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Can't get a deep breath / Difficulty Breathing

Hi - I've been having difficulty breathing for at least the last 9-10 years...and it's a daily thing.  I am 31 years old, am healthy (exercise almost daily, eat healthily, am not overweight, do not smoke, and only drink socially), and yet I always feel like my breathing is extremely laboured.  I constantly yawn to try to catch a satisfying breath.  There are some periods throughout the day where it's not laboured and I feel as if I breathe normally, but then it creeps up on me and I have to start yawning again.  My nose feels very clogged all the time and my chest, stomach, and back muscles feel very constricted when breathing.  It's especially noticeable when I am working out...especially running and lifting weights.  I have to stop every once in a while just to yawn (frustrating) to stop from getting dizzy.  It's also noticeable as I am trying to go to sleep and/or when I've had a glass or 2 of wine.  I was "diagnosed" with exercise-induced asthma 9-10 years ago, but I think this was a mis-diagnosis as the inhalers never work (I've tried all sorts) and they usually end up making me feel worse.  After using the inhaler I always end up coughing up fluid and my breathing sounds gurgle-ly  (so I don't take them any more unless I feel I really need to...note that I have never had a full blown asthma attack).  I'm worried that it could be something else (was exposed to TB as a teenager, but took the "horse pills" for 6 months and was told I was fine), but none of my doctors will really listen to me.  They see that I am slim and active, and they dismiss me - I live in the UK (free socialised healthcare - so not a lot of time to spend with patients).  Has anyone else experienced this?  I see lots of threads on here with the same topic, but they all have to do with taking medications, being overweight, being a current/past smoker, being depressed/having anxiety, etc.  Please help - I'm tired of living like this.  I'm worried that I could be living with something undiagnosed that could rear it's ugly head one day.
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Avatar universal
Let food be thy medicine as Hippocrates once preached. To rid your body of inflammation, try eliminating all animal protein from your diet for six months. First thing in the morning, have a glass of water with organic lemon juice (fresh squeezed or from a glass bottle not plastic). Eat Organic soups, salads and smoothies with unsweetened almond/flax/coconut milk. Do not drink or eat anything from a cow or chicken. You could have PH, which is high blood pressure only in the lungs and difficult to diagnose. If you drink coffee, try switching to tea. If you drink tea, it could be something in the tea. I had annoying heart palpitations and felt dizzy all the time when I realized it was a certain tea I was drinking (and it was organic, go figure). Your body is trying to tell you something you are eating or drinking is not agreeing with you. Animal protein causes acid in the body. Going plant based and organic will make a huge difference. Kale/Spinach, Dried and frozen peas, beans, lentils are very important to eat as much as you can. Potatoes, carrots, celery and onion in organic vegetable broth also makes for a hardy meal especially coupled with a little bread with spinach sautéed in garlic and coconut oil and dipped in balsamic vinegar. Salads should have olive oil and apple cider vinegar for dressing, nothing creamy. Avocados, tomatoes, garlic, hummus with raw veggies, leafy greens, broccoli, lemons, legumes are alkalizing and get rid of acid in the body. It’s going to take effort and time, but you will feel amazing results the day you begin. Best wishes for your good health! Kale salad. Hemp and chia seeds on everything! Stir fried veggies with quinoa! Think of cheese as rat poison. It is highly acidic.
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Avatar universal
I have had ASTHMA my whole life but about 7 years ago my asthma got so bad and was diagnosed of EMPHYSEMA/COPD which was most likely due to the asthma. I was on double antibiotics and steroids, still didn't feel any better. My lungs were constantly wheezing in all four chambers, i already used Advair, Spiriva, and Albuterol in my nebulizer, they just didn’t do much. It was hell for me due to the severe difficulty breathing. April 2016 my sister in-law told us about Rich Herbs Foundation where she ordered herbs that effectively treated her arthritis. We ordered their COPD HERBAL TREATMENT after reading alot of positive reviews from other patients, i am happy to report the COPD HERBAL TREATMENT worked very effective for my lungs condition. My quality of life has greatly improved and every one of my symptoms including difficulty breathing, respiratory infections, chronic cough and wheezing has simply stopped. Visit ww w. richherbsfoundation. c om. I will be 52 soon and have never been healthier
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Avatar universal
Are you, perhaps, a tea drinker? I used to have heart palpitations and pressure in my chest with shortness of breath. I was drinking Teavana tea regularly. When I finally decided to stop drinking tea, all my problems went away. I am an otherwise very healthy, fit woman who eats mostly organic, plant-based foods. Anything that comes from a cow is toxic! If certain teas are not the cause, stop eating any cheese, cows milk/cream, ice cream, yogurt and red meat. There are plenty of organic, dairy free alternatives for all. Avoid butter and cream cheese at all costs. Replace with organic coconut oil which is actually good for you. Finally, Nordic fish oil is good for the heart. I do not take it personally, but people having Cardio vascular issues can benefit greatly from taking enough of it.
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Avatar universal
Have you had a brain me I? I have Arnold Chiari 1. A Chiari Malformation which is my brain stem comes ou(herniated) 7mm past my skull. It can cause this symptom. Strange, but true. I live with it. Sounds like my symptoms.
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Avatar universal
What tests have you had?

