Breathing for Balance: The Science Behind 7/11 Breathing
Description
If you have ever been told to "just breathe" during a moment of anxiety, you might have found it a bit frustrating. It sounds too simple to be effective when your heart is hammering and your mind is racing. However, there is a very specific type of breathing that acts like a biological kill-switch for the stress response. In the Human Givens approach, we call this 7/11 breathing.
Anxiety is essentially your body’s alarm system getting stuck in the "on" position. Your brain thinks there is a predator in the room, so it pumps you full of adrenaline to help you run away or fight back. The problem is that in modern life, the "predator" is often just a mounting to-do list or a tricky social situation. You can't fight a to-do list, so the physical energy stays trapped in your body, making you feel shaky and overwhelmed.
By consciously making your out-breath longer than your in-breath, you are sending a direct message to your nervous system. You are telling your vagus nerve to switch from the sympathetic system, which is the fight or flight mode, to the parasympathetic system, which is the rest and digest mode. It is a physical impossibility for your body to remain in a state of high anxiety while you are breathing in this specific rhythm.
Let's try it now. You don't have to literally count to seven and eleven if that feels too long. You could breathe in for a count of three and out for five, or in for four and out for six. The numbers don't matter as much as the ratio. As long as the exhale is longer, you are doing it right. Try to do this for just two minutes. Notice how the tension in your shoulders starts to drop and your thoughts begin to slow down. This is your first tool for taking back control from anxiety.
My Services:
If you have ever been told to "just breathe" during a moment of anxiety, you might have found it a bit frustrating. It sounds too simple to be effective when your heart is hammering and your mind is racing. However, there is a very specific type of breathing that acts like a biological kill-switch for the stress response. In the Human Givens approach, we call this 7/11 breathing.
Anxiety is essentially your body’s alarm system getting stuck in the "on" position. Your brain thinks there is a predator in the room, so it pumps you full of adrenaline to help you run away or fight back. The problem is that in modern life, the "predator" is often just a mounting to-do list or a tricky social situation. You can't fight a to-do list, so the physical energy stays trapped in your body, making you feel shaky and overwhelmed.
By consciously making your out-breath longer than your in-breath, you are sending a direct message to your nervous system. You are telling your vagus nerve to switch from the sympathetic system, which is the fight or flight mode, to the parasympathetic system, which is the rest and digest mode. It is a physical impossibility for your body to remain in a state of high anxiety while you are breathing in this specific rhythm.
Let's try it now. You don't have to literally count to seven and eleven if that feels too long. You could breathe in for a count of three and out for five, or in for four and out for six. The numbers don't matter as much as the ratio. As long as the exhale is longer, you are doing it right. Try to do this for just two minutes. Notice how the tension in your shoulders starts to drop and your thoughts begin to slow down. This is your first tool for taking back control from anxiety.
Who this is for:
If you have ever been told to "just breathe" during a moment of anxiety, you might have found it a bit frustrating. It sounds too simple to be effective when your heart is hammering and your mind is racing. However, there is a very specific type of breathing that acts like a biological kill-switch for the stress response. In the Human Givens approach, we call this 7/11 breathing.
Anxiety is essentially your body’s alarm system getting stuck in the "on" position. Your brain thinks there is a predator in the room, so it pumps you full of adrenaline to help you run away or fight back. The problem is that in modern life, the "predator" is often just a mounting to-do list or a tricky social situation. You can't fight a to-do list, so the physical energy stays trapped in your body, making you feel shaky and overwhelmed.
By consciously making your out-breath longer than your in-breath, you are sending a direct message to your nervous system. You are telling your vagus nerve to switch from the sympathetic system, which is the fight or flight mode, to the parasympathetic system, which is the rest and digest mode. It is a physical impossibility for your body to remain in a state of high anxiety while you are breathing in this specific rhythm.
Let's try it now. You don't have to literally count to seven and eleven if that feels too long. You could breathe in for a count of three and out for five, or in for four and out for six. The numbers don't matter as much as the ratio. As long as the exhale is longer, you are doing it right. Try to do this for just two minutes. Notice how the tension in your shoulders starts to drop and your thoughts begin to slow down. This is your first tool for taking back control from anxiety.