Anxiety and shortness of breath: Why stress affects your breathing and how acupuncture can help

When anxiety strikes, your breathing can feel shallow, tight, or even out of control. Some people feel like they can’t take a full breath, while others experience chest tightness or a sense of air hunger.

If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Shortness of breath from anxiety is common—and the good news is that acupuncture can help.

The Western perspective: The breath-anxiety loop

When we’re calm, breathing is slow, steady, relaxed and deep. But when we’re anxious, our body shifts into fight-or-flight mode, triggering:

• Shallow breathing → The body speeds up breathing to take in more oxygen.
• Chest tightness → Muscles tense up, making it feel harder to expand the lungs.
• Overbreathing (hyperventilation) → Rapid breathing can cause dizziness, tingling, or even a feeling of suffocation.

Ironically, breathing too much air too quickly can make you feel like you’re not getting enough oxygen—creating a feedback loop that worsens anxiety.

The Chinese Medicine perspective: Lung Qi and emotional holding

In Chinese Medicine, the Lungs control breath and energy (Qi). Anxiety often affects the Lungs, leading to:

🔸 Shallow breathing and sighing → Qi stagnation from emotional stress.
🔸 Chest tightness → Qi not circulating smoothly.
🔸 Air hunger or difficulty taking a deep breath → Lung Qi deficiency, Lungs not anchored.
🔸 Panic attacks with breathlessness → Excess Liver Qi overwhelming the Lungs.

Because the Lungs are connected to grief and emotion, unresolved stress or trauma can often show up in the breath.

How acupuncture can help with anxiety and breathing

Acupuncture helps by calming the nervous system, relaxing the chest, and restoring natural breath flow. It can:

✅ Regulate the breath → Encouraging deeper, smoother breathing.
✅ Relax the diaphragm and chest → Reducing tightness and discomfort.
✅ Switch off fight-or-flight mode → Calming panic and overbreathing.
✅ Support Lung Qi → Strengthening breath control and endurance.

Key acupuncture points for breath and anxiety include:

• Lung 7 (Lieque) → Opens the chest and improves airflow.
• Ren 17 (Shanzhong) → Relieves chest tightness and emotional stress.
• Pericardium 6 (Neiguan) → Calms the heart and regulates breath.
• Kidney 27 (Shufu) → Supports deep breathing and reduces breathlessness.

Feeling breathless from anxiety? We can help.

If anxiety is making it hard to breathe deeply, acupuncture can help your breath flow naturally again—relaxing both your body and mind.

At Village Healing Centre in Curl Curl, we work with your body’s natural rhythms to help you breathe easier, feel calmer, and move through life with more ease.

If you’re in the Northern Beaches of Sydney and you’re curious about acupuncture for anxiety, we’d love to help you.

📍 Find us in Curl Curl (Sydney Northern Beaches)
📞 Call us at (02) 9938 2182
📅 Book your appointment