Shortness Of Breath Anxiety, Out Of Breath

Written by Jim Folk
Medically reviewed by Marilyn Folk, BScN.
Last updated November 4, 2024

shortness of breath anxiety

Shortness of breath, such as feeling out of breath, like you can't catch your breath, like if you don't force yourself to breath you won't, and so on, are common symptoms of anxiety disorder, including anxiety and panic symptoms.

Many anxious, hyperstimulated, and stressed people get shortness of breath symptoms.

This article explains why anxiety can cause shortness of breath and feeling out of breath symptoms.

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Shortness Of Breath, Feeling Out Of Breath, Can't Catch Your Breath anxiety symptom common descriptions:

  • You uncharacteristically feel short of breath or out of breath.
  • You suddenly feel out of breath for no apparent reason.
  • You feel short of breath upon mild exertion.
  • You feel out of breath most of the time.
  • You find yourself gasping for breath, or over-breathing just to try and get sufficient oxygen.
  • You find yourself yawning because you often feel out of breath.
  • You regularly feel smothered.
  • You notice you are constantly gasping for air.
  • It often feels like you can’t breathe deep enough.
  • It feels like your breathing is labored and heavy.
  • You are having difficulty breathing, like you can’t catch your breath.
  • It feels like your breathing is shallow, and even if you force yourself to breathe deeply, it still feels like you are short or out of breath.
  • You have become conscious of your breathing and how you breathe.
  • Even though your doctor said your peak flow and oxygen levels are normal, you still feel out of breath or that your breath is too shallow, or that you can’t catch your breath.
  • It feels like you have to force yourself to breathe deeply just to get sufficient oxygen.
  • It feels like you have to over-breathe because your normal breathing makes you feel out of breath or that you can’t catch your breath.
  • It feels like your normal breathing patterns aren’t sufficient to give you a normal breath.
  • You constantly feel out of breath or that you aren’t getting sufficient oxygen.
  • It feels like you can’t catch your breath no matter what you do.
  • Even mild physical exertion, such as getting up and walking to another room, causes you to feel out of breath or that you can’t catch your breath.
  • It can also seem like you have to force yourself to breathe in fear that if you don't, you'll stop breathing or pass out.
  • Or for no apparent reason, you feel out of breath and find yourself doing an unusual amount of yawning in an attempt to catch your breath.

This symptom can:

  • Occur occasionally, frequently, or persistently. For example, you feel out of breath once in a while and not that often, feel out of breath off and on, or feel out of breath or that you can’t catch your breath all the time.
  • Precede, accompany, or follow an escalation of other anxiety symptoms or occur by itself.
  • Precede, accompany, or follow a period of nervousness, anxiety, fear, and stress, or occur "out of the blue" and for no reason.
  • Range in intensity from slight, to moderate, to severe.
  • Come in waves where it’s strong one moment and eases off the next.
  • Change from day to day, moment to moment, or remain as a constant background during your struggle with anxiety disorder.

For example, you can feel short of breath most of the time every day, and then, for no apparent reason, suddenly breathe normally for a few hours only for shortness of breath to return.

Or, you can breathe normally most of the time but have periods where you feel short of breath and like you can’t catch your breath.

All of the above combinations and variations are common.

This symptom can seem more noticeable when undistracted, resting, trying to sleep, or when waking up.

This symptom is often referred to as Dyspnea: is a clinical term for the sensation of breathlessness or shortness of breath experienced by both normal subjects and patients with diseases affecting the respiratory system.[1]

To see if anxiety might be playing a role in your symptoms, rate your level of anxiety using our free one-minute instant results Anxiety Test, Anxiety Disorder Test, or Hyperstimulation Test.

The higher the rating, the more likely anxiety could be contributing to or causing your anxiety symptoms, including feeling like impending doom symptoms.

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What causes the feeling out of breath anxiety symptoms?

