Why deep breathing makes you dizzy, and what to do

What's usually going on: you're overbreathing

Your body makes carbon dioxide all the time and gets rid of it with every exhale. At rest, your breathing adjusts by itself so that as much goes out as gets made.

When you breathe very fast, very big, or both, you blow off more carbon dioxide than you produce. That has a name: hyperventilation. MedlinePlus, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's encyclopedia, sums it up this way: overbreathing lowers the carbon dioxide level in your blood, and that drop causes many of the symptoms.

You don't have to be panting to get there. Slow breathing can be too much as well, if every inhale fills your lungs to the brim. A 2017 review of slow breathing explains that when you lower your breathing rate, the size of each breath should grow only as much as it takes to move the same air per minute.

Why less carbon dioxide makes you dizzy

Carbon dioxide isn't just waste. Among other things, it affects how wide your blood vessels are. Cleveland Clinic explains that when it drops, blood vessels narrow, including the ones that supply your brain, and that's where the dizzy feeling comes from.

The effect has been measured. A 2021 review written for intensive care estimates that blood flow to the brain falls about 3% for each millimeter of mercury that carbon dioxide drops in arterial blood. That number comes from hospital medicine, not from people doing breathing exercises, but it shows how sensitive the mechanism is.

The tingling takes a different route. As you lose carbon dioxide, your blood becomes less acidic. The Merck Manual notes that this shift can lower calcium and phosphate in the blood, which accounts for tingling in the hands and around the mouth and, in more pronounced cases, stiff fingers.

Other reasons you might get dizzy

• Fast breathing patterns. Bellows breath, breath of fire and deep breathing rounds move a lot of air on purpose. That's why this site shows a notice before they start, and why they're done sitting or lying down.
• Standing up too fast. MedlinePlus lists getting up too quickly as a common cause of lightheadedness, more so as people age. After a session lying down, get up slowly.
• Something that has nothing to do with breathing. The same resource names dehydration, low blood sugar, a cold and some blood pressure medicines. If you also get dizzy outside your practice, the cause may be there.

What to do in the moment

Cleveland Clinic says episodes of hyperventilation last from several minutes to an hour and go away on their own. In a gentle practice, the feeling usually eases shortly after you stop.

• Stop the exercise. Don't finish the round.
• Stay seated or lie down. If you were standing, sit down right away.
• Let your breathing return to its own pace, through your nose, small and uncounted.
• If you're still breathing fast, MedlinePlus suggests breathing out slowly through pursed lips, as if you were blowing out a candle.
• Wait until you feel fine before you get up, and take your time.

How to prevent it next time

• Breathe slow, not huge. Breathe in until it feels comfortable. You should barely be able to hear it.
• Pick short patterns. 2-to-1 breathing goes in for 3 seconds and out for 6. 4-6 breathing goes in for 4 and out for 6.
• Breathe in through your nose. Quietly, and without filling up to the brim.
• Shorten the session. Two or three minutes are enough at first. Go longer once your body knows the rhythm.
• Try pursed lips. In Pursed-lip breathing you breathe in through your nose for 2 seconds and out for 4 through nearly closed lips, which slows the air on its way out.
• Save the intense patterns for later. And always sitting or lying down, never in water or while driving.

When to see a professional

A brief dizzy spell that passes when you stop the exercise usually isn't cause for alarm. Other situations do need attention. MedlinePlus says to get emergency care if dizziness comes with chest pain, an irregular heartbeat, shortness of breath, weakness, changes in vision or speech, or fainting.

See a health professional if the dizziness doesn't pass, if it comes back every time you practice even when you breathe gently, or if it shows up for the first time with no clear reason. Cleveland Clinic points out that hyperventilation isn't harmful in itself, but it can come along with conditions that are.

And if you have a heart, lung or blood pressure condition, epilepsy, a history of panic attacks or fainting, or you're pregnant, check with your care provider before you practice. This site is a companion for a practice. It doesn't diagnose anything.