The things that cause hyperventilation can be categorised loosely into:
Some of the stress we create ourselves, and other types have nothing to do with us. For instance, sometimes the people in our immediate environment may cause us physical or emotional stress.
Our environmental includes all kinds of things that can create stress on our body. Some of these might be gases or scents, such as those that are found in aerosols, paints, the soap powder aisle of the supermarket or by frying food in hot oil.
The temperature of your environment can have a profound effect on your breathing. Sitting in a bath that is too hot for instance, can easily cause a person to feel a little lightheaded.
Pollutants such as smoke or dust can create a stress, which will automatically increase the breathing.
The way we feel about things affects our breathing, and the reverse is also true. For instance, feeling angry may quickly increase the breathing pattern, but if you deliberately increase your breathing pattern, then you are likely to feel over-reactive and less calm.
It is obvious to most of us that fear causes an increase in the breathing as part of the fight or flight response, when we gasp in surprise or horror. But what may not be considered is that excitement, or anticipation of happy events can do exactly the same thing.
When we think of things that cause physical stress, we probably think of pain and illness, and we would be right. But other things can cause physical stress as well, and consequently, they also rev up the breathing. These include:
© 2012 Buteyko Works, Inc. All rights reserved.