Medical Advisory

Talk to your doctor about all new, changing, persistent, and returning symptoms as some medical conditions and medications can cause anxiety-like symptoms.

Additional Medical Advisory Information.

When this anxiety symptom is caused by stress, including anxiety-caused stress, there are many contributing factors.[1][2][3] The four most common are:

1. The stress response

When we are anxious, the body produces a stress response, also known as the fight, flight, or freeze response (some people freeze when they are afraid like a “deer caught in headlights”).[4][5]

The stress response causes many body-wide changes that enhance our ability to deal with a threat – to either fight or flee.

Some of these changes include:

  • An increase in body stimulation[3]
  • An increase in heart rate[3]
  • An increase in respiration, and therefore, demand for oxygen[6]
  • Tightened muscles, including those in the chest, diaphragm, and abdomen, which can restrict breathing[6]

Any one or combination of the above can cause a shortness of breath, feeling like you can’t catch your breath, and out of breath feelings.

As long as the stress response is active, this symptom and its feelings can persist.

Visit our “Stress Response” article for more information about the many changes caused by the stress response.

High degree stress responses, such as those that occur during anxiety and panic attacks can create dramatic episodes of shortness of breath. Visit our “anxiety attack symptoms” article for more information.

2. Holding your breath

Some anxious people hold or quiet their breathing when they are anxious or stressed. Holding or quieting your breath can cause the shortness of breath and feeling out of breath symptoms.

To many anxious people, stress and anxiety are invisible because they have lived their lives so stressfully and anxiously that they aren’t even aware that their stress and anxiety are abnormal and unhealthy. Consequently, they don’t recognize when they hold their breath,[7][8] and therefore, don’t make the connection between holding their breath and the feeling of being out of breath.

3. Hyperstimulation

When stress responses occur infrequently, the body can recover relatively quickly. When stress responses occur too frequently, however, the body can remain in a state of semi stress response readiness, which we call “stress-response hyperstimulation” since stress hormones are stimulants.[9][10]

Hyperstimulation can keep the stress response changes active even though a stress response hasn’t been activated. Shortness of breath, feeling like you can’t catch your breath, and feeling out of breath are common symptoms of hyperstimulation.

4. Being anxious about feeling short of breath

Many anxious people become afraid of feeling short of breath. This fear can trigger more anxiety and stress, which can exacerbate this symptom.

In this case, a vicious cycle can set up where:

  • Anxiety activates the stress response
  • The stress response causes shortness of breath symptoms
  • Being afraid of shortness of breath symptoms creates more anxiety
  • More anxiety activates more stress responses
  • More stress responses causes more shortness of breath symptoms

And so on.

Fortunately, shortness of breath caused by anxiety and stress isn’t harmful. So, it’s not something we need to be afraid of.

Yes, it can be annoying and bothersome. But it won’t stop you from breathing or getting sufficient air.

Since breathing is an automatic bodily function, you don’t have to worry about not breathing. Even though it might feel as if you are out of breath or that you can’t catch your breath, you’ll always get enough oxygen to breathe. Even if you hold your breath until you pass out, your body will take control of your breathing until you revive.

5. Other Factors

Other factors can create stress and cause anxiety-like symptoms, as well as aggravate existing anxiety symptoms, including:

Select the relevant link for more information.

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Treatment: How to get rid of the feeling out of breath anxiety symptoms

When other factors cause or aggravate this anxiety symptom, addressing the specific cause can reduce and eliminate this symptom.

When an active stress response causes this symptom, ending the active stress response will cause this acute anxiety symptom to subside.

Keep in mind that it can take up to 20 minutes or more for the body to recover from a major stress response. But this is normal and needn’t be a cause for concern.

When hyperstimulation (chronic stress) causes shortness of breath symptoms, eliminating hyperstimulation will end this anxiety symptom.

