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    Thread: CO2 Breathing Technique for Insomnia (and maybe induce an OBE)

    1. #1
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      CO2 Breathing Technique for Insomnia (and maybe induce an OBE)

      Hi everyone, I would like to share with you a specific breathing technique I have been using to help me get to sleep fast as I often find it really hard to switch off.

      I also find it incredibly difficult to sleep on my back – in fact usually if I go to sleep on my back I will still be wide awake an hour later. It is pretty much a guaranteed way for me to encourage insomnia! However I keep persisting because sleeping on one’s side is not so good for the spine/neck and I keep waking up with stiffness.

      Anyway I have recently discovered one thing that has enabled me to fall asleep on my back and that is this breathing technique, so I thought that it might also help anyone suffering from insomnia.

      This technique is called the Carbon Dioxide Technique and is actually from a text book called “Demystifying the out-of-body-experience: a practical manual for exploration and personal evolution” by Luis Minero.
      Of the technique the author explains:

      “(This) technique will help you modify your breathing pattern so as to induce an OBE. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the main element in this this technique. By safely increasing the amount of CO2 in the physical body, the brain decreases its activity and allows the consciousness to disconnect from the physical body. These circumstances are benign and there are no side effects for the projector. To increase the amount of CO2 in your body, you will breath in specific patterns.”

      There are a number of stages which you can eventually progress through. The suggestion is to start with:
      Breath in: 2 seconds
      Hold breath: 8 seconds
      Breath out: 4 seconds


      Over time of practicing this regularly you can increase to 3-12-6 seconds each, and 4-16-8 seconds, 5-20-10 seconds etc. The ideal is to reach the 8-32-16 ratio though will depend on size, lung capacity etc.

      Nothing should be forced, and you should breath through your nose.

      I have used this technique with the 2-8-4 seconds and after about 4 rounds I begin to feel very relaxed, and a spacy feeling in my head. Then I continue for a few more rounds (they suggest 15 rounds) next thing I know I’m awake at some other point (in the night or morning) and can’t remember finishing the technique – so it pretty much knocks me out!

      Nothing else has worked like this for me. I have tried many other relaxation techniques and they might make me feel relaxed but my mind is still too focused and eventually I get bored. This is the first one that actually helps me mentally. So I encourage you to give it a try and let me know how it works for you!

      If you are interested in using this technique for OBE
      I have not had success with this technique for OBE, though to be honest I haven’t tried very hard. For anyone who is interested this is how you do it, quoted from the book:

      “Normally the disconnection begins to be felt in the middle of the holding period. At first it will be a slight sensation, which by the middle of the exhalation will probably be gone as the psychosoma realigns with the body. In the next breath, during the middle of the holding period, you will feel it again. As you keep going, breath after breath, the disconnection sensation will become increasingly clear and stronger. Eventually you will leave your body. Continue applying the technique until you are out.”
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    2. #2
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      I tried this several times just after a very short WBTB this morning. I did notice some hypnagogia and brief losses of concentration at one point.

      I must have fallen asleep fairly quickly where within the hour I had 2 FA's one after the other where I went to roll out of bed, except I stopped myself because I thought it was really happening where I might fall off the side of the bed.
      At one point in the view through the bedroom window across I saw a vivid scene of across from where I used to live.
      On the second FA I felt obe-like (?) shifting effects whilst lying in bed so I got up and I (deliberately) looked round at myself in bed. I even pulled the sheets down a bit to try and look at my face which I did. (I decided to go in case it would wake me up!)
      After I went outside and I continued the lucid dream which was very clear.

      I must admit I'm generally not a fan of breathing techniques, but if I get used to it and it helps me relax then that can only be a good thing.
      Generally I do have a *good lucid dreaming record, but even so it is a little unusual for me to have two related FA's one right after the other like that.

      From my post you can probably gather that I'm a bit sceptical about the term 'OBE' although my experience would easily fit the pattern maybe. I try to keep an open mind though.

      I would have to say that the exercise would be useful for WILD awareness, although I did 'technically' fall asleep after so this is more of a DILD dream for me, but a memorable one at that.


      *(Previous to this as a guide I hadn't been keeping a dream journal and my last lucid dream was well over a week or more ago, even with regular but short WBTB episodes.)


      @Midnightfire
      Do any of your experiences relate especially in regard to the relaxation, hypnagogia and sleepiness induced?
      Last edited by Highlander; 08-09-2015 at 10:42 AM.
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    3. #3
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      Very interesting Highlander thank you for sharing!

      The technique certainly seems to have helped give you some interesting results, even if not quite what expected.

      I did not quite understand, when you turned to look back at your body, you actually did see yourself, yes?
      If you don't think that is an out-of-body experience do you consider seeing yourself like just seeing another-dream character?

      Well I haven't had much experience at all, so I too just keep an open mind and interest

      If you are interested in learning more the book that I referenced is actually from a school in South America that is studying OBEs from a scientific perspective. It is really in-depth and fascinating read and it's hard to find ones that put such a scientific emphasis on it. According to the book that shifting feeling would be the 'subtle body' separating from the 'physical body'.

      I am still experiencing with this technique. Initially just to be able to sleep on my back, but also to be able to use it with WBTB/lucid dream attempts.The times that I have used it I did feel really relaxed really fast, and I did get the feeling of losing concentration a few times - but in a relaxed way rather than losing concentration because I'm thinking about other things which is what usually happens when I do breathing techniques. I don't tend to get much hypnagogia but I am actually working on trying to increase this.
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      Quote Originally Posted by midnightfire View Post
      I did not quite understand, when you turned to look back at your body, you actually did see yourself, yes?
      Yes it was me, as in the dream recognition sense. I can only guess the mind creates a construct from memories, etc which are used by, or in the dream.

      Quote Originally Posted by midnightfire View Post
      If you don't think that is an out-of-body experience do you consider seeing yourself like just seeing another-dream character?
      I would like to think it was an OBE, but in my eyes I see it more like a vivid lucid dream, so you're right, I would be a DC in that sense of the term.

      (Incidentally in my DJ entries I very rarely use the term DC. I usually use the term 'people' as if it is like real life!)

      With OBE, I would probably like to gain more 'evidence' (if that is the correct word in context?) for myself as I think the scenarios in lucid dreams are very convincing in their own right. For example could the 'shifting' be a hallucination, as in part of the dream, crafted by the mind and memories of the dreamer?

      Like I say I'm no expert, but I do know that the bed bound FA is an excellent time to become lucid like in my example.

      When I was younger I did read one or two OBE-style books, but I did have some very scary seperation type experiences! The nearest I could describe would be like twisting and torsion like fighting to get out.

      When I look back on it now they were FA's, and I'm not really scared now. I try to use the opportunity for lucid dreams.

      Like you I cannot sleep on my back. When I did I used to get the FA's near guaranteed!

      I did notice that the technique helped me to relax, sleep quickly as I do sometimes have sleep problems, so I will definitely be trying it again to help me drop off or explore my hypnagogia if I feel sleepy enough, so thanks for sharing your original post about the technique.

      A lucid/obe(?) is a bonus.

      (P.S: I will have to look up Minero and his work out of interest.)
      Last edited by Highlander; 08-09-2015 at 10:34 PM.
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    5. #5
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      Thanks for sharing, going to suggest this to a friend who has a similar problem and bookmark it for my own future reference as sometimes I do struggle shutting down although lately I have to say I've been lucky to fall asleep easily (due to being tired from work which I guess has this advantage, heh).
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