From Air Hunger to Freedom: C.J. McRae's breathing story & the Alexander Technique.

C.J. developed air hunger in December 2018. After trying everything he could find to address it, he discovered Simon’s essay which led him to beginning weekly, in-person Alexander Technique lessons from June 2019–March 2020 with a teacher in Portland, OR, Eve Bernfeld. Hear about C.J.'s journey of restoring his natural breathing in these excerpts from a conversation we recorded in September 2021. To hear the full 78-minute conversation between C.J. and Simon, sign up for the 15-module course, Liberating the Natural Breath, which includes a wealth of knowledge and tools that are designed to set you up for an easeful, swift, and rich journey toward natural breathing. The course covers in detail practices such as Constructive Rest, finding and working with an Alexander Technique teacher who is a good match for you, the tools and understandings that will help you to more quickly find relief, the many questions that arise for people as they’re working through this process, and much more. Remember that everyone’s journey with this is different, and different people choose to place different degrees of emphasis on regular Alexander Technique lessons.

This video explores natural breathing and the Alexander Technique. These principles may be helpful for understanding non-medical symptoms such as chronic breathing tension and air hunger, dyspnea, sighing, yawning, feelings of struggling for air and breathlessness, shortness of breath, gasping for air, reaching for air, muscle tension, hyperventilation, belly-breathing, chest-breathing, feeling like you can't breathe or can't get a full breath, can't get a full breath in your lungs, or feeling like you're having a panic attack. This video is not intended to address medical issues in any way. Rather, it is an educational video about the Alexander Technique; our capacities for awareness, choice, and habit; and how we can learn to recognize the ways we unintentionally interfere with the natural movement of our breath. This video and the course are both offered by Emergent Inquiry, LLC. This is an educational video about how the Alexander Technique and self-awareness can be used to reduce habits of interference in the body’s natural ease and coordination. Neither this video nor the associated self-paced course are intended to address medical conditions or mental health conditions. This video and any associated services are for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for professional medical or mental health advice, examination, diagnosis, or treatment. Emergent Inquiry, LLC recommends that you consult your physician regarding the applicability of any information to your individual situation and seek one-to-one guidance from a certified Alexander Technique teacher if you decide to pursue the application of Alexander Technique principles to your own physical or mental habits. Copyright 2021 Emergent Inquiry, LLC