You heard of pre load failure?
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Avatar universal
I have had the same thing for 30 years.  Doctors say I am fine.  Finally a new doctor listened.  She put a oximeter on my finger, when I was sitting it would say 98% oxygen then I went outside with the assistant and we walked around the parking lot.  When we came back my finger reading was 77% oxygen.  You have no oxygenated blood.  No oxygen in blood no physical movement.  The heart becomes stressed and sends out distressed signals which releases adrenaline which causes anxiety and difficulty .calming down to go to sleep.  My heart used to pound also it was starving for oxygen. Since being on oxygen at night and at home the pounding has stopped.
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Avatar universal
Hiya I'm exactly the same can't even sing or say a full sentance without my breathing beinf what we call not normal iv been for ecgs blood test ect and nothing wrong I also got told it's my anxiety but for some unknown reason I do feel like it's more been like this for over 12 months now it's annoying and very upsetting can't do the things I used to do first have you tried getting rid of your anxiety as I struggle but need to overcome this it's how to overcome it
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Avatar universal
IT IS PARASITES EVERYONE. DONT LISTEN TO REGULAR DOCTORS. FIND A HOLISTIC DOCTOR, NUTRITIONIST, DIETRICIAN AND ASK THEM TO DO EVERY TEST POSSIBLE. THEY ARE TRICKY TO FIND BUT DONT GIVE UP. YOU CAN BUY PARASITE CLEANSES ONLINE. PARAGONE IS A CHEAP EFFECTIVE CLEANSE. 95% OF AMERICANS HAVE OR HAD PARASITES IN THEIR LIFE. THEY ARE EXTREMELY COMMON YET GO UNACKNOWLEDGED BY TYPICAL DOCTORS.
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Avatar universal
m08
I am only 11 years old and I have been having breathing problems I do not have asthma. I also feel like there is something blocking my throat when I take deep breath.
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1 Comments
I have the same problems. Find a parasite cleanse safe for children.
Avatar universal
Try taking a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar organic Braggs with water when it happens it's often digestion related and water cures asthma and I've had this problem whenever I eat it's digestion related for me.
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Avatar universal
It may be low iron. Doctors usually don't know a lot about vitamins so they say it is anxiety or asthma.  Low iron can cause labored breathing.  I changed vitamins and the new vitamin didn't have iron in it.  I started having the same symptoms with the labored breathing and yawning to get a good breath. I read up on vitamins.  I realized that my new vitamin didn't have iron so I went back to the old ones,(Flintstones Complete) which has 18 mg of iron. My breathing went back to normal in less than a week.  

Also, heart palpitations can be caused by low magnesium. Get some information on vitamins.  

