Breathwork and Cognitive Load: Reducing Mental Strain in an Overstimulated World

Science of BreathworkTrauma-Informed PracticeBreathwork Facilitator ResourcesBreathwork TechniquesBreathwork Training
Written By Jennifer Nolan

There’s a particular kind of tiredness that comes from thinking and holding too much at once. When you are making decision after decision, dealing with notification after notification, task after task without space to rest and process.

This experience is often described as cognitive overload or high cognitive load and it’s becoming increasingly common as modern life places a sustained and often unrealistic demand on our attention, memory, and emotional regulation.

Cognitive load affects how we learn, how we feel, how we relate to others, and how safe we feel in our own bodies. When cognitive load stays high for long periods of time, it can tip the nervous system into ongoing stress, making even simple tasks feel overwhelming.

Breathwork isn’t a magic cure, but it can help us to deal with the complexity of high cognitive load. In this article, we’ll explore what cognitive load is, how it impacts the nervous system, and how breathwork can support cognitive load management (in a way that hopefully won’t increase your own cognitive load!)

What is Cognitive Load?

Cognitive load is the amount of mental effort your brain is using at any given moment.

It’s how much information you’re holding, processing, deciding between, or trying to make sense of, all at once.

Some cognitive load is normal and necessary. We need it to:

  • learn new things

  • plan and organise

  • problem-solve

  • regulate emotions

  • move through daily life

Problems arise when cognitive load stays consistently high, without enough support, rest, or recovery.

High cognitive load might look like:

  • rereading the same sentence again and again

  • forgetting what you were just about to do

  • feeling emotionally reactive or shut down

  • struggling to start simple tasks

  • feeling overwhelmed even when “nothing big” is happening

These are signs that your brain and nervous system are being asked to do more than they comfortably can.

Cognitive load is influenced by many things, including:

  • the complexity of what you’re dealing with

  • how information is presented

  • your environment and sensory input

  • stress, anxiety, or lack of sleep

  • trauma history or ongoing uncertainty

This is why two people can experience the same situation very differently. Cognitive load is about capacity, context, and nervous system state as well as the situation.

Understanding our own cognitive load helps us move away from self-blame and shame and hopefully towards more compassionate, practical forms of support. Instead of asking, “Why can’t I cope?” we can begin asking, “What’s asking too much of my system right now?”

Cognitive Load Theory

Cognitive load theory comes from education and psychology, but it’s incredibly useful far beyond classrooms and learning environments.

At its heart, the theory recognises something very simple: our working memory is limited.

We can only hold and process so much information at one time before things start to spill over, attention drops, emotions become harder to regulate, and thinking feels effortful rather than fluid.

Cognitive load theory describes three main types of load:

Intrinsic cognitive load

This is the load created by the task itself. Some things are simply more complex than others, learning a new skill, navigating change, processing grief, or understanding your nervous system for the first time.

Extraneous cognitive load

This is the unnecessary load created by how information is presented or by the environment around us. Too much noise, too many tabs open, unclear instructions, pressure to rush, all of these increase cognitive strain.

Reducing extraneous load is one of the most effective forms of cognitive load management, and it’s something we can often influence directly through pacing, environment, and support.

Germane cognitive load

This is the effort that helps us integrate, reflect, and make meaning. It’s the kind of load that supports learning and growth, but only when the system isn’t already overwhelmed.

In modern life, many people are carrying high intrinsic load and high extraneous load at the same time. Add ongoing stress, uncertainty, or unresolved trauma responses, and the nervous system can stay in a state of constant activation.

This is why understanding cognitive load pairs so well with learning about the nervous system. If you’re curious about that connection, our Basic Primer on the Nervous System and articles on Polyvagal Theory and Breathwork explore how cognitive and physiological load interact, and why regulation isn’t about “calming down” but about restoring capacity.

Cognitive load theory gives us a more compassionate lens. Instead of pushing ourselves harder, we can begin asking:

  • What can be simplified?

  • What can be slowed down?

  • What support would reduce unnecessary strain?

And this is where breathwork becomes especially relevant as a way to support the system that’s already doing too much.

High Cognitive Load in Modern Life

We live in a world that constantly asks our nervous systems to stay alert, responsive, and available, often without enough space to rest, integrate, or recover.

Many of us are navigating:

  • constant digital input and notifications

  • ongoing decision-making and time pressure

  • blurred boundaries between work, home, and rest

  • emotional labour, care responsibilities, or uncertainty

  • a steady background of global and personal stress

All of this adds to cognitive load, taking up processing space.

It’s also important to name that not everyone starts with the same cognitive capacity.

Neurodivergent people, including those with ADHD, autism, dyslexia, or sensory processing differences, often process information differently. This can mean:

  • greater sensory input

  • higher baseline cognitive effort

  • faster cognitive fatigue

Similarly, people with a history of trauma, whether acute, developmental, or ongoing, may have nervous systems that are already working hard to stay safe. When the nervous system is in a heightened state of vigilance, there is simply less capacity available for thinking, planning, and decision-making.

