood that are affected by the way we breathe: Oxygen, Carbon Dioxide, Nitric Oxide.

Oxygen:

• The primary reason why we breathe
• Necessary for aerobic respiration
• To be used in aerobic respiration it needs to be delivered in the mitochondria
• Oxygen can only be transported in the bloodstream through haemoglobin
• Haemoglobin stays almost always fully saturated with oxygen1
• It doesn’t affect the blood’s pH

Carbon Dioxide:

• Is a by-product of metabolism, which we get rid of through exhalations
• It has an acidic effect in the blood
• Due to the Bohr effect, it is needed for oxygen to enter the cells. Low levels of CO2 will trap oxygen in the bloodstream
• It is the key determinant of our breathing cycle. We feel the urge to breathe in when levels of CO2 reach our tolerance level

Nitric Oxide:

• It is produced primarily in the upper airway, in the paranasal sinuses
• It sterilises the air inhaled and acts as a vasodilator
• It acts as a neurotransmitter and singling molecule of the immune system Which breathing exercises can help with stress?

The breathing exercises I will present are mentioned from easiest to more advanced.

1. Slow breathing aiming for 6 breaths per minute 

Which breathing exercises

Slow breathing is one of the most researched breathing techniques. Even at 12 breaths per minute the Parasympathetic Nervous System can get activated2. It is however at breaths per minute (bpm) that Heart Rate variability appears to pick3.

Note: 60 breaths per minute (bpm) = 1 Hz, 6 bpm = 0.1 Hz

Six breaths per minute have also been shown to reduce the sensitivity to hypercapnia and hypoxia, two common consequences of high stress4.

How to slow down your breath

• Close your eyes
• Follow your breath
• Elongate your breathing cycling while maintaining your body in a calm state
• Every 3-5 cycles try to prolong the cycle a bit further

2. Slow breathing with a prolonged exhalation. 1:2 in/out ratio 

When different ratios of inhalation to exhalation were tested it was shown that only two were useful5 for dealing with stress (subjects were exposed to a small electroshocks):

• In : Out = 1 : 1 was effective for dealing with stress that was expected
• In : Out = 1 : 4 was effective for dealing with stress that was either expected or unexpected

You can watch a review of this study here. A ratio of 1:2 is often accessible to most individuals and in those with a good respiratory capacity can be sustained throughout the day.

We’d love your comments on this article

It’s easy, just post your questions, comments or feedback below

How to prolong your exhalation: 

• Close your eyes
• Follow your breath & slow it down
• Count in your mind the length of the inhalation and exhalation
• Try to establish a ratio of 1 to 2. For each count of one on the inhalation exhale for two
• This exercise can be used to initiate you at breathing with a prolonged exhalation

3. Light breathing 

As the delivery of oxygen to our cells depends on CO2, we need to train our CO2 tolerance in order to enhance our delivery of oxygen to our cells (including the ones of the nervous system). Hyperventilation will deprive our cells of oxygen6.

Light breathing is a gentle way of training our CO2 tolerance. It’s worth remembering that if we increase CO2 by too much, we are likely to cause more stress7which is why this exercise is more appropriate for those with some experience in breathwork.

How to practice light breathing

• Close your eyes
• Follow your breath
• Reduce the volume of air you inhale and exhale

Which breathing exercises do not help with stress? 

While the above breathing techniques can shift the Nervous System in a calm state there are some breathing practices which are likely to offer a temporary relief but are unlikely to have a lasting effect to our nervous system.

1. Sighing 

Sighing is often performed spontaneously but at times it is given as a breathing technique. It is a natural mechanism observed during arousal in infants but it’s also an evolutionary conserved behaviour in other mammals. It is hypothesised to serve as a defence mechanism preventing the alveoli in the lungs from collapsing after shallow breathing8.

In respiratory textbooks & literature, sighing (also referred as sighing dyspnea) is considered a sign of dysfunctional breathing, 50% more often in women9 than men, especially in the more active years of life.

The initial relief often experienced after the first sigh is likely due to the drop to CO2 after the exhalation, which is two to five times the volume of a normal one. Chronic sighing may encourage the reset of end tidal CO2 in the bloodstream at levels lower than optimal10 and chronic involuntary sighing should be considered a red flag as it might be due to chronic inflammation (through Prostaglandin 2 activation)11.

2. “Deep breathing” 

While the idea of breathing deep is good, the way “deep breathing” is often cued makes its practice of limited use. For the purpose of this article I will describe “deep breathing” as follows:

“Take as much air as possible in from the nose – release the air from the mouth.”