You can eliminate hyperstimulation by:

  • Reducing stress.
  • Containing anxious behavior (since anxiety creates stress).
  • Regular deep relaxation.
  • Avoiding stimulants.
  • Regular light to moderate exercise.
  • Eating a healthy diet of whole and natural foods.
  • Passively accepting your symptoms until they subside.
  • Being patient as your body recovers.

Visit our “60 Natural Ways To Reduce Stress” article for more ways to reduce stress.

As the body recovers from hyperstimulation, it stops sending symptoms, including this one.

Symptoms of chronic stress subside as the body regains its normal, non-hyperstimulated health.

However, eliminating hyperstimulation can take much longer than most people think, causing symptoms to linger longer than expected.

As long as the body is even slightly hyperstimulated, it can present symptoms of any type, number, intensity, duration, frequency, and at any time, including this one.

Even so, since shortness of breath is a common symptom of stress, including anxiety-caused stress, it's harmless and needn't be a cause for concern. It will subside when unhealthy stress has been eliminated and the body has had sufficient time to recover. Therefore, there is no reason to worry about it.

Anxiety symptoms often linger because:

  • The body is still being stressed (from stressful circumstances or anxious behavior).
  • Your stress hasn't diminished enough or for long enough.
  • Your body hasn't completed its recovery work.

Addressing the reason for lingering symptoms will allow the body to recover.

Most often, lingering anxiety symptoms ONLY remain because of the above reasons. They AREN'T a sign of a medical problem. This is especially true if you have had your symptoms evaluated by your doctor and they have been solely attributed to anxiety or stress.

Chronic anxiety symptoms subside when hyperstimulation is eliminated. As the body recovers and stabilizes, all chronic anxiety symptoms will slowly diminish and eventually disappear.

Since worrying and becoming upset about anxiety symptoms stress the body, these behaviors can interfere with recovery.

Passively accepting your symptoms – allowing them to persist without reacting to, resisting, worrying about, or fighting them – while doing your recovery work will cause their cessation in time.

Acceptance, practice, and patience are key to recovery.

Keep in mind that it can take a long time for the body to recover from hyperstimulation. It's best to faithfully work at your recovery despite the lack of apparent progress.

However, if you persevere with your recovery work, you will succeed.

You also have to do your recovery work FIRST before your body can recover. The cumulative effects of your recovery work will produce results down the road. And the body's stimulation has to diminish before symptoms can subside.

  • Reducing stress.
  • Increasing rest.
  • Faithfully practicing your recovery strategies.
  • Passively accepting your symptoms.
  • Containing anxious behavior.
  • Being patient.

These will bring results in time.

When you do the right work, the body has to recover!

Diaphragmatic breathing

You can also try regulating your breathing by using a diaphragmatic breathing technique.

The diaphragm, also known as the thoracic diaphragm, is a dome-shaped sheet of muscle and tendon that separates the chest from the abdomen. It plays a vital role in the process of breathing.

When we breathe in, the diaphragm expands drawing air into the lungs. When we breathe out, the diaphragm contracts (tightens) forcing air out.

Breathing from your diaphragm can regulate your breathing, which can eliminate shortness of breath due to anxiety and stress.

Here is an example of a diaphragmatic breathing technique:

  1. Relax your body.
  1. Place one hand on your chest and the other on your stomach just below the rib cage (where your diaphragm is).
  1. Breathe in slowly through your nose into your lower lungs first. This should cause the hand over your stomach to move out. Then, fill the top of your lungs with air. This should cause the hand on your chest to move out. Try not to over-fill your lungs, but breathe in until you have sufficient oxygen. Hold for a moment or two.
  1. Tighten your stomach muscles, then slowly exhale through your mouth or nose by exhaling the air from the top of your lungs first, and then the air in your lower lungs by drawing your stomach muscles in until most of the air from your lungs has been exhaled.
  1. Repeat until you feel your normal breathing has returned.

