You're lying in bed, the day is over, and your heart is still racing like you're being chased by a bear. Nothing is life-threatening. So why won't your body believe that?

Blame your autonomic nervous system, your body's built-in safety assessor, which controls things like heartbeat and breathing. It has two branches that work like car pedals. The sympathetic branch is the accelerator ("fight or flight"): your heart pounds, breath turns shallow, muscles tense. The parasympathetic branch is the brake ("rest and digest"): your heart slows, breathing deepens, your body recovers.

The trouble is that your nervous system can't tell a bear attack from a slightly rude email. It sounds the same alarm for both. Anxiety is what happens when the accelerator stays down and the brake never fully engages.

The good news: you can press the brake on purpose. Its main route is the vagus nerve, which carries calming signals between your brain, heart, lungs, and gut. The exercises below are ways of pressing it.

Try these exercises today

4-7-8 breathing: Inhale for 4, hold for 7, exhale for 8. The long exhale slows your heart rate. Do 4 rounds.
Belly breathing: One hand on your belly, one on your chest. Breathe so the belly rises first. Try 5 minutes.
Humming: Hum low and steady for a minute. The vibration stimulates the nerve as it passes the throat.
Ear acupressure: Massage the inner bowl of the ear and the small flap in front of the ear canal in slow circles, 30 to 60 seconds per side.
Eye movement: Clasp your hands behind your head and, without moving it, shift your eyes slowly to one side for 30 seconds or until you sigh or yawn. Repeat on the other side.
Butterfly hug: Cross your arms over your chest and tap each side slowly, like wings, while breathing deeply.

Good to know

Breathwork with a long exhale has the strongest evidence. The others are promising but still being researched. All are free and low-risk, so experiment and see what works for you.

These tools support, but don't replace, professional help. If your anxiety is getting in the way of daily life, talk to a doctor or therapist.

How to tell your body there’s no bear attacking you right now