Hope this helps!
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Avatar universal
Hi adar..
R u from Israel?!!
Gam li yesh et habaaya azot..dabri iti
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Avatar universal
I could not understand what the diagnosis that I went online and found
If you could please expand on diagnosis and treatment
Thank you
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Avatar universal
Hi everyone,

As I've read most of these comments and stories are from a few years ago. But I've gladly came across them. I've just turned 23 years old in July. And my symptoms are the exact same as most of you all. This has been a long battle for me, just like most of you all on this. I've had these symptoms for over a year now. Although, not like many of you. I can guess what brought my symptoms on. Ill add that I did used to be a smoker, but only a part time one and had regular intervals of a couple months without smoking. I stopped immediately for good once my breathlessness started. At the time, they're was a lot going on in my life, I had got into a new relationship, a new job as cabin crew, my parents were separating, and I lost my brother and family animal in the same week. it was a hectic time. But to be honest I never felt stressed once, I felt like I was handling each situation very well. rarely cried and just got on with it. Anyway back to the symptoms. I first felt the sensation when I was at work, and felt that little panic of not being able to catch my breath. so I would relive my waistcoat thinking it was maybe too tight. bearing in mind I was not over weight and relatively healthy for my age. I started thinking it was hayfever, and that possibly because of the cabin pressure I was finding it difficult to breath. From then on it came In spells. Every so often I would get this overwhelming feeling of panic when I couldn't catch that breath. I also suffer from hypochondria which I've just recently been diagnosed with. This connects ever so slightly to what I'm going through. I started thinking of the worst case scenarios and very quickly thinking, lung cancer, collapsed lung, heart disease, tumours, blood clot in the lungs. And because of my hypochondria I would rush myself to A&E and cry out that I may have been having a heart attack ( at the age of 23 is bizarre) but these symptoms gave me this impression. Of course normal maybe people will worry and be tested for these symptoms however my hypochondria jumps straight to worse case scenario and I think I'm dying.. so I've always been a little more dramatic. These spells of breathlessness then stuck around for weeks at a time, every day and would only seem to disappear when I eventually fell asleep. but as soon as id wake up it started again. I had long nights on the phone with NHS 24 as I genuinely thought I wasn't breathing.. and it was officially them that started with the anxiety chat. I had heard of this but never knew much about it, And thought there's no way that what I'm feeling is a panic attack. I've been suffering from breathlessness for weeks now. I found myself going for baths one to two times a day. To help relax my muscle's as I was hyperventilating that much trying to catch that breath that my back and chest started hurting.

So to attempt to cut a story short. The battle has been like most of yours, I've been for many tests and because of my age they rule out pretty much everything. First off ill describe in detail exactly what I feel. I have this overwhelming feeling of NEEDING to take a deep breath very regularly. So when I start to feel "breathlessness"..  every 3-5 normal breaths I then gasp for a deep breath. And when I cant get it I wonder why!? and my body sometimes goes into a panic. So when I cant get these larger breaths. I then yawn yawn yawn all day trying to catch they deep breaths.. that I really do not have to be taking. I only found this recently.. I started watching everyone around me and noticed that no one takes deep breaths unless they're running/exercising or yawning because they are genuinely tried. so why am I taking noticeable deep breaths every minute? My chest is now hurting my upper back is now hurting because of the strain, I'm now frustrated and feel like crying.

so only a few months ago, very oddly when laying in bed with the TV off, ready to sleep as the most relaxed anyone can be. my heart starts racing and thumping like I've done 30 star jumps. I immediately get out of bed and PANIC. I don't understand why my hearts palpating when I've been laying in my bed ready for sleep. I'm not stressed, I'm not over thinking, I'm ready for sleep. why is this happening? so as I do.. I call NHS 24.. and they send me up to hospital that night for an EKG scan. As ironic .. my hearts fine and I'm not having a heart attack. so why is this?

All in all, I've been for 2 EKG scans, numerous asthma tests, a respiratory test. And any terminal illness tests I've thought I may have. And they've all came back satisfactory. I've also been provided with two inhalers, they also don't seem to work as they should. Maybe something to do with the fact I do not have asthma. I got myself a personal trainer as the thought of being In a gym myself and working out whilst having this shortness of breath game me the fear. And I was scared in case something happened and no one knew what to do. So i started with my PT and very quickly id be out of breath and sometimes even go into yet another panic because i couldn't catch that breath, would be extremely dizzy on some days. but this would usually be put down to being unfit.

