Breathing Exercises

And other ways I try to suffocate myself

Paced breathing exercises are great for grounding oneself or helping us slow down when we are starting to get disregulated.

I have been introduced to a number of different paced breathing exercises. This GIF above. Square breathing, where you inhale, hold, exhale, hold, to counts of 4. Triangle breathing where in, hold, and out are done for the same length. 4-7-8 breathing has us do these same actions for an unsurprising 4, 7, and 8 seconds each.

I love breathing exercises. As I mentioned, they're grounding, because controlled breathing activates our body's system that calms the flight, fright, or freeze response.

Also, I hate breathing exercises. 85% of the time any one of these is the wrong rhythm for my relaxed breathing based on the day and the situation and my position. I find myself feeling suffocated at second 6/7 of holding my breath.

If this has ever happened to you, here's my best tip: The exact numbers aren't actually important!!! Try a round where you count your inhale and exhale and then try to add one more count to help slow down. Maybe just do patterns of 3. The point is calm and controlled.

Coping skills are great. Most of them don't work for me and even fewer do in the first form they were presented. Learning how to adapt them is key.