Slow your breath, settle your body

Why slower breathing can feel calming

Breathing is one of the few parts of the stress response you can steer on purpose. When you slow down and lengthen your exhale, heart rate naturally dips during each out-breath. Researchers measure this rhythm as heart rate variability (HRV). A systematic review of slow-breathing studies in healthy people linked breathing under ten breaths a minute with higher HRV and with changes in nervous-system activity alongside psychological effects.

Which protocol should I choose?

• In the moment, when you feel keyed up: cyclic sighing. It is quick, and in the 2023 study it improved mood more than mindfulness meditation over a month of daily 5-minute practice.
• As a daily practice: resonance breathing for 5–10 minutes. The strongest evidence comes from HRV biofeedback programs built on this pace.
• When you want structure: box breathing. It also helped in the same study, with smaller mood effects than cyclic sighing.

Safety

Breathing exercises are generally gentle, but stop if you feel dizzy, light-headed or more anxious, and breathe normally. If you are pregnant or have a heart, lung or seizure condition, check with your doctor before regular breathwork. Never practise while driving or in water.