A strong smell like cigarette smoke stimulates certain neural patterns that cause the parasympathetic nervous system to contract the air passages.

And you become breathless. What else causes you to choke up? A deeply sad emotion.

That’s what asthma is: a very sad emotional pattern lodged in the brain. We’ve just got to transform that emotional pattern so that environmental factors won’t trigger memories that constrict the lungs.

Life isn’t a tragedy, so don’t confine yourself to sadness and fear. Always think of yourself as not one who struggles, but one who triumphs.

Constantly express happiness, praise, goodwill, love, positivity, blessings, gratitude. Let themaccumulate inside you until the sad pattern is completely transformed into a happy one.

* Take your medication 15 minutes before your workout.

*  Pedal briskly on your stationary cycle. Stationary cycling strengthens your
cardio-respiratory system.

*  Breathe through your nose. Keep your mouth closed—this prevents the back of your throat from drying and setting off the wheeze.

* Tomatoes, carrots, leafy greens, fish, grains, garlic, onion, fresh fruits are body-friendly foods that get vitamins C, E and B6 into your system.

*  Say no to salt, MSG and aspirin.

* Drink a litre of hot, warm or room temperature water daily. That way, you’ll thin the mucous, and clear your airways. 

* Inhale to a count of eight, and exhale to a count of ten. Repeat this 20 times, with your eyes closed.

* Use the prescribed inhaler when

required. It’s nothing to feel embarrassed about. So, come to terms with it.
A story goes: While trotting past a well, a donkey fell into it. Panic-stricken, he
hee-hawed for help. An hour later, a man heard him.

Seeing the helpless donkey, he laughed and started shoveling mud into the well. Realising he was to be buried alive, the donkey felt suffocated.

He stopped thinking. But in the silence, an idea lit up his mind. Each time the mud poured in, he shook it off and stood on it, instead of under it. And each time he rose one inch higher, until he came right up and ran to his freedom.

So, the next time something oppressive crops up, shake off the fear, and you’ll
realise you’re one inch higher, healthier, stronger.
Each time, say, “It is easy for me to breathe.” It is.