Question 1

Who do we work with? Breathing humans.

Accepted Answer

0-5 year olds recovering from birth trauma, respiratory illness, lip and tongue tie, mouth breathing, throat surgeries, sleep problems, behaviour issues around emotional regulation

6-18 year olds: learning issues, concussion recovery, emotional dysregulation, anxiety, depression,  asthma, mouth breathing, throat/nose surgeries, sleep problems, behaviour issues, emotional regulation, unexplained neurological dysfunction, neurodivergent, athletes, performers, dancers, gymnastics, hockey, soccer etc...

adults: all of the above plus: pregnancy induced hypocapnia, breathing disordered sleep, breathing pattern disorders, mental illness, phobias, exercise limitations, breathlessness, stress recovery and resilience building, ptsd, c-ptsd, sports performance, recovery from stroke, TBI, auto-immune, long-covid, mask wearing issues, and somatic illnesses.

Question 2

What is applied psychophysiology?

Accepted Answer

Eric Willmarth, Ph.D., gives his elevator pitch on the science behind applied psychophysiology, the mind-body approach.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toOtqIiWQT8&t=11s(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toOtqIiWQT8&t=11s)

Psychophysiology

(from Greek ψῡχή, psȳkhē, "breath, life, soul"; φύσις, physis, "nature, origin"; and -λογία, -logia) is the branch of psychology that is concerned with the physiological bases of psychological processes.
 • The discipline of psychophysiology concerns the study of the link between psychological processes and somatic physiology, which is the interface between mind and body.
 • While psychophysiology was a general broad field of research in the 1960s and 1970s, it has now become quite specialised, based on methods, topic of studies and scientific traditions. 
 • Methods vary as combinations of electrophysiological methods (such as EEG), neuroimaging (MRI, PET), and neurochemistry. Topics have branched into subspecializations such as social, sport, cognitive, cardiovascular, clinical and other branches of psychophysiology.Although the term refers to the mind-body interaction in the development of somatic
 • disorders, the lay interpretation during the last decades referred to the somatization
 • type of disorders, and therefore in 1980, in the DSM-III, the term “psychological
 • factors affecting physical conditions” replaced the previously used “psychophysiological (or psychosomatic) disorders.” However, the term continues to be used in
 • research, in journal titles, and in scientific associations, and also in 2003, the
 • American Board of Medical Specialties and the American Board of Psychiatry and
 • Neurology approved the specialty of psychosomatic medicine

Question 3

What are somatic therapies?

Accepted Answer

The most common and straightforward form of somatic therapy is known as such or as somatic experiencing therapy. In this therapy, patients discuss their problems as in other forms of mental wellness therapies. Then, rather than just talk about them, somatic therapists guide patients to focus on their underlying physical sensations. From there, the mind-body exercises may include breath work, meditation, visualization, art, grounding, dance, movement repatterning and/or sensation awareness work.

Beyond the standard somatic therapy, numerous subgroups use its framework in specific ways. These include:

Sensorimotor psychotherapy: A comprehensive therapy that uses the body as both a source of information and intervention targets.

The Hakomi Method: Psychotherapy that integrates scientific, psychological, and spiritual sources, focusing on four core concepts: gentleness, nonviolence, compassion, and mindfulness.

Bioenergetic analysis: Body-psychotherapy that combines bodily, analytic, and relational work based on understanding energy.

Biodynamic psychotherapy: A combination of allopathic (medical) and holistic therapy modalities that include physical massage by the practitioner

Brainspotting: In addition to mind and bodywork, this therapy incorporates eye positioning to retrain emotional reactions.

Question 4

What is biofeedback?

Accepted Answer

Biofeedback is the data stream created by tools that measure what we can’t easily see, feel or perceive in our body. These instruments are used to feed you back information about your physiological processes, assisting the individual to increase awareness of these processes and to gain voluntary control over body and mind. The biofeedback instruments  we may use measure blood oxygen saturation, exhaled CO2 levels, muscle activity, skin temperature, electrodermal activity (sweat gland activity), respiration rate, heart rate, heart rate variability, blood pressure, brain electrical activity, and blood flow.

