Email Apnea. Yes, It is a real thing!

Sleep Apnea is a serious disorder, and not to be taken lightly. It’s less about snoring and more how breathing stops for long periods of time numerous times throughout the person’s sleep cycle. This continuous stress on the heart, lungs, blood flow etc. can have serious side effects.

But even if you don’t suffer from Sleep Apnea, there is another form of Apnea (defined as the temporary cessation of breathing) that you may have and it may be affecting you in ways you don’t realize.

“Email Apnea” is a phenomenon where people unconsciously hold their breath or drop into shallow breathing when they’re responding to email or texting. They may even find themselves gasping for air as though it’s an involuntary response.

It can be caused by various stressors in life, but I’ve witnessed it come up the most while individuals are focusing on producing email responses or text messages to people they care about. It’s clear that there’s anxiety around being responsive to loved ones because of an underlying fear of ‘missing out’ on something important or neglecting their needs. There’s a kind of emotional rigidity coming from the head and heart, which translates into physical tension in the body. And right when you think you’ve got yourself together and you’re ready to send that email or text, your throat becomes very tight and restricted and it feels like something is stuck in there.

So what is it that causes yourself to hold your breath or drop into shallow breathing?

Stress manifests as a constriction of our throat muscles and we actually stop breathing when we tense those muscles. This often happens without our awareness, because the physical act of tightening muscles isn’t something we normally observe in ourselves. But once you become aware of it, you’ll notice it every time you feel stressed or tense.

As simple as it sounds, it can be very challenging to relax those throat muscles and start breathing again. It’s like there’s a disconnect between the mind and body, and after awhile you start to lose consciousness. It’s as if your mind is no longer in control of your behavior.

So how can we break this unhealthy habit?

The good news is that it gets better with practice, but only if you have a clear understanding of what needs to happen from a body and mind perspective. The head and heart need to let go of any thought-based activity, such as creating the ‘perfect’ email in your mind before sending it off with no response expected. If you’re wanting a reply from them right away, you only perpetuate the stress and tension in your body because you’re stuck in your head with no release for your natural instinct to breathe.

It’s like you’re holding on to the rope that is attached to that email or text message waiting for it to come back, so any time you feel stressed or anxious about not getting a response you unconsciously hold your breath. This will often result in shallow breathing because of the anxiety involved with not being able to produce the perfect response.

Instead, just let go of that rope and give yourself permission to breathe again.

Here are 3 tips to avoid email apnea.

1. While typing an email, or really any communication, take notice of your chest and how it feels after you type a sentence. If you feel the sensation of not being able to breathe, then re-read what you’ve written and see if there’s more that needs to be added or refined before sending it off.

2. When receiving an email or text message, take a breath in and out to release any tension that may be felt around thinking about a response or just reading through it.

3. Set yourself up for success by allowing your mind and body to relax before beginning any type of communication. Something as simple as closing your eyes and taking 5 deep breaths will do the trick!

I believe that when we’re in a relaxed state and we send someone an email or text message, that’s when they receive it in the most beautiful way. What you give is what you get. So if the mind and body are tense and restricted, then that anxiety and stress is going to reflect in their response.

I hope this is helpful! Feel free to reach out with any comments or questions!