The main problem with this breathing technique is the heavy exhalation. When we are exhaling more air than normal we are having an excessive reduction of CO2. Lower levels of CO2 though means oxygen gets “trapped” in the bloodstream and cannot enter freely into the cells (due to the Bohr effect12).

Oxygen is a key component of aerobic respiration, taking place in the inner membrane of our mitochondria. With oxygen not entering the cells, our mitochondria are also deprived of oxygen: energy production is compromised, and the cellular metabolism is shifted towards a more anaerobic state. This can aggravate fatigue and stress.

It is worth pointing out that “deep breathing” is often cued alongside diaphragmatic breathing which is beneficial both in times of stress as well as everyday life. Ideally though “deep breathing” should not be accompanied with mouth exhalations13. Healthy levels of 13 CO2 and diaphragmatic breathing go hand in hand14.

Key Takeaways

• With the exception of our thoughts there is no faster way of altering the state of our nervous system than our breath
• Breathing soft, slowly, consciously, diaphragmatically, will allow as to stay calm in the most stressful situations
• To get the benefits though of any breathing technique we need to be familiar with it
• Slow breathing is one of the most researched breathing techniques. Even at 12 breaths per minute the Parasympathetic Nervous System can get activated.
• Oxygen is a key component of aerobic respiration, taking place in the inner membrane of our mitochondria

---

Many thanks to Anastasis for his blog. If you have questions regarding the topics that have been raised, or any other health matters, please do contact Amanda by phone or email at any time.

amanda@cytoplan.co.uk
01684 310099

Amanda Williams and the Cytoplan Editorial Team

---

References

1With the exception of some pathogenic conditions such as pneumonia, during certain breathing exercises and when arriving in a high altitude. www.atzanis.com

2Driscoll, D., & DiCicco, G. (2000). The effects of metronome breathing on the variability of autonomic activity measurements. Journal of manipulative and physiological therapeutics, 23(9), 610-614.

3Bernardi, L., Porta, C., Gabutti, A., Spicuzza, L., & Sleight, P. (2001). Modulatory effects of respiration. Autonomic neuroscience, 90(1-2), 47-56.

4Bernardi, L., Gabutti, A., Porta, C., & Spicuzza, L. (2001). Slow breathing reduces chemoreflex response to hypoxia and hypercapnia and increases baroreflex sensitivity. Journal of hypertension, 19(12), 2221-2229. www.atzanis.com

5Cappo, B. M., & Holmes, D. S. (1984). The utility of prolonged respiratory exhalation for reducing physiological and psychological arousal in non-threatening and threatening situations. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 28(4), 265-273.

6Litchfield, P. M. (2003). A brief overview of the chemistry of respiration and the breathing heart wave. California Biofeedback, 19(1), 1-11. www.atzanis.com

7Houtveen, J. H., Rietveld, S., & de Geus, E. J. (2003). Exaggerated perception of normal physiological responses to stress and hypercapnia in young women with numerous functional somatic symptoms. Journal of psychosomatic research, 55(6), 481-490.

8Li, P., & Yackle, K. (2017). Sighing. Current Biology, 27(3), R88-R89. www.atzanis.com

9Maytum, C. K. (1938). Sighing dyspnea: A clinical syndrome. Journal of Allergy, 10(1), 50-55.

10Gilbert, C. (1998). Hyperventilation and the body. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 2(3), 184-191.

11Forsberg, D., Horn, Z., Tserga, E., Smedler, E., Silberberg, G., Shvarev, Y., … & Herlenius, E. (2016). CO2-evoked release of PGE2 modulates sighs and inspiration as demonstrated in brainstem organotypic culture. Elife, 5, e14170. www.atzanis.com

12Bohr, C., Hasselbalch, K., & Krogh, A. (1904). Über einen in biologischer Beziehung wichtigen Einfluss, den die Kohlensäurespannung des Blutes auf dessen Sauerstoffbindung übt. Acta Physiologica, 16(2), 402-412.

13Ma, X., Yue, Z. Q., Gong, Z. Q., Zhang, H., Duan, N. Y., Shi, Y. T., … & Li, Y. F. (2017). The effect of diaphragmatic breathing on attention, negative affect and stress in healthy adults. Frontiers in psychology, 8, 874.

14Bradley, H., & Esformes, J. D. (2014). Breathing pattern disorders and functional movement. International journal of sports physical therapy, 9(1), 28. www.atzanis.com

Information taken from Cytoplan newletter