4 Easy Breathing Exercises For Moms At Any Stage

Prepping for labor and birth? Practice your breathing. Too wired to sleep after a day of toddler wrangling? Practice your breathing. Going through something tough and finding any form of self-care impossible? Practice your breathing!

There are so many benefits to conscious breathing including enhanced focus, better sleep, stress relief, and pain management. Here are 4 simple techniques you can use any time, any place to help you get control of your emotions and come back to the present moment:

• 4:4 Breathing

  I use this even breath in a pinch, when I realize my thoughts or emotions have gotten away from me and I just need to come back to earth. This is also a great breath exercise for absolute beginners, or as a “warm up” of sorts to additional techniques, like the ones below.

  How to practice:

  Inhale for a count of 4 seconds. Exhale for a count of 4 seconds. Repeat as needed.

  You can adjust to 3, 5, or even 8 second breaths depending on what is most comfortable to you.

• 4:6 Breathing

  Use this breath when you need to chill out, or when you’re feeling some physical discomfort. The elongated exhales help calm the parasympathetic nervous system, bringing us out of “fight or flight” mode, and into “rest and digest” mode.

  How to practice:

  Inhale for a count of 4 seconds through the nose. Exhale for a count of 6 seconds through the nose or mouth. Repeat for as long as you need to feel relief.

  You may also want to adjust the length of inhales and exhales here too. Try working up to a 4 second inhale, 8 second exhale and see how that feels.

• Box Breathing

  Famously practiced by Navy SEALs, box breathing is a great calming technique, but also one that can help focus the mind when you’re feeling scattered.

  How to practice:

  Inhale for 4 seconds. Hold the breath in for 4 seconds. Exhale for 4 seconds. Hold the breath out for 4 seconds.

  Adjust the cadence as needed, but keep each part equal.

• 4:7:8 Breathing

  This three-part breathing technique is another calming breath, and one that I most commonly use for sleep. Breath holds and elongated exhales give the mind something to focus on, and gives the body a chance to down-regulate.

  How to practice:

  Inhale for 4 seconds. Hold the breath for 7 seconds. Exhale for 8 seconds.

  I like to challenge myself to repeat this 10 times when I’m having a tough time falling asleep. If I lose count, I have to start from the beginning. Sweet dreams!

Try these different techniques a few times over the next week and see how you feel. You can try them at any time of day, together or separately.

If you’re you’re a new or expecting mom, here are some ways breathwork can benefit you.

If you’re going through grief, loss or any difficult time, here are some suggestions to make these exercises more supportive to you.

Lastly, I made you a little printable to have as quick reference to keep on your phone, print a copy for the diaper bag, or to hang up on the inside of your mirror.