Depression makes the simplest tasks feel like a fight. Answering a text, taking a shower, or getting up off the couch can take every ounce of energy you have (and then some). And when you finally reach out for help, the earliest appointment is three weeks away.

But what if you’re unable to access your therapist and/or your medication alone isn’t cutting it? Fortunately, there’s a technique backed by scientific research to help with depression and other mental health challenges: breathing techniques.  

Breathing exercises for depression are straightforward, backed by early but growing research, and can be done from your living room or while you’re out and about, in a matter of minutes. This guide explains why breathwork affects your mental health, which techniques to try first, and how Brain-Body Therapy builds breathing into a bigger, movement-based workout plan for depression. 

Why Breathing Exercises Work for Depression

Most of the time, you don’t think about breathing. Your brain handles it for you. But unlike your heart rate or digestion, you can slow and shape your breathing on purpose, which gives you one practical way to influence how your body responds to stress.

Slow, controlled breathing, especially when your exhale is longer than your inhale, can help shift your body toward its parasympathetic nervous system (the part responsible for rest and recovery). Your heart rate may slow, your muscles may loosen, and your body can start to come out of fight-or-flight mode.

This matters because depression has been associated with differences in heart rate variability, or HRV. HRV measures the tiny changes in time between heartbeats and is one way researchers look at how the body responds to stress. Slow-paced breathing can increase some HRV measures in the moment, though it’s not a cure for depression on its own.

What Does Research Say About Breathing Techniques for Depression 

Slow breathing may also lower stress hormones. In one small eight-week trial, people who practiced slow belly breathing had lower cortisol levels by the end of the study, along with less negative mood and better focus. 

A 2023 meta-analysis also found that breathwork was linked to small-to-medium improvements in self-reported stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms compared with non-breathwork control groups. 

Most of these studies are small, and researchers still don’t know which techniques work best for which people. So think of breathing exercises as something to add to your depression treatment, not something to replace it. 

4 Breathing Exercises for Depression to Try at Home

You don’t have to try all four of these. Start with whichever one sounds easiest, find a comfortable spot, and stick with it for a few days. If you start to feel dizzy, stop and breathe normally. 

Diaphragmatic Breathing (Belly Breathing) 

Diaphragmatic breathing is the starting point for most other techniques, and it comes up again and again in research on breathing exercises for depression.

“Most of us default to shallow chest breathing that keeps the neck and shoulders tense and the system on alert,” says Marina Herraiz, co-founder and a Jade Peak STOTT PILATES trained instructor. Belly breathing gets your diaphragm to do more of the work instead. 

How to do it: Place one hand on your chest and one on your stomach. Breathe in through your nose for about four seconds, letting your belly rise while your chest stays mostly still. Exhale through your mouth for about six seconds. Repeat for three to five minutes. 

Cyclic Sighing 

If you only try one technique on this list, make it this one. In a 2023 randomized study, participants practiced one of three breathing exercises or mindfulness meditation for five minutes a day for 28 days. The breathing groups reported improved mood and lowered anxiety, and cyclic sighing showed the strongest mood improvement compared with the meditation group.

“It also gives you something specific to do, which helps when you can’t make yourself ‘just relax,’” says Matt Grammer, LPCC-S, and founder of Therapy Trainings. “Rather than telling a person to relax, the focus on breath provides a means to shift the state and gives a sense of control back to the individual.” 

How to do it: Inhale through your nose until your lungs feel mostly full, then take a second, shorter sip of air to top them off. Exhale slowly through your mouth until your lungs feel empty. Repeat for five minutes. 

Box Breathing (4-4-4-4)

Box breathing is exactly what it sounds like: four equal steps — breathe in, hold, breathe out, hold. 

The counting is what makes it helpful for depression. When you’re stuck replaying the same negative thoughts, focusing on the numbers gives your brain something else to do.

How to do it: Inhale through your nose for four counts, hold for four, exhale through your mouth for four, and hold for four. Aim for four to six rounds. 

