Breathing: the trainer you always carry

Breath is the only "handle" into the autonomic system: the long exhale activates the parasympathetic (the stress brake). Three techniques: 4-7-8 (in 4, hold 7, out 8 — for sleep), box 4-4-4-4 (focus before exams), physiological sigh (double inhale + long exhale — for panic/stress, works in 30 s). German winters are dark — breath is the free antidote in your pocket.

• ●Nose, not mouth: nasal breathing filters and humidifies
• ●Belly, not chest: hand on the belly — it bulges on the inhale
• ●Stress at the doctor/in a queue? Three sighs — and the pulse drops