Question 5

What is educational capnometry?

Accepted Answer

Educational Capnography is a biofeedback tool and process that enables an individual to learn how to change breathing habits for the purposes of improving health and performance.  Research shows that biofeedback, alone and in combination with other behavioural therapies, is effective for treating a variety of medical and psychological disorders, ranging from headache to hypertension to temporomandibular to attentional disorders. Educational capnometry is used by psychologists, counsellors, physical therapists, occupational therapists, physicians, nurses, and massage therapists, naturopathic doctors, behavioural health specialists, and more.

Question 6

Is the CapnoTrainer a medical device?

Accepted Answer

No. It is not a medical device. It is a WELLNESS device, as indicated on its label. The CapnoTrainer is a teaching and learning tool for breathing behaviour analysis including self and guided exploration of breathing behaviours, habits, and patterns and outcomes.

Question 7

What is behavioural hypocapnia?

Accepted Answer

Hypocapnia, is a condition characterized by low levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the blood. Carbon dioxide plays a crucial role in maintaining the acid-base balance in the body. Characterized by low levels of carbon dioxide in the blood, often resulting from learned dysfunctional habits or respiratory disturbances. By understanding its causes, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment options, healthcare professionals can effectively manage hypocapnia, address any underlying factors, and restore the balance of carbon dioxide in the body. The treatment of hypocarbia aims to address the underlying cause and restore the balance of carbon dioxide in the body.

Hypocapnia can have various causes, including:

• Hyperventilation: Rapid or deep breathing can lead to excessive elimination of carbon dioxide, resulting in hypocapnia
 • Anxiety and stress: Emotional distress or panic attacks can cause hyperventilation and subsequent hypocapnia
 • Lung diseases: Conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, or pulmonary embolism can lead to altered carbon dioxide levels.
 • High altitude: At high altitudes, the air contains less oxygen, leading to increased respiratory rate and hypocarbia.
 • Medications: Certain medications, such as respiratory stimulants or excessive use of bronchodilators, can affect carbon dioxide levels.
 • Metabolic disorders: In rare cases, metabolic disorders such as metabolic alkalosis or diabetic ketoacidosis can contribute to hypocarbia.

Treatment options may include:

• Breathing behavioral retraining: eliminating habits to  restore and regulate respiratory rate and reduce overbreathing.
 • Anxiety management: Techniques such as relaxation exercises, meditation, or counseling may be beneficial in managing anxiety-induced hyperventilation.
 • Oxygen therapy: In certain cases, supplemental oxygen may be provided to help stabilize carbon dioxide levels.
 • Medications: If hypocarbia is caused by an underlying condition, medications may be prescribed to manage the condition and restore carbon dioxide balance.
 • What is Hypocapnia? Its uses and side effects. | Breathwork Education with Jesse Coomer(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-Vt5jZB0dY&t=10s)

Question 8

What are symptoms, disorders or conditions caused by behavioural hypocapnia?
(CO2 deficit, broughtabout by overbreathing)

Accepted Answer

Symptoms and Deficits
• Abdominal: nausea, vomiting, cramping, bloatedness
• Autonomic-stress: acute fatigue, chronic fatigue,
headache, muscle pain, weakness
• Cardiovascular: palpitations, tachycardia, arrhythmias,
angina symptoms. ECG abnormalities
• Cognitive: attention deficit, learning deficits, poor
memory, brain fog, inability to think
• Consciousness: dissociation, state change, dizziness,
fainting, confusion, hallucinations
• Emotional: anxiety, anger, fear, panic, phobia,
apprehension, worry, crying, low mood
• Movement: diminished coordination, reaction time,
balance, perceptual judgment
• Muscles: tetany, hyperreflexia, spasm, weakness, fatigue,
pain, difficult to swallow, chest discomfort
• Performance: sleep apnea, anxiety, rehearsal, focus,
endurance, muscle function, fatigue, pain
• Peripheral: tingling, numbness, trembling, twitching,
shivering, coldness, sweatiness
• Psychological: shifts in personality, self-esteem, memory,
emotion, thought
• Respiratory: shortness of breath, airway resistance,
bronchial constriction, asthma symptoms
• Sensory: blurred vision, sound seems distant, reduced
pain threshold, dishabituation, dry mouth
• Smooth muscles: cerebral, coronary, bronchial, gut,
ocular, Splanchnic, and placental vasoconstriction