If your symptoms are anything like mine, shortness of breath, feeling that urge to over breath and take deep breaths, yawning all day because you cant catch it, sometimes it last for weeks at a time, and then can disappear as quickly as it started. Then as much as I hate to say it.. do major research on Anxiety. most people think anxiety is just panic attacks and whatever else. And don't know enough about it. but I genuinely used to think this as well. until I read loads about it. I've done so much research on it. And it could be that the reason most of you are around the same age and or same age when these symptoms have started is because you've been going through subconscious stresses. In other words stresses you've not been aware your stressing about. And so the symptoms most of you are having relate to what anxiety makes your body do. If you think about it this way.. imagine yourself wrapped up in bed with  the light off... and think of spiders under the covers.. your body will react to this and you'll start feeling tickling on your legs and or nipping like sensations.

For a year and a half. I thought I was faced with every critical illness there is. But what I found just recently .. Is distraction is the answer .. my new partner is very distracting for me, I could be having a bad day (shortness of breath) and I'm aware of my breathing, so its continuously happening until I maybe speak to him on the phone or face to face.. and as soon as I'm fully distracted it disappears and I'm breathing normal.. but the minute I start to think of it, it comes back. That's why doctors will be telling most of you, to exercise, its not just to become fit and healthy but because its a great distraction!

Anxiety is very common, its just unfortunate most people don't know a lot about it. And brush it off. Chances of us all having the same symptoms but nothing showing up on tests and it being an undiagnosed critical illness is very slim. however I would never rule anything out. One of the symptoms of anxiety is that you feel like your the only one in the world with unique symptoms. Honestly look it up. Doctors cant test you for anxiety they can only judge from satisfactory tests that we may have had for other similar causes.


Other possible symptoms of anxiety:

Sore/tight chest
Sore/tight upper back
yawning
breathlessness
heart palpitations
burping
dizziness
headache
dry mouth
tingling sensations in fingers and toes
fatigue
nausea
rash
blocked nose


