respiratory biofeedback. If you start getting sleepy after two
minutes, perform respiratory biofeedback for just less than that
time and gradually work up to five minutes — but always avoid
getting sleepy. If you consistently get sleepy during respiratory
biofeedback, there may be other sleep-related issues such as
sleep deprivation or sleep apnea.
Respiratory biofeedback can be performed once or twice daily,
or even more if necessary. Many people feel so much better
afterward, and can tell when it’s time to perform it. And, before
the implementation of other therapies (massage, yoga, chiro-
practic, etc.), it’s best to perform respiratory biofeedback first
because it can help make these therapies more successful.Rest and Stimulation
Two other very important factors for optimal brain function are rest
and stimulation. Brain rest comes in the form of sleep. For the aver-
age adult, sleeping uninterrupted for at least seven and no more than
nine hours is normal; children need more. Some people believe they
could function well on less sleep, but they probably can’t. And too
much sleep may be associated with certain disorders, including
depression.
The best environment for a sleeping brain (and body) is in a dark
and quiet comfortable clutter-free bedroom. The sensations of light
and sound can keep the brain from resting. Creating this environment
is usually easy to do.
No other body area responds better than the brain to the notion
of “use it or lose it.” This comes in the form of mental stimulation. In
addition to food and nutrition, exercise and controlling stress, contin-
ually using the brain is important. This includes providing it with
new information such as a language or touch-typing, or reading inter-
esting information with which you’re not familiar. It also means
doing physical things your brain is not familiar with such as using
your opposite hand for eating, changing physical routines or per-
forming other uncommon tasks. In addition, easy aerobic exercise is
one of the most powerful brain therapies because many of the nerves
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