WHAT IS THE DIAPHRAGM?
The diaphragm, your only "muscle-organ", is a huge, dome shaped pump, made of the same tissue as the esophagus, that sits up inside the bottom of your ribcage, cutting your body in half, top from bottom. The only thing above the diaphragm is the heart and lungs. Below are all of your other organs. It is an involuntary muscle/organ, attached at only one place, the spine, and for this reason, it is unable to be exercised in the same manner as your other muscles.

WHY IS THE DIAPHRAGM IMPORTANT?
The diaphragm coordinates the respiratory system, which controls the body's ability to get oxygen (inhale) and release carbon dioxide (exhale). All systems depend upon oxygen for their function. Carl therefore considered the diaphragm, not the heart, as the main muscle/organ of the body. With the rise and fall of the diaphragm, the internal organs of the body are massaged. When the diaphragm is strong, it is able to produce a frequency sound (a sound with a fundamental pitch and a full range of overtones). Frequency sounds resonate throughout the entire body, maintaining the health of every cell.

HOW DOES THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM WORK?
When the phrenic nerve, which sits on the top of the diaphragm, receives a message from the respiratory center at the base of the skull that the body needs oxygen, it causes the diaphragm, which sits under the base of the lungs, to descend. As the diaphragm descends, its edges act like the edges of a grapefruit that is being squashed -they spread, rather than going straight down, like an elevator. This movement enables the ribs, which are attached at the spine with a hinge joint and at the breast- bone with cartilage, to swing out on an axis. The additional space caused by this movement creates a vacuum in the lungs and air quickly and effortlessly comes into the bottom of the lungs to fill this vacuum. The diaphragm then begins its much slower ascent. As it moves up inside the ribcage, it supports the base of the lungs and simultaneously synchronizes the release of the spine(where it is attached) along with the shoulder blades, chest, and abdomen, enabling the ribs to fold around the lungs and expel air evenly and equally from all of its surfaces. This complex motion is a reflex and can only occur when the involuntary diaphragm is in charge. All the other (voluntary) muscles of respiration merely respond to the leadership of the diaphragm.

Remember- The diaphragm should always be in motion. Never hold your breath. Without continuous movement, weakening and eventual deterioration of your diaphragm occurs. Unconscious breath holding starts during stressful moments of childhood. Silent count whenever you feel stressed.

THE KEY TO IMPROVED RESPIRATION
Carl knew that the voice, and the ability of the diaphragm to make the air pressure necessary to make sound without tensing, was the key to improved respiration. Carl's exercises allowed his patients to calmly participate in three subtle air pressure experiences:

Slight pressure - silent counting
The patient shapes the numbers from one to ten, but makes no audible sound, not even a whisper. The glottis (vocal cords) remains slightly open so the diaphragm meets a slight pressure resistance. The silent count is one of the most important aspects of Carl's teachings.

No pressure - inhalation
The glottis is open. The diaphragm meets no resistance. (In the case of respiratory disorder, there is always resistance during inhalation. Auxiliary muscles constrict as they try to forcefully bring air into the body. Carl used his hands to relax these muscles so that the patient could begin to experience the reflex action of inhalation that allows air to flow quickly and easily into the body.)

Most pressure -loud counting
The glottis is closed, so the diaphragm meets the most resistance. (The voices of all the emphysema patients were hoarse and breathy, indicating that the glottis was unable to close. This was the result of years of pushing too much air against the glottis with voluntary muscle. By counting out loud along with his patients and sustaining his own frequency sound, Carl was able to use his own voice as a model to unconsciously teach his patients' glottis how to function. These exercises established a coordination between the diaphragm, the air and the glottis that enabled the patient to embrace a sensation of floating, three dimensionality and connectedness to the outside world that had been lost as a result of their discoordination.

Remember: Conscious abdominal muscle expanding or contracting ("the abdomen moves as a result of the lowering and rising of the diaphragm- you don't need to move it"), breathing into the back, ("when the diaphragm is healthy, more air will automatically go into your back, because there is a great deal more lung tissue there than in the front of your body"), the blowing out of breath ("the sound of blowing is merely the sound of the bronchial tubes constricting"), attempts to consciously control diaphragmatic movement by trying to push it up, or move it in any way at all ("the diaphragm has no proprioceptive nerve endings, so it cannot be consciously controlled"), or any other method that encourages the development of one particular part of the respiratory musculature, will not help the respiratory system to return to its natural synergy. The respiratory system is extremely complex. Efforts to bring it under conscious control in any limited portion of its musculature only disrupt the potential coordination of the total system. "The lungs are shaped like pyramids. They are very small at the top and much larger at the bottom. Your ribcage is also much smaller at the top than at the bottom. If you try to take a breath at the top of your chest, it is like putting one pebble on the top of the pyramid. Relax your chest and the inhalation will automatically occur". (Carl Stough)