When you’re stressed, your thoughts might race and your body might feel tense. You might feel like you can’t catch your breath. This can be especially noticeable if you have an anxiety disorder; panic disorder and other anxiety disorders can cause shortness of breath.

Using slow breathing for reducing stress may help you slow down, de-stress and reduce anxiety. You can try a few breathing techniques now or learn them as tools to manage stress later. 

Try these simple breathing exercises

These exercises may give you an easy introduction to breathwork. You may find some of its benefits while working through these, especially if you feel that anxiety is overriding your intuition or thoughts. Here are four exercises and solutions for common concerns about each:

• Diaphragmatic breathing

You may be used to breathing with your chest, feeling your ribs rise and fall with each breath. This isn’t an unhealthy habit, but a different way of breathing may give you more assistance in self-regulation. Diaphragmatic breathing involves using the muscle between your chest area and abdomen.

How do you begin using your diaphragm?

The muscle between these two parts of your body — your diaphragm — forms a dome-shaped barrier at the bottom of your rib cage. It also connects to your sternum and spine.

If you’re not used to controlling your diaphragm, you can try a simple exercise while sitting, standing or lying on your back. Place one hand on the center of your chest and one hand between the bottom of your sternum and your navel. Adjust and deepen your breathing until the hand on your stomach rises and falls while the hand on your chest is still. You are now breathing with your diaphragm instead of your chest.

• Box breathing

Box breathing is a type of intentional breathing used to promote calm, relaxation and focus. Its name comes from its four equal parts, like the sides of a square (or box). These parts are exhaling through your mouth, holding your breath, inhaling through your nose and holding again (and then repeating the cycle). Initially, you may do each part of the exercise for four seconds. As you become more calm, you might increase each part of the exercise by a second at a time, up to eight seconds.

What if you feel like you’re holding your breath too long?

Even starting with four-second parts may be tough if you are already feeling short of breath or holding tension in your chest. You may be hyperventilating, which is over-breathing that lowers carbon dioxide levels. You can try to break the cycle of hyperventilating by exhaling forcefully and fully. Then, begin the exercise in short parts, perhaps less than four seconds.

If your anxiety symptoms are making this overwhelmingly difficult, consider talking to a professional, such as a licensed clinical therapist.

• 4-7-8 breathing

Like box breathing, this technique consists of timed inhalation, holding and exhalation. However, it has three parts of differing lengths. You can start by exhaling fully. Next, inhale through your nose for four seconds. Hold your breath for seven seconds; then exhale with a “whoosh” for eight seconds.

Do you feel like you’re not inhaling enough or exhaling too long?

You may need to settle into the exercise to feel more comfortable with it. If you’re not feeling comfortable right away, you may try exhaling more before you begin. You might inhale and exhale for more similar lengths of time, then gradually decrease your inhalation to four seconds and increase your exhalation to eight.

If this exercise or any other exercise in this list isn’t feeling right, you don’t have to force it. You can try one of the other breathing exercises in this article. You can also ask a professional, like a licensed clinical therapist, for other types of exercises. Maybe you might find comfort in another way, like exercising, meditating or being creative.

• Cyclic sighing

Cyclic sighing is a three-part exercise similar to 4-7-8 breathing, but it is untimed and it doesn’t require you to hold your breath. First, inhale through your nose. Take another breath to fill your lungs deeply. Then, exhale with a slow sigh through your mouth. You can repeat this exercise until you feel more calm, or for about five minutes.

Is focusing on this exercise difficult?

Slow breathing for reducing stress might be difficult when your mind is racing. If you have trouble focusing on this exercise or another in this article, you might try a visualization. Picture each part of this exercise or 4-7-8 breathing as a side of a triangle, or each part of box breathing as a side of a square. Follow the outline of the shape in your mind as you breathe.

You may also imagine something to help you keep count. Perhaps each part of cyclic sighing or each second of another exercise accompanies a syllable in a song or a piece of an image. You may also find your focus by drawing your attention to physical sensations.

Breathing exercises may help you feel better in challenging moments. However, if your symptoms are disrupting your life, you may benefit from professional care in addition to simple breathwork. At Lightfully, we offer care options including a Virtual Partial Hospitalization Program (vPHP). For anxiety and other mental health conditions, you can turn to us for a treatment program that includes individual, group and family therapy. It can include psychiatric treatment with medication if this is necessary, or if you need medication management services for current prescriptions.

Feeling better is possible. When you’re ready to take the first step, reach out to our Admissions Concierge Team. We’ll take the next steps together, toward the fullest, brightest version of you.