How to relieve stress through slow paced breathing

Slow paced breathing is used to cope with high stress events. It was developed by Prof Dr Thomas Loew and is an emergency technique that can be used in any situation. This tutorial will show you the fundamentals.

How to practice slow paced breathing

Get into a comfortable position and start the Slow Paced Breathing exercise in Breath Ball.
If you haven’t downloaded the Breath Ball app yet, you can do so free of charge by following one of these links:

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After starting the Slow Paced Breathing exercise, Breath Ball will show an animation similar to this:

Slow Paced Breathing

Now adjust your breathing to match the animation and:

  1. Inhale for four seconds through your nose into your belly.
  2. Exhale for six seconds.
  3. Repeat for 10 minutes.
    Please note:
    • Breathe into your belly to achieve the best effect.
    • The duration of the breathing session is important. Longer sessions lead to the better results. Exercise for at least 10 minutes.

How does it work?

Have you ever witnessed a smoker? They tend to quickly inhale from a cigarette before blowing the smoke out slowly. When they do, they often appear visibly relaxed. The same kind of instant relaxation happens when you do the slow paced breathing.

Want to quit smoking? Thy this:

What smokers ironically don’t know is that the relaxing effect of the slow exhalation works even without a cigarette. If you’re a smoker, give it a try: Next time you want to light a cigarette, take a quick deep breath and exhale slowly. Do it three to five times in a row and postpone the cigarette until the craving comes back. Then repeat.

It helps if you keep your mind occupied to delay the craving. Try reading, playing video games or do whatever else you enjoy that keeps your mind busy.

Positive side effects of slow paced breathing

Regular practice of slow paced breathing is highly effective to prevent and relieve stress. Studies have shown that stress symptoms receded and sleep difficulties decreased. Regular practice increases your ability to concentrate and even a single session can causes an immediate improvement of quality of life.

Credits

This tutorial is a simplified summary of Prof. Dr. Thomas Loew’s book Langsamer atmen, besser leben. The book provides an in depth overview of the scientific research done in the field of slow paced breathing, its effects and use cases. If you understand German, this is the book you want to read.

Downloads for slow paced breathing

The slow paced breathing animation can be downloaded via the link. For best results, practice it with the Breath Ball app. Here are the links to the free downloads:

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You might also want to have a look at the heart coherence breathing and box breathing exercises to learn how to cope with stress. Beside that, here’s a link to some other breathing exercises:

Disclaimer: Breath Ball is not a medical device and this tutorial is not a therapy. Both Breath Ball and this tutorial are for wellness purposes only.

If you feel uncomfortable with any of the breathing exercises, stop using them immediately and consult a doctor or therapist.

You use Breath Ball and this tutorial at your sole responsibility.