Key takeaways:
Slow breathing signals your body to calm down, which can help lower your stress and anxiety levels right away.
There are many different ways to practice slow breathing — an easy one is 4-7-8 breathing, where you breathe in for four counts, hold your breath for seven, and then exhale for eight counts.
If breathing exercises aren’t helping calm your nerves, other relaxation techniques like picturing a calm place, going for a walk, or talking to a friend may help.
Feeling stressed? It might sound too good to be true, but sometimes, taking a deep breath can make a big difference. It can calm your body and mind and give you a break from stress and anxiety.
Below is a list of breathing exercises that you can try when you’re stressed, anxious, or having trouble sleeping. And if you’re curious, we’ve also covered why breathing works so well.
What are the best breathing techniques to manage anxiety?
There are many ways to practice slow breathing to manage anxiety. We’ve gathered 12 exercises for you to try with the help of some experts. Give each a try to see which ones work best for you.
1. 4-7-8 breathing
If you can remember these three numbers, you’ll be ready for a calming breath anywhere. With 4-7-8 breathing, take a slow, deep breath in for four counts. Then, hold your breath for seven counts, and exhale for eight counts. You can count at your own pace and repeat as many times as you need to.
2. Pretend to blow bubbles
The key to blowing bubbles is to blow slowly so you don’t break the soapy film. Dr. Tasha Holland-Kornegay, licensed mental health clinician and founder of Our Treatment Center, recommends “pretending to below bubbles” to slow your breathing.
“How on earth does this calm you down? The key is to exhale longer and slower than your inhale,” says Holland-Kornegay.
3. Lion’s breath
Michael O’Brien, a breathwork practitioner and founder of Pause Breathe Reflect, suggests trying a “lion’s breath.” Start from a seated position. Then, “inhale through your nose with your mouth closed,” says O’Brien.
“Open your mouth wide, and stick out your tongue as much as you can, curling it down toward your chin,” he says. “Exhale forcefully with a ‘ha’ sound, feeling the breath come from deep within and passing across your entire tongue. Keep your tongue [out] for the entire exhale, and don't be afraid to get loud. Relax your face and take a few normal breaths before doing another lion's breath.”
4. Wave breath
Sandi Schwartz is the director of the Eco Happiness Project, and she turns to nature to help with deep breathing. Wave breathing is one example. She explains:
“If you have access to a beach nearby, you can breathe in and out to the rhythm of the waves cresting and crashing. You can also use a video to create the same effect.”
Using an audio recording or imagining waves may also be effective.
5. Physiological sigh
Dave Shelton founded My Fitness System and says “the physiological sigh is the most common breathing exercise” that he recommends to clients.
“To perform the [sigh], take a long and slow deep breath through your nose,” says Shelton. “Once your lungs are about full, suck a bit more air in through your nose [and] then slowly release. Perform this exercise three to five times.”
6. Cooling breath
Beth Gibbs is a certified yoga therapist, and she often uses the cooling breath technique. You can sit or stand for this one. Then:
“Open your mouth, purse your lips like you are going to whistle, and slowly draw cool air in over your tongue and into your lungs,” Gibbs says. “Close your mouth, and exhale slowly through your nose. Repeat for 2 to 5 minutes as long as you are comfortable.”
7. Alternate nostril breathing
Sara Faravelli, a certified personal trainer and yoga instructor, uses alternate nostril breathing when it’s time to calm down. To do alternate nostril breathing:
1. Close your left nostril with your left thumb.
2. Inhale slowly through your right nostril, and pause for a moment.
3. Then, close your right nostril, and exhale through your left nostril.
4. Repeat this pattern with each breath.
8. Timed breathing
One way to help slow your breathing is to clock each breath, including how long you inhale, hold your breath, and exhale. Start with 5 seconds for each step, using your phone stopwatch or a clock with a second hand. This video can help guide you:
https://youtu.be/EYQsRBNYdPk?t=63
9. Dandelion breath
Schwartz — who wrote the book “Finding Ecohappiness: Fun Nature Activities to Help Your Kids Feel Happier and Calmer” — takes inspiration from the puffy seeds of a dandelion to help slow down the breath.