4-7-8 Breathing 

The 4-7-8 technique gives your exhale more time than your inhale, which some people find calming before bed or during a stressful moment. It’s easy to remember, so you can use it in the car, at your desk, or in bed when you can’t get to sleep. 

The long hold can make some people lightheaded, so sit down for the first few times you try it. You can also shorten the counts (try 3-4-5 instead) until the pattern feels comfortable. 

How to do it: Inhale through your nose for four counts, hold for seven, exhale fully through your mouth for eight. Start with four cycles. 

How to Start When You Have No Motivation  

Knowing breathing exercises can help and actually doing them are two different things. So make starting almost impossible to skip. 

“I encourage you to decrease the challenge of taking that first step to a level that is nearly impossible to fail,” says Grammer. “This can be as simple as a 1-minute breath, a 1-minute stretch, or a 1-minute walk.”

Brain-Body Therapy has built an exercise app for depression specifically, incorporating simple, easy-to-pickup workouts and breathing techniques for you, giving you a low-barrier program designed to target depression with the right targeting breathing exercises paired with other simplified workout programs. 

How Brain-Body Therapy Supports Those With Depression 

Breathing exercises can help in the moment, but depression usually needs more support than one tool can provide. Brain-Body Therapy was built for the days when even knowing where to start feels exhausting. 

The app combines short, at-home workouts with breathing tools and counseling-inspired guidance, so you won’t be left wondering what to do next. 

Founder Rio Wilson created it after using movement to work through her own trauma, anxiety, and depression, then earning a master’s degree in counseling. She built the program with Director of Fitness Luke Lombardo, a former Ironman triathlete, to make movement-based mental health support feel doable, not intimidating, for people who are struggling. 

The app’s counseling-inspired guidance is designed to support, not replace, care from a licensed therapist, psychiatrist, or doctor when you need it.

Breathwork Built Into Every Session 

Every day starts with a Pre-Workout Check-In and a short counseling-inspired video, and each session teaches breathing techniques and coping tools grounded in evidence-informed mental wellness principles. 

Zone 3 Cardio and Strength Training 

The depression workout program includes Zone 3 cardiovascular exercise and strength training. In Phase 1, you’ll do three days of higher-intensity cardio and two days of strength training each week. 

Cardio gives you a structured way to move when low energy and depression make it hard to get started, while strength training gives you progress you can see.

All the workouts are beginner-friendly, done at home, and gradually get harder. Gentle yoga and active recovery days are added as your body adjusts. Since the app tells you exactly what to do each day, you don’t have to plan anything yourself, which helps a lot when motivation is low. 

Brain-Body Therapy also works with employers, government agencies, high schools, and colleges to offer movement-based mental health support to employees and students. 

Take a Breath, Then Take the Next Step

You don’t need to feel motivated to start. Five minutes of slow breathing won’t cure depression, but it can calm your body down enough to get you through the next hour, and that counts. 

When you’re ready for more, Brain-Body Therapy combines breathwork, Zone 3 cardio, strength training, and counseling-inspired videos in one plan. Download Brain-Body Therapy on the App Store or Google Play to get started. 

If you’re a parent, partner, friend, or organization leader who wants to help someone with depression, learn more about Brain-Body Therapy.

If you’re having thoughts of suicide or self-harm, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. 

Breathing Exercises for Depression FAQs

Are breathing exercises good for depression?

Yes, as a part of a broader plan. Research suggests slow, controlled breathing can support a calmer stress response and may help reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression for some people. It works best alongside exercise, therapy, medication, or other professional support when needed. 

Is there an app with breathing exercise plans that target depression?

Yes, the Brain-Body Therapy mobile app incorporates breathing techniques into its daily workout program for depression, along with Zone 3 cardio and other targeted exercises meant to support people battling depression and related mental health challenges.

What is the best breathing exercise for depression?

Cyclic sighing has some of the strongest early research for improving mood, and diaphragmatic breathing is the base for most other techniques. The best one is the one you’ll keep doing.