The entire breathing cycle can take up to 16 seconds, with 7 seconds of inhaling, 2 seconds of holding, and 7 seconds of exhaling.

Be sure you don’t over breathe, which can cause hyperventilation. You want to be as relaxed as you can so the diaphragmatic breathing technique feels relaxing and comfortable.

If done correctly, diaphragmatic breathing can trigger the body’s built-in tranquilizing effect.

Diaphragmatic breathing can be used anytime to calm the body as it stimulates the vagus nerve and the parasympathetic nervous system – the nervous system responsible for calming the body.

While diaphragmatic breathing can alleviate shortness of breath due to acute anxiety and stress, it might not if the shortness of breath is caused by hyperstimulation (chronic stress). In this case, eliminating hyperstimulation is required to eliminate this symptom.

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Shortness Of Breath Video

Below is Jim Folk's commentary about the anxiety symptom feeling out of breath, can't catch your breath, or breathlessness. Jim Folk is the president of anxietycentre.com.


Feeling out of breath is a common symptom of anxiety. Jim Folk experienced all of the anxiety symptoms mentioned at this website, with many to severe degrees during his 12-year struggle with anxiety disorder, including feeling out of breath or can't catch your breath.

If you are having difficulty with anxiety and what seems like unmanageable worry, you might want to connect with one of our recommended anxiety disorder therapists. Working with an experienced anxiety disorder therapist is the most effective way to overcome issues with anxiety and its symptoms.

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Prevention

You can prevent shortness of breath anxiety symptoms by reducing stress, addressing your anxiety issues so they aren't causing invisible stress, and by healthy stress management practices, such as regular deep relaxation, regular exercise, living a balanced life, getting good rest and sleep, and by eating a healthy diet of whole natural foods.

Prevalence

In an online poll we conducted, 79 percent of respondents said they had shortness of breath symptoms because of their anxiety.

Related anxiety symptoms:

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The combination of good self-help information and working with an experienced anxiety disorder therapist, coach, or counselor is the most effective way to address anxiety and its many symptoms. Until the core causes of anxiety are addressed – which we call the underlying factors of anxiety – a struggle with anxiety unwellness can return again and again. Dealing with the underlying factors of anxiety is the best way to address problematic anxiety.
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Additional Resources

Return to our anxiety disorders signs and symptoms page.

anxietycentre.com: Information, support, and therapy for anxiety disorder and its symptoms, including the Shortness Of Breath, Out Of Breath, and Can't Catch Your Breath Anxiety Symptoms.

References

1. “Dyspnea in Relation to Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression: A Prospective Population Study.” Egyptian Journal of Medical Human Genetics, Elsevier, 3 Mar. 2006.

2. Berliner, Dominik, et al. “The Differential Diagnosis of Dyspnea.” NCBI PubMed, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Dec. 2016.

3. "Dyspnea and Emotional States in Health and Disease.” Egyptian Journal of Medical Human Genetics, Elsevier, 21 Jan. 2013.

4. Selye H. Endocrine reactions during stress. Anesthesia & Analgesia. 1956;35:182–193. [PubMed]

5. Folk, Jim and Folk, Marilyn. “The Stress Response And Anxiety Symptoms.” anxietycentre.com, August 2019.

6. "Stress." University of Maryland Medical Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2016.

7. WT, Roth, et al. "Voluntary breath holding in panic and generalized anxiety disorders." Psychosomatic Medicine, Dec. 1998.

8. Fogel, Alan. “Waiting to Exhale.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 27 Sept. 2010.

9. Hannibal, Kara E., and Mark D. Bishop. “Chronic Stress, Cortisol Dysfunction, and Pain: A Psychoneuroendocrine Rationale for Stress Management in Pain Rehabilitation.” Advances in Pediatrics., U.S. National Library of Medicine, Dec. 2014.

10. Folk, Jim and Folk, Marilyn. "Hyperstimulation." anxietycentre.com, Nov. 2019.