A Simple Breathing Exercise To Calm Your Mind & Body

The sympathetic nervous system commands your fight-or-flight response. When it fires, your heart rate and breathing speed up and stress hormones like cortisol start pumping through your bloodstream, preparing your body to face a threat. If the threat is "A lion is chasing me and I need to run away," this response is helpful. But if the threat is "I'm late to work!" this response not particularly helpful—and, in fact, it can be damaging. When cortisol is elevated too frequently or for too long, it disturbs the body's hormone production.

The parasympathetic system, on the other hand, controls your rest, relax, and digest response. When the parasympathetic system is dominant, your breathing slows, your heart rate drops, your blood pressure lowers, and your body is guided back into a state of calm and healing.