[blurbleblurble]

Yes! Breathing like that will purge carbon dioxide from your blood more quickly and result in higher oxygen levels. There are some really powerful exercises based on oxygen breathing in quite a few different traditions. Some names I've heard of are "holotropic breathing", "circular breathing", "breath of fire", "round breathing", "bioenergetics breathing", and "Wim Hoff method". Wilhelm Reich made use of oxygen increasing breathwork in his orgone therapy back in the mid 20th century.

This stuff can really bring about powerful alternate states of mind, and I've personally experienced some deep spiritual and psychological release from oxygen breathing exercises.

At this point I've come to think that peoples' natural response during an anxiety attack, which is to hyperventilate, might actually be a healthy, desireable reaction. But we socially repress and stigmatize it. Fear and anxiety are uncomfortable to us, so instead of holding space for working through that stuff naturally, we stuff it.

I'm telling you though, the feeling relief that controlled hyperventilating can bring is unbelievable.

[rand_r]

The evolutionary history of how we developed an instinct to hyperventilate is an interesting question.

However, I have to put up a warning that hyperventilating doesn't actually increase oxygen levels. It's a dangerous practice because it surpasses the natural drive to breath by depleting CO2 in the blood to abnormally low levels.

Our breath drive depends on CO2 levels and can get fooled by hyperventilation into letting you black out from lack of oxygen. This section on Wikipedia explains the physics of the situation really well: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freediving_blackout#Shallow_wa...

[rusk]

> The evolutionary history of how we developed an instinct to hyperventilate

Presumably it's a fight or flight response. It's redundant and counterproductive of course in many modern stress situations but if you had to fight off a predator or catch that animal the extra jolt of vascular activity probably makes perfect sense.

[bichiliad]

That was a really interesting link. It sounds here like hyperventilation, in practice, is dangerous only if you might become oxygen-starved right after (like in diving). A lot of these breathing exercises, like the one in the video above, aren't necessarily dangerous for that reason.

[nradov]

I don't use any particular breathing technique and my blood oxygen saturation is typically very close to 100%, just like most other people without lung disease. If you're getting benefits from breath work then that's great, but it's not because of oxygen levels.

[blurbleblurble]

Good point! I was thinking in terms of oxygen/CO2 balance. But strictly speaking, I realize your right in that hyperventilating won't actually increase absolute oxygen levels.

[jules]

If this is the case, what causes the light-headedness when you hyperventilate?

[goldenkey]

"Low carbon dioxide levels lead to narrowing of the blood vessels that supply blood to the brain. This reduction in blood supply to the brain leads to symptoms like lightheadedness and tingling in the fingers. Severe hyperventilation can lead to loss of consciousness. For some people, hyperventilation is rare."

[blurbleblurble]

I understand the tingling of the fingers to be caused by a reduction of calcium ionization:

"Low levels of carbon dioxide cause tetany by altering the albumin binding of calcium such that the ionized (physiologically influencing) fraction of calcium is reduced; one common reason for low carbon dioxide levels is hyperventilation."

[brodouevencode]

I highly recommend everyone look into Wim Hoff's work. It's not only helpful but he's also a super interesting guy.

[delackner]

This interview shows Wim Hof Guiding someone through a full single round:

https://youtu.be/JPPlicAEFec?t=3058

Four rounds in a row first thing in the morning blows coffee away by a long shot.

And the free app to make it easy to track progress: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/wim-hof-method/id890471578?m...

[kingdomcome50]

I tried it with them, and you know what? It felt good. That said, there was no shortage of red flags coming from Hof. Expelling the cancer? The bacteria? Hm...

I had to stop when the Russel Brand was trying to explain that the mediation quieted the narrative in his head. Hof attempted to finish his thought in exactly the wrong way, then pulled a 180 upon being corrected. Really had the feel of that guy in the mall trying to sell you hand cream...

[delackner]

The messenger's clothes don't matter if the message is verifiable.

Go read the clinical study. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4034215/

Look up his list of Guinness records. Marathon in the desert. Climbed nearly to the top of Everest in shorts and no shirt. World record for longest breath hold underwater. etc.

Only someone who feels strange would even think to try these things.

[rv-de]

Hyperventilating reduces oxygen levels in your body due to the Bohr effect. That's why it can cause you to faint.