Holding your breath right now?

Reading time: 3:06 minutes

How are you breathing right now, Jan?

Take a moment to notice.

Nose or mouth?

Light or heavy?
Slow or fast?
Deep (belly) or shallow (chest)?
Holding your breath?

You’re likely holding your breath or breathing shallow.

How do I know?

I didn’t hack your camera or mic.

I only know you’re checking emails right now.

And I know about email apnea.

Ever heard of it?

Linda Stone, a former Microsoft VP, coined the term in 2007.

She noticed she was holding her breath or breathing shallow while checking email.

Stone wondered: is it just me?

She watched others on early smartphones and computers — in offices, homes, and cafes. At least 80% had compromised breathing.

Stunned, Stone ran her own "dining room table science". She wired guests as they emailed, searched, or texted — tracking pulse and breath. Again, 80% had compromised breathing.

She named it: "email apnea" or "screen apnea".

Why does email disrupt your breathing?

It’s stressful. Think of your inbox:

What to read first?
Whom to respond first?
How to respond to difficult emails?

You wait.

You freeze.

You stop breathing.

All for an email.

Why is it bad?

Sharpness fades, stress spikes.

Your breath shapes your state.

Shallow breathing, longer breath holds, and hyperventilation trigger your body’s stress response.

It gets harder to relax and think straight.

And it gets worse.

You sabotage oxygen delivery to your brain.

Oxygen (O2) and carbon dioxide (CO2) must stay in balance in your blood.

You need both.

Oxygen is the fuel of your body. You know this.

But CO2? Isn’t it just a waste product you exhale?

It’s not that simple.

CO2 drives oxygen to your brain, muscles, and cells.

It gets fuel from tank to engine — fast.

How?

It opens blood vessels and frees oxygen from hemoglobin — the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen to your brain, muscles, and cells.

So how does email apnea cut oxygen delivery to the brain?

Repeatedly holding your breath with shallow breathing in between lets oxygen drop.

No problem during breathwork — you're doing it on purpose for a limited time.

CO2 rises — which can help oxygen delivery at first.

But what if it becomes a chronic pattern? If you hold your breath again and again, every time you check your email?

You lower blood oxygen levels (normally 95–99%), draining the tank.

Shallow breathing and hyperventilation harm you too.

The O2–CO2 balance is fragile.

30 seconds of faster and harder breathing can cut CO2 by half.

That can cut brain blood flow by 40% as vessels constrict.

You’re cutting fuel supply from the tank to the engine.

3 steps to cure email apnea:

1. Watch your breathing when doing email. Start now as you’re in your inbox already.

2. If something is off, do cadence breathing (5 in, 5 out, through the nose) while doing email. (You can use an app like The Breathing App [they don’t pay me] for audio guidance.)

3. Sit or stand tall and relaxed so your breath flows deep.

But this isn’t just about your inbox — it’s about how you breathe through your day.

The problem runs deeper than email.

Poor breathing patterns don’t just show up.

They creep in through stress. Through habits. Through posture.

Quietly, daily.

Not just during email. But during any high-focus, high-stress tasks — on- or off-screen.

If your breathing is off during the day, you may stop breathing at night (sleep apnea).

So how do you breathe best?

Look at young children and animals at rest.

They breathe well — without effort or excess.

Nose.
Light.
Deep into the belly, using the diaphragm.
Add slow, and you’re there.

60–80% of adults don’t breathe this way.[1]

Mouth.
Heavy.
Fast.
Shallow into the chest.

In breathing, less is more.

Remember:

You normally have 95–99% oxygen saturation in your blood. 95–99% of hemoglobin carries oxygen. The tank is full.

Bigger, faster breaths don’t help.

Protect your CO2 — that’s how fuel reaches the engine.

Daily breath shapes your health and well-being.

Don’t let it quietly ruin your sleep, focus, and mind.

You can relearn to breathe.

Breath awareness.
Breathing exercises.
Mouth taping at night.

You take about 20,000 breaths a day.
That’s 7.3 million chances a year to course-correct.
Big leverage.

Don’t breathe yourself down. Breathe yourself up.

Want to learn how, Jan?

👉 Reply to this email.

I help high-performing lawyers focus deeper, leave on time, and sleep better.

Thank you for reading.

Breathe well,

Jan

P.S.

Know someone who’s always stressed at their screen?
Share this with them — help them breathe easier today.

Got this newsletter from a friend?
Sign up here to get the next one.
3-minute reads, every first Thursday of the month.