Calming Breathing Practice For Managing Stress

This soothing guided breathing meditation is designed to gently calm the nervous system and reduce stress. You’ll be guided through a simple 4–4–4–4 box breathing technique—inhale, hold, exhale, and hold—creating a steady rhythm that brings the mind back into balance.

This practice is ideal for moments of overwhelm, anxiety, or whenever you need a peaceful reset and a return to inner calm.

Transcript

Hello,

Welcome to today's meditation session.

I'm so proud of you for joining me today and using this time to instill some calm and peace within yourself.

Relax in your environment,

In the safe setting in which you are doing this practice.

Close your eyes.

Let's start with one inhale in through the nose and out through the mouth.

Another inhale in through the nose as much as you can,

All the way to the bottom of your belly and out through the mouth.

Another inhale in.

In today's practice,

We will be doing an easy breathing technique called box breathing.

And it's called that because we do an inhale for four seconds,

We hold it for four seconds,

We exhale for four seconds again,

And we hold for four seconds before we take another inhale and using the space in between our breath as a tool as well.

So begin with an inhale in through the nose,

One,

Hold it,

Four.

This time if it aids you can visualize drawing a square with each four breath being a line of the square.

Visualize this in a bright golden light.

Let's start with an inhale,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One,

Hold it,

One,

Inhale,

One,

Release,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One.

Visualize your completed square shining in light.

Do another inhale,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One,

Hold,

Four,

One,

Release,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One,

Pause,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One,

Hold.

Try doing some on your own count.

And feel free to release the practice and relax back in the present moment.

Allowing the breath to flow in its natural rhythm and space.

Practice this with you throughout the day whenever you feel the need for self-regulation and know that you have an abundance of this calm and peace within you at all times.

Settle in the body.

When you're ready,

Open your eyes and notice how you feel.