12-minute breathing meditation for restless legs, in the office

About this practice

12 minutes to meet restless legs with less of a fight. A breathing practice, in the office. A guided session of about 12 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: restless legs

An urge to move the legs, worst at rest in the evening, usually reflects nervous-system arousal rather than a leg problem.

It tends to show up as:

• A buzzing or crawling feeling when sitting still
• Needing to move to feel comfortable
• Symptoms worsening in the evening

A slow, absorbing task gives the arousal somewhere to go and often reduces the urge without forcing stillness.

Doing this at your desk

• Feet flat, back supported, screen away from your eyeline
• You can do this with your eyes open if the office makes closing them awkward
• Unclench the jaw and drop the shoulders first, before anything else

Nobody needs to know you are doing it. Keep it invisible if that makes it possible.

How breathing works

A breathing practice uses the breath as the object of attention and as the control lever. Because exhaling slows the heart through the vagus nerve, it acts on the nervous system directly rather than through thinking.

• Keep the exhale longer than the inhale — that is the active ingredient
• Count the exhales and start again whenever you lose count
• Do not force depth; let the breath find its own level

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00Turn your phone face down if it's within reach. If it's in another room, even better.
2. 0:15Your anchor for the next few minutes is the breath itself. Nothing else needs following.
3. 0:29Now let your attention move from the room into your body, slowly, the way you'd move through a doorway you know well.
4. 0:47Notice whether your breathing is high in your chest or low in your belly. Just notice. No fixing.
5. 1:03Let the in-breath be short and the out-breath unhurried.
6. 1:14Notice the small pause before your body decides to breathe in again.
7. 1:27Feel the parts of you that have gone quiet.
8. 1:38Notice your shins, which take small knocks all day and never complain.
9. 1:51Notice the small movement in your belly when you breathe.
10. 2:03Notice your ears, which mostly just receive things.
11. 2:14Feel the weight of the legs that feel buzzy at rest somewhere specific, then let the floor take a share of it.
12. 2:32When the fidgeting that keeps you up presses in, put a hand on your chest or your belly. Warmth and pressure are anchors your body already trusts.
13. 2:52Follow the breath down into your belly and feel it come back up.
14. 3:05Notice any tension that arrived while you weren't looking.
15. 3:16Follow the air from the nostrils down to the belly, then back out. One full trip at a time.
16. 3:32Silence. Let your shoulders drop again if they've crept up.
17. 3:44If you're counting the minutes, that's fine. Count them and come back.
18. 3:57If the breath feels tight, do not deepen it. Just watch it, and let it find its own depth.
19. 4:13A short silence. Let it be empty.
20. 4:23Notice if you've been frowning at your own thoughts.
21. 4:34Keep the exhale a little longer than the inhale. That is the entire technique.
22. 4:48I'll stop for a moment. Take the pause at your own speed.
23. 5:01Notice the tone of your own inner voice. Is it kind?
24. 5:13There is no target number here. Only the next breath, and then the one after it.
25. 5:28Pause here. Count three breaths if you need an anchor.
26. 5:40Feel the last part of the exhale, where it turns into nothing.
27. 5:53Remain here for a few more breaths.
28. 6:03Start at the top of your head. Notice the scalp, which you almost never notice.
29. 6:17Notice how many breaths you take in a minute. Don't change the number, just check.
30. 6:31Let the pause stretch out.
31. 6:40Feel the soles of your feet. All the weight of you goes through them.
32. 6:54Notice if your breathing is faster than you expected. Don't correct it. Just note it.
33. 7:08Stay here a little longer.
34. 7:17Feel your upper arms hanging. They're heavier than you remember.
35. 7:29Let the breath get soft, the way it goes when someone is reading beside you.
36. 7:43A few seconds more.
37. 7:52Notice your fingers, one by one, starting with the little finger.
38. 8:04Imagine softening the edges of the urge to move that will not quiet. Not erasing it, just letting the sharp parts go a degree softer.
39. 8:23Let's rest here in silence. It's short.
40. 8:33If you catch yourself fighting the legs that feel buzzy at rest, that is worth noticing. The fight usually costs more than the feeling.
41. 8:52Breathe as if you had all evening. There's no rush in this part.
42. 9:05Say to yourself: this is uncomfortable, and I can stay with it for one more breath. Then take that breath.
43. 9:22If the urge to move that will not quiet shows up, let it be there without arguing with it. You are not trying to remove it, just to sit beside it.
44. 9:44Let your belly rise first, then your chest, then the tops of your lungs.
45. 9:58If your body wants to move, let it move, then come back.
46. 10:11Notice whether you're breathing or holding. Start breathing again.
47. 10:22A few seconds of nothing now. That's on purpose.
48. 10:33Let the counting do the work. When you lose the count, start again from one — no penalty.
49. 10:49Let it be this simple.
50. 10:58If you're going straight back to work, take ten seconds at the doorway first.
51. 11:12Let your breathing be completely ordinary again.
52. 11:22No rush to move on.

Questions people ask

Meditation is a practice, not a treatment. If you are dealing with ongoing distress, please also reach out to a professional.