Nestor’s “Breath” book: effecting in September.

[oak]

Friends, on the strong recommendation of our good friend Mental Fairy, I have borrowed the James Nestor book “Breath” from the library.

While I have no reason to doubt Mental Fairy, I want to see for myself if “Breath” can help me fix serious problems I have.

I have anxiety, sleep apnea, want to do better at my current job, and I need to change careers. These are serious issues, and I want to face them in September.

For a little lighter goals, I also want to (1) play Pokémon Go in the town square most days and (2) watch some NFL football (especially after having taken action each day for the serious issues listed above).

I’m off tomorrow, September 1, so I’ll spend an hour or two reading it. It appears to be a relatively short book, so I shouldn’t have any trouble reading it in the three week loan period. As I read I’ll note practical actions advised:

I’ll also promise to do anything Nestor suggests. I’ll begin effecting specific actions he indicates for the specific issues I list above.

I’ll update tomorrow!

[oak]

A bad start
Tom Petty and sleep apnea: I'm not in a position to reject any good idea

A bad start

Friends, I'm sorry to report that the introduction has gotten me off on the wrong foot.

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and in the intro he claims that specific breathing can (1) put cancer into remission and (2) melt snow around practitioners.

Frankly, this insults my intelligence. Were either of these true, it would radically change science. I could complete the Randi Challenge and quit my job with the winnings.

And "extraordinary evidence" would have to at least be peer reviewed, with 99% significant results.

Tom Petty and sleep apnea: I'm not in a position to reject any good idea

"I'm too alone to be proud" -Tom Petty

As our good brother Tom Petty said so well, I am in no position to reject any good idea, especially considering that sleep apnea is a pulmonary issue.

Despite my misgivings about the book so far, I may not have the luxury of taking offense, since Mr. Nestor may offer a way forward. That remains to be seen, but I am keeping an open mind. He claims his book is a scientific journey into breathing, so I hope he provides the receipts soon.

I hope this book vastly improves soon.

[oak]

Friends, I have completed the first three chapters.

While I skimmed the anecdotes and non-scientific stuff, which is most of the book so far, I did walk away with two things to try:

1. Alternating nostrils.

2. Mouth tape while sleeping.

I have reservations about both, but I will give both a good try.

And, while I stand behind what I wrote in the previous post, I am gratified that I am at least angry about what I read.

Said another way, at least I care enough to get mad. Apathy is what gets people killed.

All that said, I am HALT, and frazzled by this read. I hope the book improves soon, but for a day off work I’ve already had all the upset I can handle.

This is intense.

[Mental Fairy]

I found it somewhat troubling, some aspects of it I can understand, however other aspects of it seem far fetched and somewhat concerning. Who tapes their mouth shut?

Matt (my son) has had multiple surgeries on his nose for polyps and a stage 1 growth that appeared three years ago through a scan. Multiple surgeries later and with no end to his breathing troubles in sight we are prepared to try anything. I’ve stopped the book 3/4 of the way through. I’m struggling to understand some concepts and very troubled by the suggestions.

However, there are some really really interesting points.

Running + breath work is my jam. I absolutely know how a run is going to go simply by the breath work. I tried his suggestion of short inhale and very long exhale. I honestly thought I was dying. I tried this for three consecutive runs, by the third I got the hang of it. Much like I did with ice plunge. My breath work with ice work is completely different and very different to his advice.

Oak, I’m struggling with this one!

[snoringdog]

Breathing *will* kill you, if you do it long enough....

[oak]

Breathing *will* kill you, if you do it long enough....

Well said, SnoringDog.

Mental Fairy, thank you for the insight!

I must admit I gave up on page 73 when he claimed that 85% of weight loss comes through breathing. A paragraph before he claims to know better than doctors and nutritionists.

I know that weight loss comes from a calorie deficit. Yikes.

Three thoughts as I conclude this experiment:

1. Somewhere in here is a good book, or longform article. At least he tried to get at the heart of an important issue that so few people want to address: breathing. I hope someone writes that book someday soon.

2. I found the hourlong Wim Hof session I took at the local yoga studio in 2021 to be more helpful and practical.

3. Like I implied in my thread about American rage, I can be cognizant about good and bad information, and be wary of misinformation. While I’m not saying this book is misinformation, I am trusting my conscience to spend my time elsewhere.

To zoom out a bit, I think my issue is to look at what I believe, especially the lies I tell myself.