Inhale, Exhale, Relax

When it comes to coping with stress overload, your breath is one of the best remedies there is...and it's free!

By Richard Rosen

If your floor isn't carpeted, be sure to pad it with a folded blanket, and support your neck and head on a small, firm pillow. Lie with your legs straight, heels a few inches apart, or bend your knees over a yoga bolster or firm pillow; this setup helps release a stiff back and relax a tense belly. Lay your arms on the floor out to the sides, angled about 45 degrees to your torso, and close your eyes. Covering the eyes with an eye pillow is especially helpful. (These are widely available for about $15 at yoga studios and online; you can also make your own by partially filling a sock with rice and sewing the opening shut.)

When you're comfortably set up, begin watching your everyday breath for a few minutes, fixing it in the foreground of your awareness. Then, for another minute or so, mentally count the length of both your inhalations and exhalations; for example, "One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi, and so on (or "One Om, two Om, three Om," if you prefer). Don't be surprised if your exhalations are slightly longer than your inhalations; that's quite common. Once you've settled into your breath, you're ready to try one of the specific exercises below to counteract anxiety, fatigue, or depression.

ANXIETY. You can work with anxiety by focusing on your exhalations and lengthening them, deliberately and gradually. For example, if your everyday exhalation lasts six counts, draw each one out to seven for a few breathing cycles, then to eight for a few cycles, and so on, until you find a length that suits you.

Once you've comfortably increased the length of your exhalations by a few counts, turn part of your attention to the subtle sound of them. You'll notice that each one makes a soft "ha," like a gentle sigh. Try to make this sound—and your exhalations—as soft and even as possible from beginning to end. Pause briefly at the end of each exhalation, resting peacefully in the stillness. Continuing like this, watch your breath as steadily as you can for 10 to 15 minutes.

FATIGUE. To work with fatigue, settle into your everyday breath. Then, after it has slowed down and smoothed out, pause briefly after an exhalation. Rest peacefully in the stillness. After a few seconds, you'll feel a kind of ripple; it's the swell of your next inhalation, building like a wave approaching the shore. Don't take the inhalation immediately; instead, allow it to gather and grow for a few more seconds. Then, without effort or resistance, gratefully receive the breath.

Continue to explore lengthening your exhalation retentions for 10 or 15 breaths. Then begin to lengthen your inhalations gradually, just as you lengthened your exhalations in the previous exercise for anxiety. Finally, shift part of your focus to the sound of your inhalations, a slightly whispering sibilance the yogis think of as "sa." Try to make this sound—and your inhalations—as soft and even as possible from beginning to end, and continue to watch your breath as steadily as you can for 10 to 15 minutes.

DEPRESSION. Working with depression can be more difficult than working with either anxiety or fatigue. For that reason, be cautious about how you apply the breathing remedy when you're feeling blue. Forcing the breath can quickly exacerbate your lousy mood.

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