“Either get a real dandelion or use your imagination,” she says. “While holding it about an arm's length out in front, take in a big inhalation through your nose, hold for a few seconds, and then slowly blow the dandelion so the seeds disperse through the air.”
10. Belly breathing
Holland-Kornegay also suggests belly breathing, sometimes referred to as diaphragmatic breathing. You focus on starting each breath low from your stomach (as opposed to in your chest).
“Start by placing one hand on your stomach and the other on your chest,” recommends Holland-Kornegay. “Simply breathe in through your nose, making sure the hand on your stomach rises and the hand on your chest stays in the same place.”
11. Box breathing
Counting to four is the name of the game with box breathing, which O’Brien also recommends.
“It's a simple inhale on a count of four, hold for 4 [seconds], exhale for 4, then hold for 4. The pattern looks like a box, and you can do 1 to a few minutes,” says O’Brien.
12. Sunrise breath
Using your body — your arms, in the case of the sunrise breath — can help you control your breathing speed.
“Stand up tall with your arms by your sides. Raise both arms high above your head until your fingers touch and your arms are in a round shape like the sun,” Schwartz explains. “Hold for a few seconds, and then exhale strongly, allowing the arms to gently fall back down.”
How does breathing help your mental well-being?
Breathing — specifically slow, deep breathing — can help lower your anxiety levels. It does this by starting to calm your fight-or-flight response.
Humans have a fight-or-flight response that helps them stay safe from threats or danger. This survival response gets you ready to take action in a stressful situation. It often happens automatically. Your sympathetic nervous system increases your heart rate and tenses your muscles to run or fight.
Your fight-or-flight response can come in handy when you’re in danger. But it’s not always an effective way to deal with problems. It won’t help to run from or fight stressful situations like speaking in front of a group, facing a relationship issue, or getting bad news.
Enter body-focused relaxation techniques like deep breathing.
Deep breathing tells your body that it’s safe to turn on its rest-and-relax mode instead. It taps into your parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for lowering fight-or-flight responses. By taking a good, deep breath, you trigger other calming physical changes like:
Slowing down your heart rate
Lowering your blood pressure
Reducing the amount of stress hormone (cortisol) in your system
Sending more oxygen to parts of your brain that help you think clearly
As your body slows down its fight-or-flight response, you may notice that your anxiety and stress levels go down as well. This can make it easier to cope with difficult emotions, a stressful moment, or even chronic pain and trouble sleeping.
What if you still feel anxious after you’ve tried a breathing exercise?
If you still feel anxious after you try breathing, there are many other relaxation techniques that you can try. Here are just a few ideas:
Try mindfulness meditation exercises.
Imagine that you’re in a calming place, like on the beach or in a forest.
Tense and relax all of your muscles one group at a time. Start with your feet and toes, and move up your body.
Go for a walk, or practice yoga.
Focus on your senses, and identify things you can see, hear, feel, smell, and taste around you.
Text or call a friend or loved one.
The bottom line
Slow, deep breathing can trigger a rest-and-relax state in your body. Whether you’re breathing in time with the waves, using 4-7-8 breathing, or doing box breathing, there are many creative ways to breathe deeply. This can lead to lower anxiety and stress. Even better, you can do breathing exercises anywhere, and they don’t take very long.
Why trust our experts?
References
Donahue, J. J. (2020). Fight-flight-freeze system. Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences.
Hopper, S. I., et al. (2019). Effectiveness of diaphragmatic breathing for reducing physiological and psychological stress in adults: A quantitative systematic review. JBI Database of Systematic Reviews and Implementation Reports.
MedlinePlus. (2020). Relaxation techniques for stress.
The University of Toledo Counseling Center. (n.d.). Deep breathing and relaxation.
Therapist Aid. (n.d.). Deep breathing exercise.
Weil Lifestyle. (n.d.). Video: Breathing exercises: 4-7-8 breath.
Zaccaro, A., et al. (2018). How breath-control can change your life: A systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.
