Tranquility Breathing

The Science

Our body’s emotional and behavioral states can be recognized by how deeply and how quickly we breathe.

Low breath volume and high respiratory rate (shallow and rapid breaths) are characteristic features of anxious, uneasy, angry, or fearful states, as they are sympathetically driven “stress responses”.

In a restful, tranquil state of well-being, the breathing physiology is completely different – unhurried and gentle diaphragmatic breathing can be seen.

Accordingly, we’ve created this breathing pattern to mimic the “relaxation response” and therefore improve your stress-related physiology, including autonomic nervous system imbalance.

A respiration rate of ~0.1 Hz was scientifically proved to elicit some coherent and resonant features in neuronal and cardiovascular interactions.

Increased synchronization of various physiological signals and responses substantially shifts the autonomic balance in the parasympathetic (“rest-and-digest”) direction, which positively influences blood pressure, improves mental functioning, and maximizes HRV, therefore promoting behavioral relaxation.

Cultivate a sense of calmness when and wherever you need it.

How To Perform Tranquility Breathing

Begin by gently closing your eyes and relaxing. Make sure your posture allows your back to be upright, tall, and strong, but not overly rigid.

Then, inhale gently through the nose, sipping air to the count of 3. The breath should be smooth and quiet. Then, slowly exhale through the nose to the count of 6. Allow the belly to naturally fall back to its resting position, before drawing air in through the nose and beginning again.

Benefits of Tranquility Breathing

The slow breathing cadence of this pattern, especially when combined with diaphragmatic (belly) breathing leads to an increase in vagus nerve activity.

The vagus nerve is the body’s primary parasympathetic, rest-and-digest nerve. In other words, it helps take the body out of fight-or-flight mode so that you can stay relaxed and beat stress.

There are several benefits that come from this pattern and others with a slowed cadence:

• Decreased stress response
• Reduction in feelings of anxiety
• Improved digestion
• Higher quality sleep
• Decreased blood pressure and heart rate

There are a few simple ways you can supercharge the benefits of this pattern…

Tip: Use Mindfulness to distance from your internal dialog

Mind-wandering is identified as the human brain’s default mode of operation and is inseparable from prolonged and extensive thinking about things or situations that are not related to what you’re doing right now.

Very often these thoughts are intrusive, almost obsessive, and therefore rumination-inducing. They interfere with normal mental functioning, which makes your mind unhappy and does not allow you to perform even simple tasks or activities, not to mention falling asleep…

Mindfulness creates a psychological distance between you and your wandering mind. Conscious breathing is one important aspect of mindfulness and is all about bringing your attention and focus to your breathing.

It has been proven that this technique activates many areas of the brain, the improved functioning of which leads to a reduction in the rush of thoughts, a decrease of negative emotions, and puts the body in a state of calm and relaxation.

Try paying more attention to the present moment. Do not battle with intrusive thoughts, just accept them and increase your awareness of things that happen here and now – explore your breathing, notice the sounds and smells around you, and feel how your body pleasantly sinks into the chair or mattress.

Tip: This is your own time of serenity

Consciously closing your eyes helps your brain relax.

Billions of neurons inside your brain constantly talk to each other in the language of electricity. Scientists call them neural oscillations or brainwaves.

One type of neural oscillation is called alpha waves. In an alpha wave-dominant state, it’s easier to relax and unwind, therefore reducing stress and inducing positive thinking.

It’s been proven that simply closing your eyes increases alpha wave activity to a large degree.

So, for enhanced relaxation, find a pleasant, dimmed, or dark location, close your eyes, and harmonize with this breathing pattern.

Tip: Choose your own world of tranquility

Use our library of immersive soundscapes to move your mind to a deserted island whose shores are battered by waves. Or, meditate in a Zen temple surrounded by a gentle brook. Use them as an anchor for the present moment, each sound a new opportunity, a new experience to become mindful of.

You may also find our synchronized Original soundscape to be the most soothing for you. We custom-produced this immersive soundscape specifically for this pattern using simple but amazingly tranquil sounds in order to make your experience as serene and relaxing as possible.

Just choose whatever you like the most from our library of sounds and give yourself a tiny break from the present, over-stimulating and chaotic world.

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