I hope that this does help a lot of people

If your unsure but want to read a bit about it anyway. visit Anxiety.uk





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1 Comments
This started for me after a period of stress in my life. I had just turned 23 (I'm 26 now) and this began while I was working out at the gym. I was a runner and I noticed I suddenly couldn't get a normal breath. Totally out of the blue. I was experiencing money problems, graduation from college, and death in the family all at once at the time. Really stressed me out and wore my body down. I now suffer from adrenal exhaustion, which is causing the "air hunger". Chronic stress doesn't only give you a heart attack, it causes these symptoms too. Hope you're better.
Avatar universal
FINALLY! I promised myself to come back and write here, if I will find out the reason, so I am here and the reason of constant shortness of breath is BABLO (found it on forum too, and made test, which was positive). Had many of "diagnosis" (aniexy, depression, it's in your mind, eat more ferum, sport more,..) ant eated so much drugs, which didn't help...
Good luck for you guys and please come back and write here, if you find out also, becouse it could help for others, us it helped for me (thanks :)).
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Avatar universal
hello !
i've been suffering the same since March 2013!
i'de like u to contact me
mail : morgan_mm***@****
thanks
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Avatar universal
I too have the difficult deep breath thing. It seems to go hand in hand with
working with my left hand such as waxing the car or shoveling. This cause
pain under the left side of ribcage and the next day difficult breathing.
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Avatar universal
Ohh my freaking holy cannoli's! I am in tears. and lol I actually seem to breathe better when I'm panicking or hyperventelating. God I hope you, him her find a cure. Cause I'm going out of my freaking mind, and I've only had this for 3 months and i just want to die. I've had soo many tests, blood xrays ekgs  pulmonary gastro endoscopy i hate this soo much. i'm the calmest person anyone knows and this def creates panic and anxiety+
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Avatar universal
Let me help you.  I know the suffering you are going through.  It's absolutely awful.  What you, and the rest of these people who are crying for help, but every doctor is looking at your lungs, or heart, or diet, or saying you just need to relax or take an antidepressent... they are all missing a very real, but very curable cause.  You have a Sleep breathing disorder.  Get a sleep study done asap.  Make sure they don't only look at Apneas (when your airways cuts completely off), but they also look at your RERA's (repspiratory events).  A very common condition called UARS (Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome) is ruining peoples lives because it's going unnoticed by most doctors.  See, as you get into a deeper sleep cycle, your muscles in your body tend to relax.  Your tongue, throat, etc--they all tend to get smaller.  So, what is happening is your brain recognizes this, releases adrenaline to either wake you up, or put you back into a lighter sleep cycle.  Thus, you never get Stage 3 (deep sleep) or REM sleep.  These two stages are where your body and brain get their rest and healing each night.  But the sleep related breathing disorder constantly keeps you from getting these stages (REM sleep is when your brain produces good chemicals such as dopamine and seratonin--these make you feel good, but you are never getting them!).  So, because so much adrenilin is being used all night, your body is in a chronic state of stress--thus releasing more of the stress hormone called cortisol.  This constant "quality" sleep deprivation turns into a viscious cycle.  Now you feel depressed and anxious, and then you think that this is WHY you are not sleeping--well, guess what--it's reverse.  You have these symptoms because YOU ARE not sleeping!  Also, the dry mouth everyone complains of--well, the body recognizes you are not getting enough air through your nose, so you subconsiounsly begin breathing through your mouth--this is called Mouth Breathing.  This in turn sets off even more issues.  Now you are actually taking in too much oxygen!  When you exhale, you are pushing out carbon dioxide.  So, sin your oxgen versus CO2 levels are really off (referred to has your gases being off balance).  And also since you mouth breath, you stop breathing like you should through your nose--so since air isn't passing in and out of your nose, mucus builds up in your nose, and now you have a stopped up nose.  And, since you never get resorative deep sleep, your immune system gets weak, so you live basically with a cold (which for many then turns into sinus infections).  Here is a GREAT book that will explain all of this (I get nothing for this--I, like all of you, used to google "I can't catch a deep breath", and saw how many sufferers are out there like us.  After living in misery for years (I'm 42 now), I finally found that I was not crazy, and the anxiety, depression, terrible sleep, always getting sick, over breathing, always feeling exhausted, diarrhea often...  I finally found the answers.  Anyway, make sure you get a sleep study done where they have dealt with UARS (you might have Apnea).  Here are some websites and that book!  Please spread the word, help the millions of other sufferers who have gone to 10 different doctors only to always be dissapointed...   Either a C-PAP, or Auto-Pap, or dental mouth piede (pushes lower jaw forward while asleep to open airways), or surgery to remove tonsils and anoids and increase airway (UPPP--just google it).  First educate yourself with the links I sent you.  Second, get a sleep study done, and look at not only Apneas (I hardly had any apneas...), but also look at RERA's, and then also at your sleep cycles--I'm guessing you'll see very "defragmented sleep", meaning you don't get any deep sleep or REM sleep.  And then once you have that information, you can either go to a dentist that deals with Sleep Disordered Breathing (over 1/2 of them do now), or and ENT (ear nose throat doc) for them to look at your airways to see if they are anatomically obstructive to your airways, or maybe you just genetically have smaller airways and surgery is the answer.    http://doctorstevenpark.com/sleep-apnea-basics/upper-airway-resistance-syndrome   http://www.sleepreviewmag.com/2014/01/a-missing-link-dr-barry-krakow-s-research-on-insomnia-and-sdb/
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Avatar universal
Hi everyone, I can confirm after having posted here in 2013 that two years on I have unfortunately experienced NO difference in symptoms and doctors/medical institutions still have ZERO understanding of the issue. I have the exact same condition as when I contracted it in Jan 2012.

