The world has felt like an increasingly stressful place over the past few years but there are numerous ways to combat feelings of anxiety and one of the most easy and popular is breathing exercises.
I’ve tried out several for The Focus’ Health & Wellness section in recent weeks including alternate nostril breathing and finger breathing among others. Today, however, I came across a technique that is supposedly used by the US Navy SEALs to help remain calm in stressful, potentially life-and-death situations. Naturally, I wanted to give it a try.
Box breathing technique explained
The box breathing technique is an incredibly easy one to learn.
It involves inhaling deeply through your nose for four seconds, holding your breath for four seconds, exhaling through your mouth for four seconds and holding your breath again for another four seconds.
You can complete as many rounds of the box breathing technique as you need.
According to the Calm mental health app, Navy SEALs use box breathing as a quick way to get the nervous system under control which can be vital in helping them stay focused and precise during critical operations.
A medically reviewed article from WebMD states that box breathing can help in several ways including combating feelings of panic and stress as well as helping you to sleep if suffering from insomnia.
The breathing technique can also lower blood pressure and decrease the amount of cortisol – the stress hormone – in your system.
For a visual representation of how to carry out the box breathing technique, please see the video from Dr Alan Mandell below.
I tried it
As the box breathing technique is one that Navy SEALs supposedly use, I was eager to test it out.
Ordinarily, when working at my desk, my resting heart rate will sit around the 70bpm mark according to my smartwatch.
However, the day I tried out the technique was a particularly stressful one and my heart rate was up around 81-82bpm and would not come down.
As instructed, I carried out the breathing exercise and as I breathed in, I could feel my heart pumping ever so slightly faster and as I breathed out, my heart would feel as if it was slowing down.
My pulse didn’t decrease as I was completing the technique but after I finished a few rounds, my heart rate quickly started falling and returned to roughly my normal resting rate at 72bpm.
The technique is well worth trying if you’re feeling stressed or overwhelmed as it’s easy enough to do.
However, it didn’t quite match my favorite breathing technique I’ve tried so far, the Take Five method.
In fairness, the Take Five method does involve hand movements which would potentially be tricky for a Navy SEAL out in the field so I can see why box breathing is their preferred option.
