Somatic Breathwork: 5 Techniques to Reset Your Nervous System
In this post, you will learn somatic breathwork exercises to bring your nervous system and body back to a sense of safety. There are many different somatic breathing patterns out there. But in this article, I will share the five breathwork techniques my coaching clients find most helpful.
Use them when you are stressed, triggered, scared, worried, overwhelmed, self-critical, or anxious, or add them to your daily routine.
Let’s dive in.
1. Extended Outbreath
The extended outbreath is simple. The idea is to make your outbreath last longer than your inbreath.
There are many scientific reasons why this works. Breathing out changes the pressure on your heart alters its pace, and signals to your body that you are safe. This calms you down and helps promote a heart rate variability that could improve your well-being.
Use extended outbreaths before responding to a stressful email, having an important conversation, or responding to your child when stressed out. This way, you help your body know it need not be in threat-response mode. It can feel safe.
A basic extended outbreath pattern is breathing in for 6 counts and out for 8 counts. Some people switch it up breathing in for 4 and out for 8, or in for 6 and out for 10. With practice, some can even extend their outbreath to 20 counts.
The longer the outbreath, the greater the sense of relaxation. But start small and work your way up; exhaling for too long may not be safe for you.
This technique can take effect in as few as three breaths. But you could also do it for 3 to 5 minutes at any time to reset your state. I like to use a timer so I don’t have to track the time.
Like with any new practice, be careful and check with your doctor before you do it.
2. The Physiological Sigh
The Psychological Sigh is a breathwork technique supported by scientific literature. Studies show it can change your physiological state.
It’s powerful and, like the extended outbreath, can be effective in just 2 or 3 breaths.
Here’s how to do it:
Breathe in deeply through the nose.
Pause for half a second, holding it in.
Breathe in again, sipping in a little more air.
Let it all out in a slow exhale through the mouth. (You don’t have to sigh, but some people like to.)
Doing it feels strange at first. Your lungs might not be habituated to this double inhale, but with practice, it begins to feel more natural.
The idea is to give your lungs extra oxygen that you didn’t take in during your first in-breath.
Our lungs aren’t just open cavities; they have little sacs that open up when we breathe in. When you first breathe in, some sacs don’t get new air. Sipping in a second inhale pushes more air in, and gets more sacks filled.
Like other somatic breathwork techniques, the psychological sigh signals to your nervous system that it does not need to be in a threat response.
Dr. Andrew Huberman, who’s talked about this technique on his podcast (video above), suggests doing this before stressful activities, like getting up on stage or replying to an email. Use it when you feel nervous, anxious, worried, mad, or sad.
Just a few of these breaths can have a big impact on your state of mind. It can pull you out of nervous system states that cause negative symptoms or emotions to come up.
3. Coherent Breathing
Coherent breathing is one of my favorite somatic breathwork techniques.
Created by Dr. Stephen Elliott, it is a breathing technique where you inhale and exhale at a steady pace of 5.5 seconds each, preferably through your nose.
Unlike other somatic breathwork techniques listed in this article, coherent breathing isn’t a quick fix. Doing 3 coherent breaths won’t have a huge effect on your state. It’s a 3- to 5-minute practice you schedule into your day.
A bit of science is necessary to understand the power of coherent breathing.
Your heart rate changes speed when you breathe in and out. The difference between these speeds is heart rate variability (or HRV). When you’re stressed, there’s less variability because your heart may tend to beat faster and at a more steady rhythm to respond to the “threat.”
Dr. Stephen Elliott monitored biofeedback during coherent breathing and found it could restore optimal heart rate variability. He also found that practicing coherent breathing regularly helps you stay in a regulated, grounded state throughout the day.
The idea is that by practicing coherent breathing regularly, you would find yourself in a balanced state more often.
You might even start breathing the “coherent way” (5.5 seconds in and 5.5 seconds out) throughout your day without having to think about it—at your desk, computer, or at work. This routine can have a compound effect on your life, helping with stress and other areas.
Coherent breathing is especially helpful if you struggle with anxiety. It has been very beneficial for me during tough times.
4. Belly Breath
When we're stressed, we often hold tension in different parts of our bodies, especially the belly and solar plexus. Your abdomen can tense up. This is where our intestines are—the body’s second brain.
Breathing into the stomach helps relax these muscles as well as encourages deeper breathing and relaxation.
So here’s how to do a belly breath:
Put a hand on your stomach and focus on making your stomach rise with each breath in and drop with each breath out.
Belly breath requires concentration. It's not something we naturally do.
It helps us get out of our heads and shifts our attention to our bodies as we focus on inflating the belly. The gentle touch of the hand on the stomach can also be soothing. It's a gesture of kindness and self-compassion that signals safety to your body.
For belly breaths, the length of each breath can be what you want it to be. Breathing in for 4 to 6 counts and out for 8 to 10 counts—a variation of the extended outbreath—is a nice way to do it.
Belly breath can be effective in just 3 breaths. You can use it to calm yourself down in difficult moments or include it in your daily routine as a grounding meditation for 3 to 5 minutes.
5. Finger-Tracing Breath
This technique isn’t widely known, but it’s very helpful. I love sharing this with my coaching clients because it’s so practical and easy. Even my 3-year-old does it. She puts her little hand up and traces her fingers.
Here’s how to do it:
Put one of your hands up in front of you and spread your fingers wide.
