Breathing exercises are one of the easiest things we can do to bring immediate calm to our day and the practice can be done almost anywhere, any time. Deep breathing not only enhances clarity, but has a multitude of benefits for the mind and body. It helps:
- Reduce anxiety and stress
- Release negative emotions
- Lower blood-pressure
- Improve sleep
- Release endorphins and in some cases relieve pain
If you’re feeling stressed or just want to recharge yourself with a little oxygen to the brain, below are three types of guided breathing. We recommend you do the breathing exercises for at least 5-10 minutes and if you can make it a daily routine, even better. Practice all three or choose what works best for you.
Come back any time to use these guided exercises until you feel comfortable practicing the different breathing rhythms on your own. Inhale (through the nose) and exhale (through the mouth). Happy breathing. 🌬
Exercise #1:
Inhale and exhale to the rhythm of the white circle.
Exercise #2:
Exhale, inhale, hold and repeat.
Exercise #3:
4-7-8 Breathing – Inhale, hold, exhale and repeat.
GIF Sources:
Exercise #1: firstyearsuccess.wordpress.com/2016/04/12/self-care-success/
Exercise #2: healthline.com/health/how-to-stop-a-panic-attack
Exercise #3: duffthepsych.com/anxietygif/
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Literally been thinking about getting into this lately. Work stress and all, I actually find myself having difficulty breathing when I’m sleeping. Weird – definitely something I’ll come back to.
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Sorry to hear about your breathing problems at night and work stress. I have allergy induced asthma and it’s not fun sleeping when you can’t breath well. Glad this post is helpful. It’s definitely great because your breath is always with you. Once you find an exercise with a rhythm that works for you, you can do it any time. 🙂
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Breathing is truly the first step in reducing stress. Your GIF’s are wonderful – so simple and clear.
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Thank you for your comment Alison. I can’t take credit for the GIFs (sources are at the bottom of the article) but I do agree they are wonderful and so helpful to help with breathing practice. Hope you are having a lovely day today!
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