Friday Fermata – Breathless

I’m breathing, obviously, because they aren’t pulling me out on a stretcher.  But I don’t think I’ve ever REALLY been breathing.  One issue I have with auditions (and one that I have been battling for years) is loosing a good 30% of my lung capacity just before (and during) an audition.  I literally feel like I’m singing at 10,000 feet.  I know it is based on nerves, of course, but I started to wonder, “Is the lack of oxygen causing the nerves or the other way around?”  I’m aware of the problem, and have tried to take some deep breaths prior, but found that it wasn’t very effective.  I had an audition yesterday where this same problem occurred – AGAIN.   I knew that what I needed was an actual practice for breathing like I have for warming up, etc.  Old news, right?  But that’s not the entire story.  I actually found an interesting read about this in a great book called Mind Over Mood.  In one chapter about anxiety, the author reviews ways to relax the body, a breathing excersise, but with some extra information that I found interesting.  Did you know that you need to do deep breathing for at least 4 minutes (something to do with the amount of time your body needs to balance the levels of Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide levels in the blood – or something like that – I don’t have the book with me)?  Last night, while reasonably relaxed, (sort of that exhausted post-audition state), I thought I would give it a try.  I didn’t think I would see huge results given that I wasn’t swirling with nerves.  I did the required 4-4-4, which is setting the timer to 4 minutes (and you need the timer because you will think that you are at 4 minutes WAY before you really are) and then inhale for 4 seconds, exhale for 4 seconds and repeating.  When I was done?  I felt different – really different.  I couldn’t believe how different I felt.  And this is while I thought I was already relaxed.   I wasn’t tired, just more alert and extremely relaxed – the likes of which I don’t ever remember feeling.  Sounds like meditation, right?  It does, but was I doing this before an audition?  For 4 minutes and inhaling/exhaling with deliberation?  Hardly.  I’m the nervous and chatty one.  Maybe I need to change my ways.  If I can sit there (or go somewhere else for 4 minutes) and do this breathing exercise, I’m positive the results will reveal themselves.  I have 2 more auditions coming up and I will let you know how it goes!   Does anyone else run in to this issue?