Health Issues and Complaints that are made worse…
 
• Behavioral: performance issues, speech, singing, task
challenges
• Cardiovascular: angina, heart attack, arrhythmias, ECG
abnormalities
• Chronic pain: injury, disease, systemic inflammation
• Cognitive: learning disabilities, ADD, ADHD
• Drug efficacy: shifts in pH and electrolyte balance alter
absorption
• Emotional: anger, phobias, panic attack, anxiety,
depression
• Fitness issues: endurance, muscle strength, fatigue,
altitude sickness
• Gastric: irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), non-ulcer
dyspepsia
• Neurological: epilepsy
• Neuromuscular: repetitive strain injury (RSI), headache,
orthodontic
• Pregnancy: fetal health, premature birth, symptoms
during pregnancy
• Psychological: trauma, PTSD, drug dependence
• Psychophysiological disorders: headache, chronic pain,
hypertension
• Respiratory: asthma, emphysema, COPD
• Sleep disturbances: apnea
• Unexplained conditions: fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue
• Vascular: hypertension, migraine, ischemia,
hypoglycemiaocular, Splanchnic, and placental
Vasoconstriction

Physiological effects
• Antioxidant reduction
• Bicarbonate deficiency (long-term kidney effect)
• Bronchial constriction (airway resistance)
• Calcium migration into muscle cells (fatigue, spasm)
• Cerebral excitatory and inhibitory disturbances
• Cerebral hypoxia, hypoglycemia, ischemia
• Cerebral vasoconstriction (increased pH)
• Compromised O2 distribution (hemoglobin chemistry)
• Compromised nitric oxide distribution (hemoglobin
chemistry)
• Coronary (vascular) constriction
• Dishabituation and habituation (CO2 set point)
• Gut smooth muscle constriction
• Ionized magnesium reduction (tetany and cardiac
compromise)
• Hemoglobin, compromised O2 and NO delivery
• Hypokalemia (potassium deficiency)
• Hyponatremia (sodium deficiency, long-term effect)
• Increased neuronal excitability & contractility
• Increased overall vascular resistance (smooth muscle
constriction)
• Myocardial electrophysiology disturbances
• Neuronal acidosis (lactic acid)
• Plasma alkalinity, effects on endothelial NO production
• Reduced ocular blood flow
• Reduced lung compliance
• Reduced splanchnic organ perfusion (hepatic and renal
arteries)
• Sodium and potassium migration into cells (excitability)
• Stress hormone release (ACTH)
• Thrombosis, platelet aggregation
• Tissue inflammation

Question 9

Will my Canadian 3rd party health insurance cover these services?

Accepted Answer

Yes, if it covers counselling/psychotherapy. Some plans also have an additional wellness plan.

Question 10

Is there any research to support the metabolic testing you offer?

Accepted Answer

Research on metabolic testing highlights its significance as a reliable method for evaluating energy metabolism, body composition, and overall fitness levels. This process typically involves a detailed analysis of the body's oxygen consumption during physical exertion, coupled with the measurement of carbon dioxide output. Such assessments are widely regarded as the gold standard for accurately determining the number of calories the body expends throughout the day.

Furthermore, an increasing body of research underscores the efficacy of metabolic testing in providing crucial insights into an individual's nutritional needs and intake patterns. By examining metabolic responses, practitioners can tailor fitness and nutritional strategies more effectively, leading to better health outcomes and enhanced athletic performance. Additionally, studies have found that metabolic assessments can help identify metabolic disorders, allowing for early intervention and personalized treatment plans. Overall, the evidence supports the utility of metabolic testing as a powerful tool for individuals seeking to optimize their health and fitness.

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sports-and-active-living/articles/10.3389/fspor.2019.00024/full

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Stay in touch!