Q:

My adult son has very bad hicups. He gets them at least three times a week, and they last for hours at a time. What can he do to stop them?

A:

Ayurvedic tradition teaches us that there are a variety of different causes of hiccups as well as different levels of severity. Sometimes, hiccups are more severe in the actual disruption of the breath and can lead to significantly uncomfortable symptoms such as fever and vomiting. These more severe cases must of course be monitored and addressed by a trained Ayurvedic practitioner who can recommend specific herbal interventions as well as other more involved therapies such as oil massages and use of steam tents. If your son’s situation is defined less by the severity of the hiccups themselves and more by their frequency and consistency, then he may simply benefit from a lifestyle that grounds the aggravation of the air element (the excessive movement that results from the disrupted breathing). He may benefit from making white basmati rice and ghee a staple of his meals.

Additionally, he will benefit from developing a full breath practice. Each morning, he can sit in silence and breathe the full breath by inhaling through the nose for a few counts, and then exhaling through the nose for twice as long. Have him sit upright on either a cushion on the floor or at the edge of a chair and do this for at least five minutes a day, as this will help him to settle the air element in his body and center himself on the whole. Be sure to remind him to allow the abdomen to expand as he inhales and contract as he exhales—but to not force it.

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