Integrating BBBT in with existing modalities.
K (Yoga teacher) has found that by making the BBBT exercises part of her Yoga class warm-up there is a faster and better beginning. She has reduced the extent of belly breathing taught in her classes.
P (Osteopath) has found it good to give people an app of exercises in an individualized set regime which they can use in their own time. (K will look at putting children’s exercises on an app also). P and K will consider making something based on these available to all BBB Educators. P introduced the benefits he has found combining hands-on Osteopathic treatment with the BBBT guidelines on diaphragm breathing.
C (Osteopath) has found: -good integration with her normal Osteopathic work with mouth, tongue and jaw issues, and anxiety, dentists are referring children to her for work on the breathing and more adults are coming than before, for example for sleep apnoea. She will be adding more information on BBBE into her new website and also asked if I am happy to support her on more difficult cases (yes-gratis). She wants very much to be part of the future of BBBE. The place of Fingertip pulse oximeters in BBBE, particularly with children, was discussed.
B (Counselor) ‘I’m still working on the Beyond Blue line, and recently I’ve also been on the Corona virus Mental Well-being Support Line too. On both lines, my interactions with people are single events, and they often call highly distressed. So I’m often in the situation of guiding people on the phone to help them ground and de-escalate, in particular during panic attacks and acute anxiety. I’ve often thought of how I could be integrating the BBBT work into my calls. Mostly there isn’t much time to teach them new things (as I will do in private practice) however I can help them to find some immediate relief and give them some new information about breathing. So when people need calming, I’ve found the extending outbreath (exercise No. 3) quite safe and easy to show people, instructing them to perform it through their nose, and from the abdomen / diaphragm, hopefully with less volumes too.
Thankfully breathing techniques are widely accepted as valuable information to be sharing as a counselor, but its a challenge to steer people away from deep breathing as the remedy’. (JW suggested exercise No 10a for de-escalation of distress on line and also wrote a new info sheet ‘Panic attacks and paper bag air re-breathing’)