You feel it building: tension in your chest, shallow breathing, that familiar pressure before a difficult conversation or after reading yet another frustrating email. Your heart rate ticks up.

You know you need to calm down, but meditation takes too long and deep breathing exercises never seem to stick.

Here's something different: a breathing technique so simple you can do it in 30 seconds, backed by solid research, and effective enough that you'll notice the difference immediately.

It's called the physiological sigh.

What Makes This Different

Most breathing exercises require you to step away from whatever's stressing you out. That's fine when you have the luxury of time, but what about when you're in the middle of a tense meeting, stuck in traffic, or dealing with a problem that demands your attention right now?

The physiological sigh works in the moment. You don't need to close your eyes, sit in a special position, or excuse yourself. You can do it while standing at your desk, sitting in your car, or anywhere else stress catches up with you.

The technique was discovered in the 1930s when scientists noticed people spontaneously breathed this way in claustrophobic environments or during deep sleep. More recently, neuroscientist Andrew Huberman and his team at Stanford studied it alongside other breathing techniques and found it was the most effective method for quickly reducing stress and improving mood.

How to Do It

The technique itself is straightforward:

Take a deep breath in through your nose, filling your lungs completely. Before you exhale, take a second, shorter inhale on top of the first one—your lungs won't expand as much, but you'll feel the difference. Then release all the air through your mouth in one long, complete exhale.

That's it. Do this two or three times, and you're done.

Why It Works

When stress hits, your body's fight-or-flight response takes over. Your breathing becomes rapid and shallow, which actually makes the stress worse—it reduces blood flow to your brain and throws off the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide in your body.

This breathing pattern interrupts that cycle. The double inhale fully inflates the tiny air sacs in your lungs that can collapse during shallow breathing. The extended exhale activates your parasympathetic nervous system, the part of your body responsible for calming you down. It slows your heart rate, increases heart rate variability (a key marker of stress resilience), and helps regulate the CO2 levels that affect your emotional state.

In a 2023 study published in Cell Reports Medicine, researchers compared the physiological sigh to box breathing, hyperventilation techniques, and mindfulness meditation. All four methods reduced anxiety and improved mood, but the physiological sigh came out on top. It produced the greatest improvement in mood and the biggest reduction in breathing rate.

When to Use It

The beauty of this technique is that it works precisely when you need it most. Notice your stress building before a difficult phone call? Take 30 seconds for three physiological sighs.

Feeling your blood pressure rise during an argument? Do it right there. Wake up at 3 AM with your mind racing? It works then too.

The more consistently you use it, the better it works. Your body starts to recognize the pattern as a signal to calm down, and over time, you become more resilient to stress overall. Think of it as a tool that gets more effective the more you use it, like building strength through consistent exercise.

The Bottom Line

You've probably tried various stress management techniques over the years. Some work, some don't, and most require more time or effort than you can realistically give them when stress hits. The physiological sigh is different because it meets you where you are: stressed, busy, and in need of something that works now.

Give it a try the next time you feel stress building. Two deep breaths, one long exhale, repeated a few times. Thirty seconds of your time for a noticeable difference in how you feel.

That's a trade worth making, right?