Slow breathing: calm in five minutes

Anxiety washes over you for no reason, irritation flares over little things, and in the evening your thoughts won't let you sleep. Slow breathing is one of the simplest ways to calm the nervous system. It works without willpower and without special conditions.

Why it works

A slow in-breath and especially a long out-breath directly switch the nervous system from "alarm" mode to "rest" mode. It is a reflex — you don't need to talk yourself into it. In studies, slow breathing and meditation are comparable to medication in their effect on anxiety.

What breathing doesn't do

To be honest: slow breathing does not reduce hot flashes themselves — in studies it is no better than a placebo. Nor do yoga and meditation. For hot flashes, strength training, a cool bedroom and, without medication, cognitive behavioural therapy and clinical hypnosis work better. More in the article "Hot flashes: why they happen and what really helps".

Breathing is for calm, anxiety and irritation. That is the reason to do it.

How to do it

• Breathe in through your nose for a count of four, out slowly for a count of six. That comes to about six breaths a minute.
• 5–10 minutes a day. Even five minutes has an effect.
• The evening is most convenient — it helps you move towards sleep. But you can also do it during the day, in any pause: before a meeting, in the car before getting out, after work.
• When anxiety hits — switch straight away to slow, long out-breaths.

Relax your shoulders and breathe with your belly. If you feel dizzy, breathe less deeply and a little faster.

Who should take more care

With asthma, breathe calmly, without holding your breath or straining. If an attack starts, stop and use your usual treatment.

What can get in the way

• "My thoughts drift off." That is part of the practice: notice it and come back to counting.
• "I forget." Link breathing to something that happens every day anyway: brushing your teeth in the evening, the light going off.
• "Breathing alone won't fix my sleep." True: for sleep, a fixed wake-up time and the rule "bed is for sleep only" are stronger. Breathing is an addition to them.

What to expect

Notice how often anxiety and irritation hit and how you fall asleep. If you wear a ring or watch, you can compare heart rate variability on evenings with and without breathing. Log how you feel in VIA-L.

If it doesn't help

If anxiety or low mood lasts more than two weeks and gets in the way of life, that is a reason to see a doctor. More in the article "Mood swings, anxiety and irritability".

This is general information, not a prescription.