Pranayama for anxiety: 4 yogic breathing techniques to try

Pranayama comes from Sanskrit and means control of the breath. It’s a core part of yoga, and includes a wide range of breathing practices, from slow and soothing to fast and energising. The slow, gentle ones may help when you’re feeling anxious.

Here are four to try, what the research says, and which techniques to avoid if you’re prone to panic.

What the research says

A 2020 systematic review of controlled trials found that pranayama had physiological and psychological benefits, especially for people with breathing conditions like asthma. But the studies were mostly small, and the reviewers said more high-quality trials are needed. Research on slow breathing in general is more established, linking it to more relaxation and less anxiety.

So pranayama is a promising, low-risk tool, rather than a proven treatment for anxiety disorders on its own.

4 pranayama techniques for anxiety

1. Bhramari: humming bee breath

1. Sit comfortably and close your eyes.
2. Breathe in gently through your nose.
3. Breathe out slowly through your nose while making a soft, low humming sound, like a bee.
4. Repeat 5 to 10 times.

Some people gently cover their ears with their thumbs to feel the vibration more. The hum naturally lengthens your out-breath.

2. Nadi shodhana: alternate nostril breathing

1. Rest your right thumb on your right nostril, and your ring finger by your left nostril.
2. Close your right nostril and breathe in slowly through the left.
3. Close the left nostril, open the right, and breathe out slowly through the right.
4. Breathe in through the right, then switch and breathe out through the left.
5. Continue for 3 to 5 minutes.

Keep it slow and unforced. If your nose is blocked, skip this one.

3. Dirga: three-part breath

1. Lie down or sit comfortably.
2. Breathe in slowly, filling first your belly, then your ribs, then your upper chest.
3. Breathe out slowly in the reverse order: chest, ribs, then belly.
4. Repeat for a few minutes.

It encourages fuller, slower breathing, without forcing big breaths.

4. Ujjayi: ocean breath

1. Breathe in and out through your nose.
2. Gently narrow the back of your throat, as if fogging up a mirror with your mouth closed, so your breath makes a soft ocean-like sound.
3. Keep the breath slow and even, with the out-breath as long as or longer than the in-breath.

Techniques to avoid when you’re anxious

Some pranayama is fast and energising, and can bring on dizziness, tingling and a racing heart, which can trigger panic in people who are prone to it:

• Kapalabhati (skull-shining breath)
• Bhastrika (bellows breath)
• “Breath of fire”
• Long breath holds

If you have a health condition, like heart or lung disease, high blood pressure or epilepsy, or you’re pregnant, check with your doctor before trying breathing practices with holds or forceful breathing.

Tips for practising

• Keep it gentle. Calming pranayama should feel comfortable, never strained.
• Practise daily, for a few minutes, when you’re calm.
• Learn with a teacher if you can, especially for alternate nostril and ujjayi breathing.
• Stop if you feel dizzy, and return to normal breathing.

How Breatheasy can help

Breatheasy guides you through simple, slow breathing that works alongside pranayama. Its Calm, Box and 4-7-8 exercises run for 1, 3 or 5 minutes, and your phone pulses as you breathe in, so you can close your eyes and follow along. If anxiety tips into panic, tap “I’m feeling anxious” and Luma walks you through it, step by step. Breatheasy is coming soon to iPhone and Android.

When to get help

If anxiety is with you most days, or panic attacks keep happening, talk to a doctor. Breathing practices are a helpful tool, but cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is the most effective treatment for most anxiety problems. Our guide to anxiety and panic attacks explains more.

Sources

• Jayawardena et al. (2020). Exploring the therapeutic benefits of pranayama (yogic breathing): a systematic review. International Journal of Yoga.
• Zaccaro et al. (2018). How breath-control can change your life: a systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.
• Breathing exercises for stress, NHS