Frog breathing

Frog breathing is a technique using the mouth and throat muscles to get air into the lungs.

Air is taken into the mouth, the lips are closed and the air is pushed into the lungs by raising the palate and the tongue .

This process is repeated several times. The air is not allowed to escape, so more and more air accumulates in the lungs. If enough air is collected, it is breathed out and the process starts anew.

Frog breathing e.g. is used by people with cervical spine injuries, Duchenne muscular dystrophy and poliomyelitis. It can be of great benefit for all people with weak or paralyzed respiratory muscles . An important prerequisite for this type of breathing is that there is enough muscle strength in the mouth and throat area.

(Frog) breathing was first known in the 1950s and taught during the polio epidemics. Although an ever growing field of application has been created by the great progress in the medical field the frog breathing method has not been introduced into Germany.

In order to successfully apply frog breathing it must be taught and practiced. There are some disabled people who have acquired this method of breathing by self-teaching.

Video for self-teaching

The instructional video shows persons with cervical spine injuries, Duchenne muscular dystrophy and poliomyelitis, who use glossopharyngeale breathing. The video demonstrates in detail how they were taught, as well as indications and counter-indications for the use.

The video was produced by Barbara Webber FCSP and Jane Higgens MCSP in collaboration with Aslan Studios Ltd.. Jane Higgens was one of the first physical therapist who has taught glossopharyngeale breathing in Britain since 1956.

The German version was produced by the Center for Independent Living of Erlangen. We thank all participants for their support: Uwe Frevert (Kassel), Hannes Messerschmidt (Munich), Dinah Radtke (Erlangen, Germany), Stefan Berninger (Mannheim), Dr. Ute Berninger, Glocker (translation), Claus Withopf (German adaptation of the movie) Gabriele Violet (speaker) and Maria Koerkel (chart).

Thanks are due especially to Barbara Webber and Jane Higgens, which made the English video available as well as to the AG Heimbeatmungsservice (home ventilation service) and Respiratorentwöhnung e.V. for their financial and moral support.

Frog breathing