Breathing pacer
A gentle circle to pace slow breathing. Choose a rhythm and a length, press Start, and breathe along at your own pace. There are no breath holds. This is education only, not medical advice.
Tools › Breathing pacer
If you feel dizzy, light-headed or uncomfortable, stop and breathe normally.
Slow breathing is not right for everyone. If breathing exercises make you anxious, or if you have asthma, another lung or heart condition, or a history of trauma, you can skip this tool or ask your doctor or therapist first. You can stop at any time.
Choose whichever rhythm feels most comfortable. Slow is a gentle place to start.
Says Breathe in or Breathe out at the start of each breath, using your browser’s own voice. Off unless you turn it on. Nothing is recorded or sent anywhere.
Breathe in
Breathe out
Paused. Press Resume when you are ready, or Stop.
Done. Notice how you feel. You can stop here or go again.
The circle grows as you breathe in and shrinks as you breathe out. If your device is set to reduce motion, the circle stays still and a bar and the words pace your breathing instead. Press Esc to stop.
What research suggests. A 2023 meta-analysis of randomised trials found that breathwork produced small-to-medium reductions in self-reported stress compared with controls, though most trials had some risk of bias (Fincham et al., 2023). A systematic review found that slow breathing raised heart rate variability (Zaccaro et al., 2018). These are best seen as complementary to other care, and the pace here is only one of many that people use. If slow breathing makes you more anxious, stop.
Sources
- Fincham, G. W., Strauss, C., Montero-Marin, J., & Cavanagh, K. (2023). Effect of breathwork on stress and mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised-controlled trials. Scientific Reports, 13, 432.
- Zaccaro, A., Piarulli, A., Laurino, M., Garbella, E., Menicucci, D., Neri, B., & Gemignani, A. (2018). How breath-control can change your life: A systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 12, 353.
This tool is education only. It does not diagnose or treat anything. It is private: it runs on your device, uses no sound files, and nothing is saved or sent. If you are in crisis or need support right now, see Get help now.