To David;
As you know I frequently read the original 'Better Eyesight Magazines' I bought at your Bates Method Store.
I have trouble with neck muscle tension sometimes due to old neck injury.
I want your opinion on a article Bates wrote in the Oct. 1924 issue called Rabbits Throat:
BETTER EYESIGHT
A MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO THE PREVENTION AND CURE OF IMPERFECT SIGHT WITHOUT GLASSES
October, 1924
The Rabbit's Throat
DURING the past ten years a method of breathing has been practiced which has improved the vision of many patients after other methods had failed. It consists of depressing the lower jaw with the lips closed and lowering the tongue and muscles below the chin. At the same time one breathes in through the nose and throat in a manner somewhat similar to snoring and when done properly one can feel a coolness of the air while it passes down into the lungs. This method of breathing is accompanied with the eyelids being more widely open in a natural way without staring. The ear passages, nose, and throat dilate. The tube which goes from the throat to the middle ear becomes more widely open, with improved hearing in chronic deafness which does not respond to any other treatment. If one rests the chin with the thumb below it and the forefinger just below the lower lip, one can feel with the thumb the hardening of the muscles below the jaw accompanied with a decided swelling. By practice, the swelling and hardness increase. This suggested the title of the Rabbit's Throat because of a similar swelling below the rabbit's chin. The tension of the other muscles of the body becomes relaxed. There is a wonderful increase of muscular control.
Music teachers have told me that the singing voice becomes much better because of the relaxation of the muscles of the throat. The involuntary muscles of the digestive tract become relaxed in a striking manner with the relief of many symptoms of discomfort. Redness and inflammation of the mucous membranes of the eye, ear, nose and throat and the rest of the body are relieved in a few minutes with the aid of the Rabbit's Throat.
I cant understand how to do this.
Depress lower jaw: how, What??
Bottom jaw in, lower the tounge, below chin... What???
Please give me your understanding of this.
It sounds like a great treatment for the muscles, passageways, circulation in the neck, head, ears, eyes.
Bates was also 'ear, nose and throat doctor' so he must be giving a good idea here.
I feel I need to make some comments here, if you don't mind.
Before reading Bates' book I have read other simple stuff on internet, among them is Carina Goodrich's blogs on reading <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://janetgoodrichmethod.com/blog/2007/04/11/breathing-and-eyesight-part-1/#more-13">http://janetgoodrichmethod.com/blog/200 ... 1/#more-13</a><!-- m -->,
so when I read this from Bates, I think he mentions it in the book as well, I kind of understood what he is saying, it's similar to Carina's snorring-like-cooling breathing. (I still think I read somewhere this about lowering the jaw but don't remember exactly...)
What you need to lower is:
1. Tongue and
2. muscles below the chin
Like you try to yawn and don't open the mount.
Make your trhoat small so you can feel coolnes of the air, like when snorring.
See how you go.
it is relaxing, as any of these breathing exercises, definitively need to be anyone's daily routine.
I had problems to understand dr. bates' writing at first, but by the end of the book I kind of got used to.
And do you understand the other oart of the text about pressign and muscles swelling. Is that separate exercise, or goes together woth this snorring-like-cooling breating?
Thanks for the help.
I will try it.
Will also check out Carinas article.
I dont know what the second part is either. Kind of get a picture of it as it is described.
Hi . I have always been a terrible breather and I sometimes wonder if these things are handed down from parents etc. so I found this post very interesting, Clark. I'm not sure, but I think in ordinary breathing, our tongue and jaw might rise??? Anyone feel this ?? When I consciously depressed my tongue down to the roof of my mouth and simultaneously relaxed (lowered) my jaw, I felt a cool rush of air entering my lungs and experienced similar effects to what Bates (Clark) wrote. I tried then breathing normally and didn't feel that way so much ! The link to Goodrich's blog re: Ujiya breathing is also very interesting. I will try this the next time I am stressed, even though, I might scare a few people if I sound like Darth Vader ;D
ps. I have never noticed the swelling beneath a rabbit's chin. I will try to observe this the next time I'm at Bunny Heaven!
Maybe there is something I can learn here!
I cant figure this out completely.
I think I am going back to a old yoga or self hypnosis breathing until I can get this Bunny breathing clear in my mind.
Had a bad cold recently and coughing so hard one night it must of forced oxygen and blood to my head cause vision got exceptionally clear!! Like 30/5.
me