With your other hand, trace the outline of your hand, slowly moving along each finger.
Breathe in as you go up a finger and breathe out as you go down.
When you finish the last finger, you can come back around the other way; you could also do both hands - one after the next - whatever feels right for you.
Like belly breathing, the finger-tracing breath technique is a grounding practice. It forces you to be in the moment - to stop and pay attention to physical sensations—watching your hand, feeling your breath come in and out, and sensing your finger trace the other hand.
See, when we feel stressed, it’s often because we’re in our heads. We’re thinking about the future, the past, or worrying about something that doesn’t exist. This technique brings us back to the present moment.
Choosing the Right Technique
I can’t tell you which technique is best for you. You have to try them out. Play around with them and see how they feel and what kind of effect they have on you.
Generally, some techniques are better for a sit-down meditative practice, while others are more for on-the-spot use. But you can apply them all in both situations.
You don’t have to stick to just one. You can use a few of them or all of them.
But before you start a somatic breathwork routine, notice your current breathing patterns. Get in the habit of tuning in and paying attention to where your breath goes when you feel inner discomfort.
From there, you can choose whichever somatic breathwork technique you prefer.
Benefits of Somatic Breathwork
1. Reduces Stress and Anxiety
When you breathe slowly and deeply, you signal to your brain that you are safe. This signal arrives through the vagus nerve, which is part of the parasympathetic nervous system—the system that is in control of calming us down. By activating the vagus nerve, somatic breathing can reduce a fight or flight threat response and help you feel more at ease. If you and your doctor deem it safe, try it next time you feel overwhelmed!
2. Improves Heart Health
Somatic breathing increases something called Heart Rate Variability (HRV). HRV is the variation in time between each heartbeat. Generally speaking, a higher HRV means your heart can adapt better to stress and different activities, improving resilience. By practicing somatic breathing, you help your heart handle stress better, lowering the risk of heart problems and high blood pressure (Tavoian et al., 2023). In other words, somatic breathing keeps your heart in tip-top shape.
3. Enhances Brain Function
This practice helps your brain wake up and think more clearly. It increases good brain waves called alpha waves and theta waves. (Malhotra et al., 2021)
“Delta waves, which are between 0.5 and 4 hertz (Hz), occur during deep states of dreamless sleep. Theta waves, which are between 4 and 8 Hz, occur during light sleep or deep relaxation.” (Verywell Mind)
In other words, somatic breathing helps your brain relax, wander, and recharge.
4. Boosts Emotional Well-being
Somatic breathing doesn’t just benefit your mind and heart—it lifts your mood too. By practicing this technique, you’ll find yourself feeling more comfortable and happy. It is reputed to soothe emotions like anger, nervousness, and fear, making it easier for you to handle them when they arise. This happens because deep breathing affects your brain's chemistry, promoting feelings of well-being.
5. Increases Relaxation
You have likely experienced the effect of slow, deep breathing. It can send a message to your brain through the vagus nerve promoting relaxation and a sense of safety. This nerve helps control your parasympathetic nervous system, which is like your body's brake pedal, slowing things down and helping you relax. By breathing intentionally, you tap into this natural relaxation response, helping you feel more at ease in any situation.
FAQ
What is Somatic Breathwork?
Somatic means “relating to the body.” So, all breathing is technically somatic. However, somatic breathwork focuses on manipulating your breath patterns to feel calmer and safer.
While most people use breathwork to calm down, it can also be used to stress the nervous system, like in the popular Wim Hof method. Wim Hof’s breathing technique intentionally puts stress on the body and teaching your body to experience that kind of stress and not feel threatened by it helps to build resilience. By breathing as you would in a fight or flight situation, you teach your body that these stress signals are not always a cause for alarm. This helps you feel safe even when your body is mobilized for performance.
According to Polyvagal Theory, our bodies are constantly scanning our environment for threats. They respond based on whether we feel safe and to what degree. But the body doesn’t understand words; it understands cues of safety. So somatic breathwork is a tool to signal to the body that everything is OK.
How Does Somatic Breathwork Work?
Deep, slow breathing increases the air volume in the lungs and improves oxygen exchange in the body. Oxygen-rich blood flows more efficiently, nourishing tissues and organs.
Long outbreaths oxygenate the blood but also activate the parasympathetic nervous system, regulating your heart rate, calming you down, and making you feel present and grounded. Through somatic breathing, you become mindful of present sensations and feelings. Over time, this awareness helps you handle stress better and control your emotions.
What Happens to Our Breath When Feeling Stressed, Worried, or Angry?
When we get triggered, our heart rate changes, our breath becomes shallow or quick, and our muscles tense up. Some people might start hyperventilating or even hold their breath.
These automatic responses are survival mechanisms. Unfortunately, they can be triggered by everyday situations like an email from a boss or a text from a significant other. Our bodies respond as if we are facing a physical danger.
But thankfully, by taking control of our breath, we can manage and reverse these automatic reactions. Changing your breath rate immediately signals to your body that you are safe and that you can relax.
DISCLAIMER: I share all of the above with you not as a doctor nor healthcare practitioner, but as a coach. It is important that you discern for yourself with the guidance of your doctor what breathwork exercises are safe for you to do.
Hey you! Are you looking to develop more inner peace and confidence?
Let’s get together on a 1:1 discovery call to discuss your goals and see if coaching with me is a fit.
(or learn more)
