E022: Want to Calm TF Down? Introducing the 7/11 Breathing Exercise

Amy: [00:00:38] We're going to be doing something a little different than what we normally do, and that is an exercise. We are going to do a breathing exercise together. So, before you go any further in this podcast, please, if you are operating heavy machinery, do not do this exercise, only because this breathing exercise has the ability to make you a little lightheaded.

So today we are going to do a variation of the 7/11 breathing exercise. Now, before I get into it, I want to start this episode off by saying, yes, I'm very aware that most of you know that breathing will help you calm down. I've seen the TikTok memes and the Instagram posts. And the videos of individuals, for lack of a better word, bitching about mental health practitioners suggesting breathing techniques as a part of their mental health management.

And I used to be like you, I used to roll my eyes at all these stupid things and be like, “Yeah, obviously I need to breathe because I'm a human being. So why are you telling me to do this?” But here's the thing, just because I intellectually knew that this was something that would help me, it didn't mean that I actually sat down and did the exercise. My brain was always too frazzled, or I just continued to go, go, go, go, go.

Instead, sit down and try to stay grounded or calm, or even just breathe consciously for five minutes, let alone one minute. This podcast episode is really to encourage all of you nonbelievers out there about sitting down and actually attempting to do these exercises.

[00:02:30]

I'm not saying that this is going to cure everything. 

This is just one tool in the toolbox that you can, but might not necessarily adopt for your own mental health management plan. But before we actually do the breathing exercise, let me explain to you what we're going to do.

We're going to do a variation of the 7/11 breathing technique. The 7/11 breathing exercise is when you inhale for seven breaths and exhale for eleven. Now, the reason we're going to do a variation of it is because for a lot of people out there who don't practice regular meditation, or yoga, or really any intense exercise inhaling for seven seconds and exhaling for 11 seconds is actually tremendously difficult.

And that's because, usually, a lot of us, especially the individuals that are suffering from anxiety, are habitually breathing in a shallow sense. In other words, you're only filling up let's say 20% of your lungs instead of the full 100%. Now it's not something that you might be aware of. And that's okay. I'm not asking you to constantly be aware of inhaling a hundred percent into your lungs. But if I said right now, without any practice inhale for seven seconds and I mean actual seven seconds. For instance, one Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi, you get the point, you’ll have a lot of trouble.

[00:04:13] And conversely, when I ask you to exhale for those 11 seconds, let me tell you, that's going to be really difficult. Now, maybe you've heard of the box breathing technique, which is a Navy seal breathing exercise that is used throughout the globe where they explain to inhale for four seconds and exhale for four seconds.

In other words, an even amount of inhale and exhale. 

The reason we're not doing this is because there's new information, well, new-ish information out there, that talks about the benefits of holding a longer exhalation. And that really comes down to something in the brain called the vagus nerve.

Now, the vagus nerve carries an extensive range of signals from the digestive system and organs to the brain and vice versa. In other words, the vagus nerve is responsible for the regulation of internal organ functions, such as digestion, heart rate, and respiratory among a variety of other things. Now, why is it important to stimulate this vagus nerve?

When we are in a constant state of anxiety or fight or flight, the vagus nerve gets all out of whack. When we do an extended exhale through this breathing exercise that we're about to do together, what that does is that sends a signal from the vagus nerve to the parasympathetic system to calm down. In other words, this little vagus nerve is responsible, or largely responsible, for the dysfunction that you're feeling in your parasympathetic nervous system.

[00:06:04] That's a lot, right?

In a very simple sentence, your body is in fight or flight.

By exhaling for a longer period than you inhale, it sends a signal to your brain to release this amazing little chemical neurotransmitter in the vagus nerve to calm down. That's pretty amazing.

So, maybe now you have a little bit more insight into why breathing is so important, and that's why we do these techniques. It's not just a matter of breathing deeply and making sure that you get all this oxygen into your lungs. I mean, that's definitely important, but it's something more than just breathing. It's a natural way of calming down your nervous system and your body's communication super highway. So, without further ado, we're gonna do the 7/11 breathing exercise together.

Now, instead of doing the seven and eleven counts, we are going to try five and nine. What I encourage you to do after we do this together is to attempt to do the seven and eleven counts at a later date. That could be tomorrow, that could be the next day, or it could be a month down the road. Or maybe it's just when you're feeling incredibly anxious.

Regardless of when you try it, make sure that you give the full breathing exercise a go at a later date. Once you've built up a little bit of breathing room, no pun intended, in your lungs. Now, if you're someone like me and you don't want to listen to my voice guide you through this exercise, please put on some instrumental music and really sit there and really focus on inhaling for five seconds and exhaling for nine seconds.

