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Breath does not always calm. For some people it opens the door to feeling, for others it puts a little distance in. Find out which it does for you today.
The instruction to breathe deeply gets handed out as though it settles everyone. Plenty of people find that attention to their breath brings the sadness straight up, or leaves them dizzy and more anxious. Neither reaction is a failure. Take three or four breaths, notice which way it moved you, and use that information. Different pace, different length, different day, different answer.
Qur’an and Sunnah
'remember your Lord inwardly, in all humility and awe' (Quran 7:205). The instruction is inward and unforced, which is the spirit to bring to this.
وَٱذۡكُر رَّبَّكَ فِي نَفۡسِكَ تَضَرُّعࣰ ا وَخِيفَةࣰ وَدُونَ ٱلۡجَهۡرِ مِنَ ٱلۡقَوۡلِ بِٱلۡغُدُوِّ وَٱلۡأٓصَالِ وَلَا تَكُن مِّنَ ٱلۡغَٰفِلِينَ
[Prophet], remember your Lord inwardly, in all humility and awe, without raising your voice, in the mornings and in the evenings- do not be one of the heedless
Qur’an 7:205read it in the library
Translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem, The Qur'an, Oxford University Press, 2004.
What the research says
A small controlled pilot study with 38 people found that breathing based biofeedback increased heart rate variability and reduced post traumatic stress symptoms more than progressive muscle relaxation did. Two relaxation methods gave different results in the same group, which is a reminder that relaxation is not one thing. With 38 people it is a hint rather than a rule.
Zucker TL, Samuelson KW, Muench F, Greenberg MA, Gevirtz RN. (2009). The effects of respiratory sinus arrhythmia biofeedback on heart rate variability and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms: a pilot study.. Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback doi
Strength of evidence: one line of research. A single study, or a theoretical account.
Why it works
Breath is a lever that works in both directions, so the only way to know what it does for you is to check.
This one is still a draft. It is waiting on a scholar and a clinician to read it before it is published.
Near this one
An immune system that stays switched on with nothing to fight can begin turning on healthy tissue. It is doing its job with the wrong target.
Body based practices sit alongside medication rather than replacing it. If you take something, you can do both.
Connection settles people, but the right amount of it varies enormously. Some settle with a house full of family and some with one person and no talking at all.