Breathing exercise · 4 · 4
How to use Coherent 4-4 breathing for a hospital waiting room, if you have done this a hundred times
The pattern is 4 · 4, which is four and four, if five feels like a stretch.
Follow the circle. It counts for you.
How it works
Equal breathing: 4 seconds in, 4 seconds out, no holds at all. If you have done this a hundred times, change one small thing tonight. Stay with what you can actually feel.
Why it can help
The simplicity is the feature. Under stress, simple is the only thing that survives.
The pattern, in seconds
| Phase | Length | Starts at |
|---|---|---|
| Inhale | 4s | 0s |
| Exhale | 4s | 4s |
One round is 8 seconds. At the default 12 rounds this practice runs 96 seconds — about 1 minute — plus a breath or two of ordinary breathing between rounds.
Good for
- before you walk into a room full of people
- when the day has been fine but you still feel braced
- when you wake at 3am and the room feels too quiet
Tips
- Try it lying down with your knees bent if sitting upright feels like effort.
- Stop after a few rounds if you feel dizzy, and breathe normally for a minute.
- 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.