If this resonates, our article on Trauma Responses in Adults explores how overwhelm, shutdown, and reactivity are often adaptive responses rather than signs of weakness. You may also find it helpful to explore Grounding & Resourcing in Breathwork, which looks at how we can support capacity before asking ourselves to go deeper.

High cognitive load often shows up alongside:

  • irritability or emotional overwhelm

  • difficulty starting or finishing tasks

  • mental fog or decision paralysis

  • a sense of being “behind” or not keeping up

When this is happening, telling yourself to “focus harder” or “be more mindful” can actually increase strain. What’s often needed instead is support that reduces load, rather than adding more effort.

This is one reason breathwork can be so supportive. When used appropriately, it doesn’t ask the mind to do more, it helps the body and nervous system settle enough that thinking becomes easier again.

If you’re newer to breathwork, our guide on What is Breathwork? offers an overview of different approaches, and Breathwork for Beginners shares simple ways to get started.

Does your brain ever feel like this?

How High Cognitive Load Affects the Nervous System

High cognitive load doesn’t live only in the mind. It has a very real impact on the nervous system and the body as a whole.

When your brain is constantly processing information, scanning for threats, making decisions, or trying to keep up, the nervous system often interprets this as ongoing demand or pressure. Over time, this can tip the system into a state of stress activation.

This often looks like increased activation of the sympathetic nervous system (the branch associated with mobilising, doing, and responding). You might notice:

  • feeling wired but tired

  • shallow or held breathing

  • difficulty switching off

  • heightened emotional responses

  • trouble resting, even when exhausted

From a nervous system perspective, high cognitive load can:

  • reduce access to rest-and-digest states

  • narrow attention and perception

  • increase vigilance and reactivity

  • make emotional regulation harder

This is why overwhelm often comes with physical sensation such as tightness in the chest, jaw, or belly; headaches; digestive changes; or a sense of internal pressure.

The vagus nerve plays a key role here. It helps communicate safety and regulation throughout the body, but when cognitive and emotional demands remain high, this system has fewer opportunities to settle.

It’s also worth naming that for people with trauma histories or ongoing stress, this pattern may feel very familiar. The nervous system may already be primed for alertness, meaning cognitive load accumulates faster and resolves more slowly as the body doesn’t feel safe.

Importantly, the nervous system doesn’t distinguish between:

  • emotional stress

  • cognitive strain

  • sensory overload

To the body, it’s all information, and too much of it at once can be experienced as threat.

This is why approaches that work with the nervous system, rather than asking the mind to override it, are so effective for managing cognitive load.

Measuring Cognitive Load

Cognitive load isn’t something most of us formally measure, but we feel it.

Rather than numbers or metrics, cognitive load is often best understood through patterns and signals, especially in day-to-day life. Learning to notice these signs can be a powerful first step in cognitive load management.

Some common signs of high cognitive load include:

  • difficulty concentrating or staying with one task

  • forgetting simple things or losing track mid-sentence

  • feeling mentally foggy or slowed down

  • irritability, emotional reactivity, or sudden shutdown

  • decision paralysis, even around small choices

  • feeling overwhelmed by things you’d usually manage

Cognitive load also shows up in the body. You might notice:

  • shallow or held breathing

  • tension in the jaw, shoulders, or belly

  • restlessness or an urge to escape stimulation

  • fatigue that doesn’t resolve with rest

This is where understanding the nervous system becomes helpful. High cognitive load often travels alongside stress responses, even when there’s no obvious external threat.

It’s also important to remember that cognitive load is contextual. Your capacity can change depending on:

  • sleep, illness, or hormonal shifts

  • emotional stress or uncertainty

  • sensory environment

  • neurodivergence

  • trauma history or ongoing pressure

This means that something which feels manageable one day might feel impossible the next, and that fluctuation is normal.

Rather than asking “Can I push through this?”, measuring cognitive load invites a different question: “What is my capacity right now, and what would support it?”

This awareness is what allows tools like breathwork to be used appropriately. Without it, even supportive practices can accidentally add more effort.

The Relationship Between Cognitive Load and Mindfulness

Mindfulness is often described as being present, aware, and responsive rather than reactive. But when cognitive load is high, that state can feel frustratingly out of reach.

This isn’t because mindfulness “isn’t working”. It’s because high cognitive load fragments attention.

When the mind is carrying too much, attention gets pulled in multiple directions at once:

  • replaying what just happened

  • anticipating what’s coming next

  • trying to remember what hasn’t been done

  • monitoring for mistakes or threats

Rather than resting in the present moment, awareness becomes scattered and effortful.

In this state, practices that rely heavily on sustained attention or internal observation can feel inaccessible. You might notice:

  • difficulty staying with a single focus

  • increased rumination

  • self-judgement for “doing it wrong”

  • a sense of mental restlessness rather than calm

From a cognitive load perspective, this makes sense. Mindfulness requires available capacity. When that capacity is already being used elsewhere, the practice can feel like another demand rather than a support.

