Breathing exercise · 6 · 6
Coherent 6-6 breathing for a hospital waiting room, when nothing else has worked today
Simple counts — 6 · 6 — and a circle that keeps time.
Follow the circle. It counts for you.
How it works
Equal breathing: 6 seconds in, 6 seconds out, no holds at all. Nothing else has worked today. That is not a reason to skip this. Notice what's solid: the floor, the chair, your own weight.
Why it can help
It gives your body a rhythm to settle into, without asking it to do anything clever.
The pattern, in seconds
| Phase | Length | Starts at |
|---|---|---|
| Inhale | 6s | 0s |
| Exhale | 6s | 6s |
One round is 12 seconds. At the default 8 rounds this practice runs 96 seconds — about 1 minute — plus a breath or two of ordinary breathing between rounds.
Good for
- when the afternoon has gone flat
- when you have been given bad news and need to keep functioning
- when you cannot sleep and do not want to get up
Tips
- Try the same pattern at a different time of day and see whether it feels different.
- If you wear a watch that tracks breathing, ignore it while you do this.
- Nothing is held here, so there is no moment where you are waiting for permission to breathe.
Please note
If holding your breath makes you dizzy or uncomfortable, skip the holds entirely and breathe slowly and evenly instead. Never push through lightheadedness. If you are pregnant, or manage a heart, blood pressure or lung condition, check with a doctor before doing breath holds.
If this rhythm does not suit you, try 4-2-6 breathing for a break at work, when the house is busy, How to use 3-6 breathing for a hard conversation, on a low-energy afternoon or Coherent 4-4 breathing — 4 · 4 — for being unwell, when you have woken up too early.