If you’ve ever tossed and turned in bed only to wake up the next morning feeling even more exhausted, you know how important sleep is to our overall health and well-being. Restful sleep isn’t just a luxury, it’s a biological imperative. Yet more than one in three adults in the United States suffers from poor sleep. While many turn to external sleep aids like medications or supplements, science suggests a simple, natural solution may already be at your fingertips… or right under your nose! Breathwork, particularly in the form of a structured, regular practice, is emerging as a powerful science-backed tool for improving sleep.
The Breath-Sleep Connection
Breathing is closely linked to sleep thanks to the autonomic nervous system, the network that controls automatic body functions like heart rate and digestion. You may have noticed that when you’re stressed, your breathing becomes shallow and rapid. This activates the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system, our “fight-or-flight” mode, making it harder to fall or stay asleep. Conversely, slow, deep breathing stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, encouraging a “rest and digest” response. This lowers the heart rate and levels of the stress hormone cortisol, signaling to our brain and body that it’s time to sleep.
While stress and emotional states automatically dictate how we breathe, breathwork reverses this connection. We can manipulate how we breathe to then alter how we feel. A growing body of scientific research is showing that certain breathwork techniques can harness this breath-sleep connection to significantly improve sleep. I have studied the benefits of one such technique, SKY Breath Meditation, for health care workers, a population disproportionately impacted by burnout and poor sleep.
What Is SKY Breath Meditation?
SKY, short for Sudarshan Kriya Yoga, is a structured sequence of four breathing techniques followed by rest or meditation. The breathwork sequence should be practiced daily for 20 to 30 minutes for maximum benefit. At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, as a co-lead of our hospital’s wellbeing program, I was searching for a tangible stress management tool to offer our healthcare workers. Due to the body of prior peer-reviewed research demonstrating benefits of SKY breath, we offered the online three-day training program (three hours a day) to our staff. They began to report feeling less stressed and more rested immediately after the breathwork. Our research showed SKY was associated with significant improvements in sleep satisfaction, burnout, and anxiety. These findings mirror other studies demonstrating the sleep benefits of this breathwork technique.
The Science Behind SKY and Sleep
A 2024 systematic review of prior studies examining the impact of SKY on sleep found that all of them reported beneficial effects of SKY on sleep. In a 2024 randomized controlled trial published in JAMA Open Network, physicians across multiple countries who regularly practiced SKY over a two-month period experienced a significant decrease in insomnia, stress, and anxiety. A cross-sectional study of almost 400 adults found that those who practiced SKY daily had more improvement in their sleep quality than those who practiced less often, underscoring that the frequency of breathwork practice matters.
Another randomized controlled trial published in Frontiers in Psychiatry in 2020 investigated SKY as part of a wellness program for college students — a group also known for high stress and poor sleep. SKY was compared to mindfulness-based stress reduction and emotional intelligence programs. After eight weeks, SKY participants showed marked improvements in their trouble falling asleep and staying asleep, while the other groups did not.
There’s also scientific evidence that the reported sleep benefits from SKY are rooted in physiological changes induced by the breathwork. A 2006 study using polysomnography found that SKY practitioners took less time to fall asleep (decreased time to onset of REM sleep) and spent more time in deep sleep (slow-wave sleep). Multiple studies also reported decreased cortisol levels and increased heart rate variability in SKY practitioners because of its activation of the parasympathetic nervous system. This relaxation response may explain why breathwork doesn’t just help you sleep better, it helps you respond to daily stressors more calmly, which sets the stage for better rest at night.
How Breathwork Is Different From Mindfulness or Sleep Hygiene
You’ve probably heard of other external sleep aids, like melatonin, avoiding screen time, limiting caffeine intake, and adjusting bedtime. While all of those can be helpful, what makes breathwork different is that it directly and rapidly alters our physiology. Unlike mindfulness meditation, where practitioners are encouraged to observe their thoughts and sensations, breathwork techniques like SKY simply manipulate the breath to physiologically induce calm.
Breathwork also offers a safer alternative to sleep medications, which can carry side effects or risk dependency. Once learned, breathwork techniques can be practiced anywhere, anytime — whether it’s in your bed, on a plane, or during a stressful meeting at work.
Starting a Breathwork Practice to Improve Sleep
Sleep Essential Reads
Here are a few simple breathwork tools you can immediately incorporate into your evening routine to help calm the nervous system:
- Box Breathing: Inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4, exhale for 4 and hold for 4. Continue for a few minutes.
- Prolonged exhalation: Inhale for 4 seconds, exhale for 6 to 8 seconds.
- Alternate Nostril Breathing (Nadi Shodhana): Close the right nostril and inhale through the left, then close the left and exhale through the right. Continue alternating for a few minutes.
So, if you’re struggling with getting a good night’s sleep, breathing — something we do over 20,000 times a day – may be one of the most overlooked solutions. Breathwork techniques are evidence-based, simple, and natural practices that can transform sleep, reduce anxiety, and enhance overall well-being.