These breathing practices are listed in an order that makes a nice pranayama practice. Once you learn them, you can use any one of them at any time in the moment to reduce anxiety. It is helpful to practice them under calm conditions so you know them to have them readily available to you when you need them.
These are highlights from Nick Heath’s “The anxious persons breath manual”. For further information including all the studies referenced you can purchase the manual here: https://nickheathphd.gumroad.com/l/breathmanual
Pranayama protocol for Anxiety
- #1 go-to for 80% of anxiety: Resonance breathing for 3-5 minutes at a 4:6 or 5:7 ratio which means inhaling for 4 or 5 seconds and exhaling for 6 or 7 seconds. Exhales can be through the nose or pursed lips
- The other 20% of anxiety which is that moment of stress, pre-presentation anxiety, social anxiety, etc.: 3 slow breaths in a 6:6 ratio —it can also be helpful to add an uddiyana bandha lift at the end of the exhales. Simply inhale for 6 seconds through your nose, exhale slowly for 6 seconds through your nose –and to add the uddiyana lift; follow the movement of the diaphragm inward and upward with your abdominal muscles as you exhale –at the end of the exhale tuck your abs up under your ribs, then relax and inhale. Remember to relax the abdomen on the inhales.
- Andrew Weil’s 4-7-8 breath for reducing anxiety. As Dr. Weil says, “Learning to regulate the breath is a more effective anti-anxiety measure than benzodiazepines, without any of the cognitive impairment and addictive potential of those drugs.”
4-7-8 means Inhale 4 seconds, hold 7 seconds, exhale audibly through pursed lips 8 seconds. Dr. Weil recommends 4 rounds twice per day. - When worrying: Box breathing – Inhale 4 seconds, hold your breath in 4 seconds, exhale 4 seconds, hold your breath out 4 seconds. 4-10x
- Decision or analysis paralysis / brain fog = Nadi Shodhana or alternate nostril breathing – Inhale Left (closing the right nostril with your thumb), exhale Right (closing the the left nostril with your ring finger), Inhale Right, Exhale Left. This is one round do 3-5 rounds.
- To activate vagus nerve and improve HRV — use for healing and restoration after stressful event : Breath in a 4-4-6-2 ratio, which means inhale 4 seconds, hold 4 seconds, exhale out 6 seconds, hold out 2 seconds. Repeat 3-5x
- To calm racing thoughts, quiet mental chatter, lower stress: Brahmari -The humming bee breath. Brahmari improves cognitive function and brain coherence (how well the areas of your brain communicate with one another).
Brahmari 1:2 or 1:3 ratio; inhale 5 seconds, exhale with a high pitched humming 10-15 seconds, 5-10x