Box Breathing For Anxiety Relief

Box breathing, also known as 'Square' 'Tactical' breathing, is a simple and always available technique that will help calm the nervous system and regulate.

Use it in response to heightened emotions, anxiety, or when you are not feeling grounded.

Description:

This session guides you through box (square) breathing, a simple four-count pattern that helps reduce anxiety and support calm. There’s no lead-in or introduction and no counting, just clear cues to breathe in, hold, breathe out, and hold. Calming background music plays throughout.

Goal:

To reduce anxiety and promote calm through breathwork (activation of the parasympathetic nervous system)

Summary:

Breathe in for four seconds

Hold for four seconds

Breathe out for four seconds

Hold for four seconds

Repeat

Progression:

Addition: Visualization

In your minds eye picture a square.

Starting with the in breath at the bottom left corner, visualize yourself (or a ball of energy) moving up. As you hold the breath, visualize it moving to the right, then as you hold visualize it moving down, and as you breathe out visualize it moving back to the start point.

Addition: The 'Yogic' Breath

All breathwork that aims to calm the nervous system can be summarized as: 'Nose, Low, and Slow' - but for a more comprehensive instruction, we explore the 'yogic' breath:

Inhale slowly through your nose, letting the breath fill your belly first, then rise into your chest, and finally lift toward your neck/collarbones.

Exhale slowly in reverse, releasing from the neck/collarbones, softening the chest, and emptying the belly last. Keep the flow smooth and unforced.

Addition: Finger Counting

Connect the thumb and pointer finger together for one set of box breathing, then connect the thumb and middle finger for another set of box breathing (repeating for ring and pinky finger).

Place attention upon the sensations of the fingers touching.

One ‘hand’ is for cycles of 16 seconds, thus approximately one minute of meditation.

Listen next:

Explore more foundational healing practices (or via iTunes, Spotify, & Amazon). You can also find 100’s more tracks, talks, and full courses on the Insight Timer app, and in The Art Of Self-Connection community.

Book a session:

This session was just an introduction to the practice. If you would like to go deeper I also offer 1:1 sessions.