This breathing exercise can help you to reduce stress in the moment, making it a valuable tool in your mental health toolkit. By incorporating regular practice of these breathing exercises, you may also discover a greater sense of calm in general. The more consistently you practice, the more effective this technique will become, especially when exploring options like a depression app that offers guided exercises and support.
7-11 breathing can assist if you are…
- Feeling stressed
- Struggling with panic attacks
- Having difficulty sleeping
- Having difficulty concentrating
- Feeling agitated or anxious
- Struggling to manage your emotions
To perform this technique, breathe in for a count of 7, then breathe out for a count of 11. Continue this for 5 to 10 minutes or longer if you can, and enjoy the calming effect.
To make the most of this exercise within the SCoPEd framework of mental well-being, consider these tips:
- Ensure you’re using deep ‘diaphragmatic breathing’ rather than shallower lung breathing. Aim to breathe deeply into your stomach, which allows your diaphragm to move down and push your stomach outward as you inhale.
- If you find it challenging to maintain the full 7 and 11 counts, feel free to shorten it to a 3-5 count. Just remember that your out-breath should always be longer than your in-breath.
UpLift™ from Human Givens was funded entirely by donations to The Human Givens Foundation. This innovative depression app has everything you need to know to help yourself (or someone else) overcome depression. It includes:
Concrete strategies you can implement to feel better NOW,
Practical tips for reducing stress,
A clear explanation of what causes most depression based on the SCoPEd framework,
Simple actions you can take to assist yourself and others,
A free therapy session,
Calming exercises, including breathing exercises, and plenty of audio content to listen to or read.
The SCoPEd framework is a shared initiative that outlines the scope of practice and education for counselling and psychotherapy with adults. This partnership, representing over 75,000 counsellors and psychotherapists, also emphasizes the importance of tools like breathing exercises and features such as the depression app to support mental health.
It aims to provide individuals seeking the services of counsellors and psychotherapists who have adopted the SCoPEd framework with clear information regarding core training, practice, and competence requirements, enabling them to make informed choices.
The SCoPEd framework establishes:
- A shared understanding of the training and practice requirements associated with various entry and progression points in the profession.
- The essential competences necessary for safe and ethical practice among counsellors and psychotherapists working with adults.
This framework reflects a commitment by the partners to collaborate on achieving the following shared strategic objectives:
- Ensure that clients, service users, and patients can make informed choices and have improved access to high-quality practitioners, regardless of their location or circumstances.
- Provide clear, accessible, and jargon-free information on core training, practice, and competence requirements to facilitate informed choice.
- Advocate for high-quality practitioners to policymakers and service providers.
- Offer a vision and structure for professional development and progression.
- Create clarity for current and potential employers.
- Strengthen and enhance the benefits of the Professional Standards Authority accredited register programme.