Having a nightly routine will help you get a better night’s sleep, but if you are someone who struggles with insomnia or general anxiety, you might find it more difficult to get proper rest. Becoming mindful of your breath can help you achieve a greater sense of calm, and one of the best ways to achieve this is by adding breathwork to your routine.
If you would like to improve the quality of your rest, this article will show you how breathwork can help by exploring the following topics:
Before we explore some science-backed techniques, let’s cover how our breathing affects our sleep.
Are you looking to relieve anxiety all throughout the day? See our guide on breathwork for anxiety.
There is a strong correlation between breathing and sleep, as 80% of your sleep involves slow, regular breaths. Also, nose breathing- how many of us breathe at night when we are sleeping- influences the parasympathetic nervous system, which ultimately calms the body, helping you relax.
Your breath not only affects how long it takes you to fall asleep but can also determine the overall quality of your rest. For example, when you breathe through your mouth, as opposed to through your nose, it decreases the level of oxygen delivered to the blood and can lead to disruptions in your sleep, causing you to wake throughout the night.
The best way to breathe better while sleeping is to build a habit of deep breathing. This can be done by practicing breathwork exercises, which are designed to calm the body. Being able to breathe comfortably and remain relaxed will help your body maintain a restful state.
Mouth breathing and quick, shallow breaths (hyperventilating) activate the sympathetic nervous system, whereas breathwork for sleep calms the nervous system. By incorporating breathwork techniques for relaxation into your evening routine, you will be able to achieve harmony between the mind and the body.
There are many types of breathwork techniques available that can be used to achieve a variety of results. Some techniques lead to a greater sense of calm and relaxation, which is required for a good night’s rest. When you make a conscious effort to focus your attention on your breathing, you enter into a mindful, meditative state. Through your awareness, breathwork becomes a tool that you can use to calm yourself and lull yourself to sleep.
If your anxiety and restlessness make it difficult to fall asleep at night, we suggest exploring breathwork exercises that are specifically designed to calm the mind and body. Below is a list of four breathing techniques for sleep, including their techniques, scientific case studies, and related benefits.
The 4-7-8 breathing technique is also referred to as “relaxing breath.” This is an exercise that is great for calming anxiety and regulating emotional responses and can be used before bedtime to help you fall asleep.
How to do it:
The Science
4-7-8 breathwork was developed by Dr. Andrew Weil, who describes this breathwork exercise as a “natural tranquilizer.”
Making slight variations to the Pranayama yoga breath, Dr. Weil was able to create a breathwork technique that helps to replenish oxygen to the body. Since the 4-7-8 breathing style uses diaphragmatic breathing, which increases oxygen levels, there is a full respiratory exchange that ultimately relaxes the body and mind.
Benefits
The United States Navy Pre-Flight School developed the military breathing technique for sleep as a way to train the pilots to fall asleep in two minutes, even while sitting up! If you are someone who takes a while to fall asleep, you may want to explore this exercise in order to fall asleep faster.
How to do it
With this technique, it’s important to note that rest will come faster if you are already familiar with basic breathwork and muscle relaxation exercises. As you practice military breathwork for sleep, consider supplementing this technique with other relaxation methods.
The Science
Because Navy SEALs and military personnel are often put in conditions that are not conducive to rest (loud noises, flashing lights, inclement weather, etc.), training units developed unique tactics to help soldiers fall asleep. Especially for those fighting in battle, poor sleep becomes a matter of life or death.
Military breathing for sleep uses a combination of visualization and tactical breathwork to calm the nervous system and to reduce stress.
Visualization helps the body relax by creating a soothing environment within your mind. The body scan helps increase awareness of your body as you relax the muscles in your lower body.
Benefits
As we mentioned above, one of the key principles of breathing exercises for sleep is mindfulness. With breathing meditation for sleep, this technique allows you to focus solely on your breath as you steer your mind away from intrusive or anxious thoughts.
How to do it
The Science
Combining meditation and conscious breathwork is an effective tool in helping with insomnia. When you focus your attention on different areas and sensations in your body, you are diverting your attention from anxious thoughts while at the same time using deep inhalations and exhalations to activate your parasympathetic nervous system.
Benefits
Yoga breathing or Pranayama breathing is the foundation of all yoga practices. And while Pranayama breathing can be done while your body is active, there are also distinct yoga breathing exercises for sleep that are perfect to use before bed.
How to do it
Below are three different yoga breathing exercises that you can incorporate into your nightly routine.
Left Nostril Breath
Brahmari or Humming Bee Breath
7-2-11 Breathing
The Science
There are physiological transformations that occur in the body due to yoga breathwork practices, and changes are a direct result of how conscious breathing impacts the central nervous system. Yoga or Pranayama breathing activates and balances out both our sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, which regulates aspects such as blood flow, digestion, sexual arousal, mental clarity, and relaxation.
Benefits
When undertaking a new practice, such as breathwork, it is sometimes easier to see the exercises performed on video. For help relaxing at night, follow along with this guided breathwork video for controlled relaxation:
Check out these other videos on YouTube:
Looking to expand your scientific knowledge of breathwork’s connection to sleep? These research studies can provide you with additional information:
If anxiety creeps in whenever it’s time to go to bed, you can now rely on these four science-backed breathing exercises for sleep. By practicing and making these exercises a part of your nightly routine, you can access the peace of mind required for a good night’s sleep.
We invite you to discover the many available breathwork practices on the Othership app.
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