Breathing Exercises to Improve Mental Health
Who knew that simply breathing differently can greatly improve your mental health and well-being? There are many exercises you can do that calm the body and mind, bringing about mental clarity and emotional balance. Keep reading to find the practice that’s right for you.
What is breathwork?
“Breathwork” is a term that includes various breathing techniques and exercises aimed at improving physical, mental, and emotional well-being. These practices involve consciously controlling the breath to influence bodily functions and promote changes in our emotional state. Breathwork can be found in many traditions and practices, including yoga, meditation, and certain forms of therapy.
How can breathing exercises help with mental health?
Breathing well can make a huge difference in our overall levels of health, including mental health.
The proper way to breathe is through your nose (unless you are participating in breathing practices specifically designed to use the mouth, like Neurosomatic Breathwork). Breathing through the nose humidifies the air, removes allergens and contaminants, and improves circulation.
You also want to practice belly breathing rather than chest breathing. Most of the time, we inhale into our chest rather than our stomach, which makes for shallow, ineffective breathing. Breathing into the belly really expands and engages our diaphragm, bringing in more air and improving oxygenation levels.
You can check your breathing by placing one hand on your chest and the other on your belly, then seeing which one moves more. You want to pull the air all the way in, making the hand on your belly move up and down with each breath.
But let’s talk specifics – there are precise techniques designed to achieve specific outcomes when it comes to breathing.
Basic Breathing Exercises
The Setup
Find a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed for 10-15 minutes. You may want to lie down or sit with your spine straight but relaxed. It can be very helpful to wear an eye mask as that greatly increases the relaxation you feel (“Dunkeltherapie” is a German word for darkness therapy, known to reduce depression and anxiety, and to increase well-being).
Start by assessing how you are feeling in this moment. Sense your body, evaluate your emotional state, discern the thoughts happening in your head. What is one word for how you are feeling right now? You can use the Feelings Wheel to find it.
Pick an exercise from the following “menu” depending on how you want to feel afterwards. Continue the exercise for at least 5 minutes, then evaluate how you are feeling again and continue for longer if needed. All of these exercises are done with nasal breathing – inhaling and exhaling through the nose.
Calm Yourself and Reduce Anxiety
Box Breathing
This is one of the better-known breathwork methods for reducing anxiety and even stopping panic attacks. It works in the same way as breathing into a paper bag – by reducing the amount of oxygen in your blood and increasing the levels of CO2, which can have a calming effect on the body.
To practice box breathing, inhale for four seconds, hold your breath for four seconds, exhale for four seconds, then hold your breath for four seconds. The equal inhales, exhales and breath holds can be visualized as a box, hence the name. You can use this handy timer to visually help yourself time the breaths and holds.
The 4-7-8 Breathing Method
The 4-7-8 method of breathing also works by reducing oxygen levels and increasing CO2. Additionally, the longer exhale activates the parasympathetic nervous system, also known as the “rest-and-digest” system – the opposite of sympathetic or “fight-or-flight.” Some people find it easier and more relaxing than box breathing, although the longer holds can be challenging at first.
To practice 4-7-8 breathing, you inhale for four seconds, hold for seven seconds, then exhale slowly for eight seconds. There is no hold between the exhale and inhale. You can use this free timer to visualize this breathing exercise and help yourself get into the rhythm of it.
Increase Energy
Alternate Nostril Breathing
Alternate nostril breathing is a yoga breathing practice that reduces blood pressure and increases alertness. The idea of alternate nostril breathing is to isolate each nostril, breathing in through one and exhaling through the other.
You do this by blocking one nostril with your thumb or finger while inhaling through the open nostril. You then switch nostrils and exhale through the other, now open nostril, followed by an inhale through the same nostril. Then you switch again. In other words, you start one each side with an exhale, followed by an inhale:
Use your thumb to block your right nostril. Inhale through your left nostril.
Use your index finger to block your left nostril. At this point, both nostrils should be held closed.
With both nostrils blocked, hold your breath for a beat or two.
Release your thumb to unblock your right nostril and exhale.
Keeping your left nostril closed, inhale through your right nostril.
Use your thumb to block off your right nostril. With both nostrils held closed, hold your breath again for a couple of seconds.
Release your index finger to unblock your left nostril and exhale.
Breath of fire
This breathing technique is also from yoga and is known as “Kapalabhati” or “skull-illuminating breath” in Sanskrit. It is a staple of Kundalini yoga, which also uses chants to awaken primal energy thought to reside at the base of our spine. Research shows that breath of fire can enhance brain functions such as memory, reaction time, and attention.
To do breath of fire, you should be in a seated position with your spine elongated and relaxed. You will be inhaling passively and exhaling forcefully. The exhale, which requires you to contract your abdominal muscles, is the main focus of this technique.
Inhale through your nose, feeling your belly expand as you do so.
Without pausing, exhale forcefully through your nose while contracting your abdominal muscles. Keep your inhales and exhales equal in length. Repeat until you’re comfortable with the pattern.
Continue the rhythm, inhaling passively and exhaling forcefully.
Now, speed up the inhales and exhales. Your exhales should be powerful and loud. You can do this for as litlle as 30 seconds or as long as 10 minutes.
Find Inner Stillness and Balance
The 5-5 Coherent Breathing
The goal of 5-5 coherent breathing is to increase heart rate variability (HRV) and create bodily coherence between your breath, heartbeat, and blood pressure. High HRV is generally considered better than low HRV because it can indicate that your body is more resilient and can handle changing situations.
This breathing technique has been used to reduce stress in medical students and reduce the effects of PTSD in war survivors. To do this breathing exercise, simply inhale for five seconds, then exhale for five seconds. This results in slower than average breathing thought to enhance relaxation and improve resilience to stress.
You can use this online timer to visualize the technique and pace yourself.
The 4-2-4 Breathing Method
This exercise results in a calm, meditative beathing pattern that can be used as your go-to daily breathing. You inhale for four seconds, hold for two, then exhale for four seconds. Combining this pacing with the breathing into your belly through your nose makes for a nice exercise for general relaxation and well-being. You can use this timer to help yourself keep up.
In Conclusion…
As you can see, breathwork can encompass many different techniques and be a great addition to your toolbox when it comes to dealing with stress, anxiety, depression, and PSTD. The key is being consistent and patient in your practice. While many of these exercises will have an immediate effect on your emotional state, they work best when performed daily over a period of time. So, keep practicing, keep breathing, and keep improving yourself!
***
Want to try some unique breathwork that mimics the effects of psychedelics on the brain? Check out Neurosomatic Breathwork created by Courage to Heal Therapy!
