Breathe Better, Live Better
By Dr. Matt
When was the last time you thought about your breathing? For most of us, it’s something we take for granted—automatic, effortless, and always there. But did you know that how you breathe can have a significant impact on your health and overall well-being?
At our practice, we believe in treating the whole person, not just the symptoms. That means looking closely at foundational habits that influence your physical and mental health. One of the most vital—and overlooked—is breathing.
Why Breathing Properly Is So Important
Proper breathing supports your body’s ability to:
- Deliver oxygen efficiently to muscles and organs
- Regulate heart rate and blood pressure
- Reduce stress and anxiety by activating the parasympathetic nervous system
- Improve posture and core stability
- Support sleep quality, energy levels, and even digestion
Signs of Dysfunctional Breathing
Many people unknowingly develop poor breathing habits, such as shallow chest breathing, mouth breathing, or rapid breathing patterns. These can contribute to:
- Frequent fatigue or “brain fog”
- Heightened anxiety or panic symptoms
- Poor sleep quality or snoring
- Frequent sighing or yawning
- Neck and shoulder tension
Through the years I have noticed it has become more and more challenging to breathe through one side of my nose. Oftentimes, especially during exercise and sleep, I find myself mostly “mouth breathing,” which is a very inefficient way to breathe. This often leaves me waking up and feeling more tired than I should based on the hours of sleep I am getting. On those nights that I wake up feeling tired it often coincides with a feeling of a dry mouth which indicates that I spent the night breathing through my mouth and not my nose.
My family and I have made it a goal to breathe better, lower the effects of our seasonal allergies, and get better rest at night. In the past we had tried the traditional strips that are sold for snoring and had little to no success with those. In fact the adhesive tended to cause more irritation to the skin than actual help with breathing. We had also been recommended to us by a sleep disorder professional dilator that you insert into your nasal passages. When researching those, people reported them being bulky and irritating to deal with as well as the constant cleaning process between uses was annoying. Recently we have discovered a new product that has been amazing. It is called Intake Breathing, it is a new nasal dilator that helps to open up the passage ways to allow for better airflow through your nasal passages.
What sets Inake breathing apart from other companies is they use a system where you place two smaller adhesive circle bandages on either side of your nose that each contain small steel discs. These bandages are not irritating to sensitive skin and have not left me with any reactions like the prior strips have. The beauty of the system lies in their re-usable rigid band that is then placed over the nose. The band has strong magnets on either side so the magnets pull on the steel discs and pull the nasal passages open, playing off of the band’s rigidity. I was shocked how much more fully it opened up my passages more than the other adhesive bands. The bands come in 5 different sizes but they are re-usable so the only thing you have to replenish is the sticky patches. Since switching to Intake breathing my sleep has been much deeper and I have been feeling more rested and fresh in the morning. My sons have also started wearing the bands to play lacrosse and they have loved the product. My younger son is 7 years old and the smallest band size fits him perfectly. I have been very impressed with how strong the adhesive is without being irritating to the skin but also how strong the magnets have been. Neither son has had the bands even move on them while playing sports.
If you are searching for a solution to better breathing during exercise or sleep, I would highly recommend looking into Intake Breathing. If you are interested in trying them out, you can use my code below to receive 10% off your order. If you have any questions about my experience with the product please feel free to send me an email at drmatt@coretherapies.net.
Get started with Intake Breathing here10% off Code: https://www.intakebreathing.com/MATTHEW-MCGOWAN