Breathing Techniques to Combat Stress

Well-being & BalanceConfidence & Self-AwarenessAll employees≈ 15 min

Key skill: Stress management

Summary

Three simple breathing techniques to defuse stress: abdominal breathing, 3-2-5-2 anti-panic breathing and three-stage breathing, practised in one-minute micro-breaks to restore calm and clarity.

Target audience

Anyone looking to improve their quality of life and relationships

Learning objectives

Use breathing as a simple, powerful tool to manage stress and promote relaxation
Practise deep, calm breathing to bring yourself fully into the present moment
Practise breathing micro-breaks to soothe the parasympathetic nervous system
Try three powerful anti-stress breathing techniques: anti-panic breathing, 3-2-5-2 breathing and three-stage breathing

Module outline

ArticlesBreathe to think better · The three anti-stress breathing techniques
Expert videoAn introduction to the fundamentals of abdominal breathing, with practice of two anti-stress techniques: calming anti-panic breathing and energising three-stage breathing
AnchoringA quiz and True/False questions to dig deeper into the topic and anchor what you've learned
Memo cardA downloadable coaching memo card: the key points from the expert video
CommitmentConcrete examples to help you define your own commitment
BonusA selection of videos to go further (TED, YouTube)

Models & methods

Abdominal breathing; 3-2-5-2 anti-panic breathing; three-stage breathing; breathing micro-breaks that activate the parasympathetic nervous system.

Research-based

Cited figure: the brain accounts for 7% of body mass but consumes 20% of the oxygen we take in.