For all of you that want a more modified guided meditation or 7/11 breathing exercise, please continue listening.

I am going to throw some music in the background of this. So, put those headphones on, get ready. Let's do this.

[00:08:23] So, for this breathing exercise, we're not going to do anything crazy. I'm not going to get you to lay on a yoga mat. I am simply just going to ask you to sit up straight in your chair with your feet on the ground, if possible. I'm short. I can't get my feet on the ground on the chair that I'm sitting in. But by allowing your feet to be on the ground, it further helps ground you into the breathing exercise, which also allows you to focus.

One thing to know is if you are not in the habit of sitting still, this exercise could be quite hard for you. Luckily, you don't have to keep your eyes closed for this. I have a really hard time meditating with my eyes closed. So, I give myself the permission to open them and look around.

The one thing I encourage you to do is stay where you are.

I really want to encourage you to get through this entire breathing exercise without getting up. So close that door, tell whoever you live with not to bother you for the next five minutes, and let's do this. Okay. Let's go.

Make sure your feet are firmly planted on the ground, if possible. Put your hands on your lap and put your palms down. Putting your palms down further grounds you into the exercise, which is what we are trying to do when it comes to helping calm our anxiety. We want to ground.

Now, before we start breathing in the five inhale and nine exhale, let's take some deep breaths. Let's start with three seconds on the inhale and three seconds on the exhale.

Inhale, one, two, three.

Brief hold.

Exhale, one, two, three.

Inhale one, two, three.

Exhale, one, two, three.

Now continue this on your own.

[00:10:40] As you build lung capacity in this breathing exercise, I want you to increase the count. So at the next end of the exhale change to a count of four: one, two, three, four.

Exhale, one, two three, four.

Inhale one, two, three, four.

Exhale, one, two, three, four.

Now we're going to switch to the slightly altered 7/11 breathing exercise.

So now we're going to change up the breathing exercise. We will inhale for five breaths and exhale for seven. We're going to do this 10 times. Ready?

Inhale one, two, three, four, five.

Exhale, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine.

Inhale, one, two, three, four, five.

Exhale, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine.

Inhale, one, two, three, four, five.

Exhale one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine.

Now continue on your own count, inhaling for five and exhaling for nine, for five more times.

Okay. The last two together.

Inhale one, two, three, four, five.

Exhale, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine.

Last one together.

Inhale, one, two, three, four, five.

Exhale, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.

Now, if your eyes are closed, open them.

And if they aren't, come back to your space. Look around. See what's on the wall, on this floor, in your car. What are three things you see, two things you hear, and one thing that you can smell?

[00:16:10] I bring you back that way because, regardless if our eyes are open or closed, sometimes our brains and our minds take us to somewhere completely different than where we actually are. So, I'm reintegrating you back into your space.

Now, ask yourself, how does that feel? Do you feel a little bit more relaxed? Is your heart rate not as quick? Do you find that it actually made things worse?

Whatever it is, start to check in with yourself. When you attempt to do a breathing exercise that you may or may not add to your mental health management plan, you need to make sure that they're working for you. I do suggest that you give yourself at least three tries in every breathing exercise

Depending where you're at today, you might just not be feeling the breath breathing. However, tomorrow it might be something that really makes you feel good and calm. So make sure that you spread it out over a week or two. Give it a few goes. But please, I encourage you to come back to this at least two more times.

And if you feel like your lung capacity is there, please, by all means, do the full seven inhale and eleven exhale, the full 7/11 breathing exercise.

[00:17:35] I just want to take a moment to thank you for showing up for yourself today. Thank yourself for completing this breathing exercise. There's many listeners that heard the first few minutes of this and turned the episode off. But you are not one of them. And I think you need to take a moment. Actually, I encourage you to take a moment, to celebrate yourself for showing up. For doing something that may feel outside your comfort zone.

Sit in that gratitude, be thankful to yourself. Because I know one thing for sure. When it comes to managing your mental health, no one is going to do it for you. For a lot of us, we've been out of the habit of taking care of ourselves for so long. If you're hard on yourself, like I am, this exercise might not seem like anything. But I promise you, it is the beginning to something so amazing. And that is the management of your mental health. Until next time.

Thank you so much for listening to this episode of What We're Not talking About. It would mean the world to me if you subscribe. Please share this episode with anyone you think needs to hear it. As valued listeners, I also wanted to remind you that if you're ever looking for a specific topic to be covered, please get in touch with me on Instagram.

My username is Amy.Demone, or you can simply click the link in this podcast discussion. I can't wait to hear from you.