My feeling, just as it was when I first experienced it, is that this is a type of anxiety/panic disorder which specifically affects the respiratory system by preventing proper breathing when the person is voluntarily breathing (the individual is otherwise unaffected when breathing is done involuntarily such as when asleep or occupied in deep thought etc). What most people typically  report is that it physically does not allow the lungs to 'open' fully, thus preventing the person from having a full satisfying deep breath. It generally 'turns on' in the persons life and is present indefinitely (it does not 'come and go').

To say this condition is the closest thing to a living nightmare is a massive understatement. I really cannot stress how much it destroys my life. I am convinced that it will one day be recognised as a type of anxiety disorder, unique and separate from the ones currently known. There are thousands of people across the net who report the EXACT same symptoms and go through all kinds of tests yet ultimately doctors/medical authorities remain clueless and have no real understanding of what is going on.

As I stated two years ago, this is NOT hyperventilation, not related to diet and not related to any other disease. It's a real (not just perceived) breathing restriction brought on because of a type of panic disorder which causes the constant dysfunction of the respiratory system. Even if the person does not 'feel' anxious or panicky, subconsciously a stress has been there to cause it to 'switch on' in the brain.

For anyone who's interested, I will soon be posting a youtube video and suggest everyone on this thread to watch it to discuss and share thoughts further.
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1 Comments
It's parasites. Find a cleanse. They cause major mental problems, anxiety, ect. As well. I have the same problem.
Avatar universal
Having been passed from doctor to doctor, I was diagnosed with hyperventilation syndrome after a year and a half of symptoms which started after a bad chest infection.

I do believe it's anxiety based, whether that be the cause or a result of change in breathing pattern. I try to distract myself, but it is a very difficult thing to live with (SOB, chest/ back pain/ tiredness) and to describe to others who don't understand how you "can't take a full breath".  

I will continue with breathing exercises and Buteyko, although they have not helped to date.

Good luck everyone, we will all get over this? :D



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Avatar universal
Can you please tell me where you signed up for buteyko class? I have breathing problems and asthma since I was 5 years old I am now 66. I have seen some of the buteyko classes on you tube. I live in USA Most classes seem to be in Australia. Thank you for any help.
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Avatar universal
Hi All

I'm a 39 yr old female who has had difficulty breathing since I was 7 yrs old. I had an initial incident, like most of you. I was on a houseboat on a lake, and awoke in the middle of the night unable to breathe. After a few hours of trying everything to get my breathing back, my father rushed me to the emergency clinic which was across the lake, and by the time I got there, the cool air seemed to cure the problem. That night...

When I returned home, my general practitioner prescribed me a bee sting kit and an inhaler. I never had to use the bee sting kit, and the inhaler never worked. The breathing problem has occurred every summer since. I have been diagnosed as having anxiety, asthma, allergies to certain pollens, and insect allergies. I feel fairly certain that none are the true cause because I have lived in a wide range of locations, do not have anxiety, and have been bitten by a number of insects, none of which have caused a reaction. Oh, and no inhaler has ever made a difference in any way.

My blood work is very good - no thyroid issues, no cholesterol issues, etc. I have low blood pressure, but not too low. I am about 10 lbs overweight now, but was not overweight as a child when this started. I do know that my breathing is worse when I lay down, that caffeine makes it worse, and that exercise does not affect it at all.  Also, I had no symptoms at all when I was pregnant, which as an awesome year for that reason!

I read a thread somewhere that someone suggested a 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of salt in a glass of water. I've tried this twice now, and it may make a difference, but I can't tell for sure. I generally eat low sugar, low carb, but that does not seem to make a difference in the breathing issue, though I feel better in other areas. Meat or no meat makes no difference for me. No anxiety medicine I've been prescribed has made an iota of difference. And no doctor will pay any attention to this. Its incredibly frustrating.

Anyone have any new theories? New successes? I'm all ears!
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180749 tn?1443595232
Join your thumb and index finger at the tips, on both hands, place the palms on your knees, eyes closed, do deep breathing through the nose 11 times.  

Then Join your thumb and index finger at the tips, on both hands, place the wrists on your knees,upside down(thumb and index finger pointing down),  eyes closed, do deep breathing through the nose for 5 to 10 minutes daily 3 times a day.
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