Before you start

 If you have an inhaler, take this 10 minutes before starting the breathing technique
This technique consists of:
Breathing control

 Relax in a comfortable position, with your head, neck and arms well supported and drop
the shoulders to a relaxed position
 Rest one hand on your tummy, keeping shoulders and upper chest relaxed and allow
your hand to rise gently as you breathe in. (If you imagine air filling your tummy like a
balloon this may help)
 Sigh out gently through the mouth
 Make sure that your shoulders stay relaxed
 Over a few seconds, gradually increase depth of breathing while staying relaxed
A ‘test’ breath

 Take a very slow deep breath in through your nose or mouth, to the best you can
manage
 Pause at the end of the full breath with your mouth slightly open
 Count for 3-4 seconds
 Make yourself breathe out through your mouth. You can feel your tummy muscle
tighten, but the breath should not be forced
 You should listen and feel for secretions crackling as you breathe out
 Take note, are the crackles at the beginning, middle or end of your breath out?
Beginning = tells us that they are high up in the large airways
Middle = tells us that they are in the medium airways
End = tells us that they are in the small airways
Stage 1
Loosen secretions

 Take a small breath in, feeling your breath at the bottom of your chest
 With your mouth slightly open, breathe as much air out of your chest as you can, at a
fast rate, but not so hard that you become wheezy or cough
 Repeat at least 3 of these breaths
 Resist any urge to cough

Stage 2
Move the secretions up the chest

 As the crackle of secretions starts to get louder change to medium sized breaths in
 Feel the breaths more in the middle of your chest
 Continue to breathe as much air out of your chest as you can, at a fast rate, but not so
hard that you become wheezy or cough
 Repeat at least 3 of these breaths
 Resist any urge to cough

Stage 3
Get rid of the secretions

 When the crackles are louder and still take long, slow full breaths in to the very most
that you can manage
 Breathe as much air out of your chest as you can, at a fast rate, but not so hard that you
bcome wheezy or cough
 Repeat at least 3 of these breaths
 Resist any urge to cough
Follow with a gentle huff as outlined below:

 Take a half breath in

 With your mouth open squeeze the air forcefully out of your lungs, as though you are
steaming up a mirror before wiping it clean. Your stomach muscles should tighten, but
your throat muscles should stay relaxed
 This may be enough to clear secretions or a little cough may be needed
 Try to stop yourself from coughing until the last part of Autogenic Drainage when the
secretions are high up and ready to be cleared. Relax with breathing control technique
in between stages or if you feel the urge to cough in-between cycles.
 Autogenic drainage breaths are very gentle so you should not start to feel tight or
wheezy
 Keep doing the cycle until your chest is clear or until you are tired