These 3 simple breathwork practices help settle your breath, slow your heart rate and calm your nervous system before bedtime, helping you both fall asleep and stay asleep.
The practices below stimulate our parasympathetic response, supporting our body’s ability to rest and digest, leading to better sleep quality.
Cadence breathing practice
- inhale for your count of 2
- exhale for your count of 3
Extending the exhale, supports a parasympathetic rest and digest response.
Focusing our breath on a count can help calm the mind.
A short 5-10 minute breathwork practice can help you sleep better.
Diaphragmatic breathing practice
- lay down
- place both hands on your belly
- inhale belly relaxes, rising up
- exhale belly contracts down
Breathing low in the body driven by the diaphragm supports a parasympathetic, rest and digest response.
left nostril breathing practice
- block your right nostril with your finger
- inhale & exhale through the left nostril
*partially block the right nostril if this is too challenging for you
*if possible soften/reduce the volume of your breath so you are breathing less air
The left nostril is linked with the parasympathetic rest and digest response.