Breathlessness is far broader than a physical symptom. It affects people’s mood, self-esteem and social links and often involves feelings of guilt and shame. Breathlessness can also be a symptom of a range of mental disorders, such as panic and anxiety disorders. There … Read more…
This post was originally published by The Conversation. Anthropologist and Life of Breath team member Andrew Russell writes: New figures show that more than half of all teenage smokers in the north-east of England have bought illegal tobacco. The figures, from the 2017 … Read more…
This post was originally published by The Conversation. Anthropologist and Life of Breath team member Andrew Russell writes: It’s hard to think back to what English pubs and clubs were like before the law about smoke-free public places came into force … Read more…
On 1st July 2007 England banned smoking in enclosed public places. Although contentious at the time it has gone on to become one of the most popular and successful pieces of legislation ever. To mark the tenth anniversary of … Read more…
This is the second of a series of responses to the British Lung Foundation‘s Battle for Breath report. Join us on Twitter to discuss the issues, Thursday 24 November 2016, 12:00GMT #breathreport. Researcher Rebecca Oxley considers what insights anthropology can offer: The British Lung … Read more…
This post is the first of a series on vaping and vape tricks by Rebecca Oxley, post-doctoral researcher in anthropology on the Life of Breath project. Rebecca is currently looking for people to share their stories about living with breathlessness. E-cigarettes can make the breath … Read more…
Elspeth Penny is an arts, health and communication specialist. She has a letter writing project and a creative consultancy and writes, directs and acts across several platforms. She writes: ‘My Dear Breath, I have lived with you for 83 years, the first … Read more…
Jess Farr-Cox, Project Manager (Bristol) writes: The Merry-Go-Round is not as well-known as other works by W. Somerset Maugham, such as Of Human Bondage and his enormous output of short stories. Despite reading Maugham for many years, I had never … Read more…
Vocal coach, community choir and workshop leader and music therapist Phoene Cave writes: In 2008 I answered an advertisement for a singing teacher at Royal Brompton Hospital in London. The original idea was inspired by Bronchial Boogie in Oldham, to … Read more…
Can e-cigarettes (also called electronic nicotine delivery systems or ENDS) help curb smoking or are they just a smoke screen allowing tobacco companies to keep people addicted to nicotine? And how should global policy makers proceed when uncertainty makes agreement impossible? In … Read more…
In the second of a series of posts about smoking (see also ‘A three-pipe problem’), Project Manager (Bristol) on the Life of Breath project Jess Farr-Cox writes: The overlap between breathing, smoking and singing is an interesting one, particularly as it bends … Read more…
In the first of a series of posts on smoking (see also ‘Sing sweetly for tobacco!‘), Jess Farr-Cox (Project Manager (Bristol) for Life of Breath) writes: The Life of Breath project has engagement with schoolchildren as one of its stated aims, encouraging them to … Read more…