I, like many people, sometimes struggle with falling sleep when I get stressed, excited, or sometimes just because. I came across this article on the “4-7-8” breathing trick and was intrigued. I thought others might be too.<\/p>\n
Repost from :\u00a0 How I Learned to Fall Asleep in under 1 minute <\/a>\u00a0 12.16.14 by Alina Gonzalez <\/a><\/p>\n Sleepless and Stressed<\/strong><\/p>\n It was the week before my best friend\u2019s wedding, and my anxiety (nerves, plus excitement) had reached epic levels. I wasn\u2019t sleeping, to say the least. Part of that had to do with the maid of honor speech I would be giving. I was terrified and could not shut my brain off to fall asleep at night.<\/p>\n After day three of lying awake until the wee hours of the night, I sheepishly admitted to her that I was too nervous to fall asleep, and she\u2014the bride, who was sleeping like a baby the week before her own wedding\u2014told me I needed to try the \u201c4-7-8\u201d breathing trick.<\/p>\n She happens to be a licensed wellness practitioner who studies meditation, stress, and breathing techniques, and told me it would change my life. You simply breathe in through your nose for four seconds, hold your breath for seven seconds, and exhale through your mouth for eight seconds. She explained that the studied combination of numbers has a chemical-like effect on our brains, and would slow my heart rate and soothe me right to sleep that night. \u201cIt works,\u201d she told me. \u201cIt\u2019s crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n How it Works\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n I couldn\u2019t wait to put the trick to the test, and to my complete disbelief, I woke up the next morning unable to even remember getting to the eighth second of the exhale because it knocked me out that fast. For the next four nights leading up to the big day, even as my stress increased, I was able to fall asleep the minute I tried the 4-7-8 trick. I also used it to relax in the moments leading up to the speech.<\/p>\n When you feel stressed or anxious, adrenaline courses through your veins, your heart beats at a rapid rate, and your breathing becomes quick and shallow. So before I get into the specifics behind how the 4-7-8 breathing trick works, I wanted to explain in my own words what it feels like when you try it. To me, the effect of the breathing technique feels almost like a sedative drug, because in order to hold your breath for seven seconds and then to exhale for eight\u2014when your breath is so shallow and short\u2014your body is forced<\/em> to slow your heart rate. It has no choice. Holding your breath, and then slowly, deliberately exhaling for eight seconds, causes a chain reaction. It feels like going from a mad-dash sprint to a finish line to a slow, leisurely, calming stroll through the park.<\/p>\n When you first start, you\u2019ll be desperate to just take in another breath, or you\u2019ll want to speed up your counting, but if you stick to the numbers (or at least try to), and don\u2019t take any breaks (in other words, consecutively repeat the 4-7-8 without resuming regular breathing), you can literally feel<\/em> your heart rate slow down, your mind get quieter, and your whole body physically relax. It washes over you like a calming, relaxing drug. I can never remember getting past the first set of 4-7-8.<\/p>\n Do you know the feeling of being put under by anesthesia, where you are conscious, and the next thing you remember is waking up? That\u2019s what this is like for me: As soon as I start the practice, the next thing I remember, I\u2019m waking up in the morning and can\u2019t even remember beginning the 4-7-8 count the night before. Crazy.<\/em><\/p>\n Now to the more technical details: People who are stressed or anxious are actually chronically under-breathing<\/em>, because stressed people breathe shortly and shallowly, and often even unconsciously hold their breath. By extending your inhale to a count of four, you are forcing yourself to take in more oxygen, allowing the oxygen to affect your bloodstream by holding your breath for seven seconds, and then emitting carbon dioxide from your lungs by exhaling steadily for eight seconds. The technique will effectively slow your heart rate and increase oxygen in your bloodstream, and may even make you feel slightly lightheaded which contributes to the mild sedative-like effect. It will instantly relax your heart, mind, and overall central nervous system because you are controlling the breath versus continuing to breathe short, shallow gasps of air.<\/p>\n How it Can Work For You<\/strong><\/p>\n Mindful breathing practices have been a part of yoga and Eastern wellness modalities for centuries, but aren\u2019t as popular in Western culture. The most well-known champion of the 4-7-8 breathing technique in the U.S., who is somewhat responsible for the prevalence that the technique does have amongst integrative medicine practitioners, yogis, and those in search of stress reduction and overall relaxation, is Harvard-educated Dr. Andrew Weil<\/a>.<\/p>\n Though I\u2019m not promising or claiming (nor does Dr. Weil) that practicing this breathing technique can fight disease or provide clinical benefits, I can tell you one thing: If it affects you like it did me, it will help you fall asleep way<\/em> faster. Not only is it free, it also works for a number of different instances. In addition to using it to fall asleep in a pinch, you can practice it if you wake up in the middle of the night and find yourself thinking about something you have to do the next day, in order to fall back <\/em>asleep; if you are nervous before an event (like a wedding, or giving a speech); if you are angry about something and want to calm down. My friend (the bride-to-be who slept like a baby the week before her wedding), who gets nervous to fly, uses it before flights and during if the plane encounters turbulence.<\/p>\n It is now what I use to fall asleep every single night, and each morning, I\u2019m amazed at how well it worked.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I, like many people, sometimes struggle with falling sleep when I get stressed, excited, or sometimes just because. 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