how 2 promote nasal breathing? your input would b a blessing

[osagirl]

Im not going to go into detail about my past with daytime fatigue/sleep apnea, if you want a better picture of it look at my previous posts.

I've had lots and lots of invasive surgeries to attempt to improve the tiredness i experience from what i thought to be sleep apnea. AFter having EVERY single possible surgery for treating sleep apnea (except tracheostomy), im still the same tired I always was. All the surgeries have narrowed down to where exactly my problem is. . .

i'm a chronic mouth breather, and have been since i was a baby. Chronic mouth breathing (or NEVER nose breathing) has symptoms that include :severe daytime fatigue, poor concentration, weight gain, similar to sleep apnea. I need to somehow promote NASAL BREATHING and stop myself from mouth breathing which is causing me HELL on earth.

I dont need cpap anymore (which never worked anyway) because my apnea numbers are 0 from all the surgeries, but i have very high hyponea numbers. regardless i know now that if i can get my mouth to stay closed and get rid of the mouth breathing all together and start to nose breathe i will feel great, i just dont know how to go about that

I realize now that I was never tired from sleep apnea, but from chronically breathing through my mouth. The internet wasn't too useful for me. I've learned through the internet that our bodies trigger nose breathing from our tongue hitting the roof of our mouth when we sleep. For a person that sleeps with there mouth closed, thats not a problem since your tongue is right near the roof of your mouth. However, when i sleep my jaw drops open so my tongue can't reach the roof of my mouth.

ANy input would be appriciated, doctors are no help to me anymore, and you guys on the forum have always given great advice when I needed it. Maybe you can answer my prayers to feel awake for the first time in my life. Even maybe if you put in chronic mouth breathing cures into a search engine you might see something i missed. thanks.

[Raj]

I'd suggest your first step is to practice diaphragmatic nasal breathing during the day as much as possible. Take air in slowly and smoothly exclusively through your nostrils; exhale the same way and at the same rate or a bit slower. As you inhale, concentrate on the very bottom of your ribcage, letting it stretch out in all directions - front, rear, and sides. As your diaphragm lowers during inhalation, it should push abdominal organs aside enough so that your abdomen from your lower ribcage to an inch or two below your navel will expand. Allow that to happen, but don't force it. If your ribcage is expanding in all directions, your belly shouldn't bulge excessively. If you feel a need to add a bit of upper chest breathing, don't fight it but try to do so at the end of each inhalation. Relaxation is key to making a change this drastic and when you catch yourself reverting to mouth-breathing, simply accept it without getting upset, and switch back. Please be patient with yourself. To change a habit this entrenched, you'll need a long, gentle, and consistent effort.

When you reach the point where you feel that most of your waking breathing is through your nose, post a note and we can address means of continuing the process while asleep. I wish you great success with this.