This is one reason why mindfulness is sometimes misunderstood as a matter of discipline or willpower. In reality, presence emerges more easily when cognitive load is reduced, not when we push ourselves harder.

Breathwork can act as a bridge here. Unlike practices that ask the mind to stabilise attention first, breathing works through the body and nervous system. By supporting regulation and reducing background strain, breathwork can make mindful awareness more accessible — without asking for extra mental effort.

If you’re interested in exploring this connection further, our article on Benefits of Breathwork looks at how breath-based practices support focus, awareness, and emotional regulation. You may also find Breathwork and Neuroplasticity helpful for understanding how repeated regulation can gently reshape attention patterns over time.

How Breathwork Supports Cognitive Load Management

When cognitive load is high, asking the mind to work harder rarely helps. Breathwork offers a different entry point, one that works with the nervous system rather than through mental effort.

Breathing patterns are closely linked to attention, arousal, and emotional regulation. When the breath is shallow, held, or rapid, the body often stays in a state of readiness. When the breath slows, deepens, or becomes more rhythmic, the nervous system receives cues of relative safety.

This matters for cognitive load because regulation creates capacity.

Breathwork doesn’t remove complexity, responsibilities, or difficult circumstances. What it can do is reduce the background strain those things place on the system. When the nervous system is better supported:

  • attention becomes easier to sustain

  • emotional responses soften

  • thinking feels less effortful

  • decision-making becomes clearer

In this way, breathwork supports cognitive load management by lowering the overall cost of mental activity, not by forcing focus or productivity.

Breathwork for High Cognitive Load

When cognitive load is high, less is often more.

If we distill it down, breathwork’s goal is to offer the nervous system a steady signal that it doesn’t need to work quite so hard.

Here are a few breathwork approaches that tend to be especially supportive when mental load feels heavy.

Extended exhale breathing
Gently lengthening the exhale relative to the inhale can support settling and downregulation. This can help reduce the background sense of pressure that often accompanies cognitive overload.

Coherent (rhythmic) breathing
Coherent breathing uses a steady, even rhythm that the body can easily follow such as6 seconds inhale and 6 seconds exhale. Because the pattern is predictable, it reduces the amount of attention needed to stay engaged.

Diaphragmatic (belly) breathing
Breathing into the belly can help counter shallow, held breathing patterns that often emerge under mental strain. It also provides a physical sensation to anchor attention, which can be helpful when thoughts are busy.

Alternate nostril breathing
For some people, especially those experiencing mental agitation or looping thoughts, alternating the breath between nostrils can gently organise attention without requiring sustained focus on the mind itself.

Very short, guided practices
When cognitive load is high, even deciding how to practise can feel like too much. Using short, guided sessions can reduce that effort and make breathwork more accessible.

Our Free Weekly Breathwork Sessions are designed with this in mind, friendly, inclusive, and offered across multiple time zones.

A gentle reminder: if any practice feels effortful, frustrating, or overwhelming, that’s useful information. It’s always okay to pause, adjust, or choose something simpler.

Supporting Breathers With High Cognitive Load (for breathwork professionals)

If you’re a breathwork facilitator or coach, high cognitive load is something you’ll encounter often, sometimes explicitly, sometimes quietly in the background.

A breather with high cognitive load may struggle to:

  • follow multi-step instructions

  • remember cues or sequences

  • stay present for longer practices

  • articulate what they’re experiencing

Supportive facilitation for high cognitive load usually means reducing demand rather than increasing technique.

This might look like:

  • using simple, consistent language

  • offering one instruction at a time

  • keeping practices shorter or clearly paced

  • repeating key cues without urgency

  • normalising rest, pausing, or opting out

Practices such as extended exhale breathing, coherent breathing, or gently guided diaphragmatic breathing often work well in these contexts because they are predictable and don’t require sustained mental effort.

It’s also important to include yourself in this picture. Facilitating sessions, especially group work, places real cognitive and emotional demands on the nervous system. Attending to your own capacity, integration, and regulation is part of ethical practice, not something to squeeze in later.

Interested in further training? Our Breathwork Coach Program explores how to work safely and skillfully with nervous system capacity, while the 400-Hour Breathwork Facilitator Training goes deeper into trauma sensitivity, scope of practice, and sustainable facilitation.

Trauma-Informed Considerations While Reducing Cognitive Load

High cognitive load is not always situational. For many people, it’s shaped by lived experience and cognitive load may always be higher.

Neurodivergence, chronic stress, ongoing uncertainty, or a history of trauma can all reduce available capacity, sometimes significantly. In these cases, practices that assume focus, discipline, or internal awareness can unintentionally increase strain and feelings of shame.

A trauma-informed approach to cognitive load and breathwork centres:

  • choice and consent

  • pacing and flexibility

  • external support rather than internal demand

  • respect for fluctuation in capacity

This might mean prioritising grounding and resourcing before deeper practices, or choosing breathwork that supports regulation without intensification.

Trauma-informed breathwork is about meeting the system where it is, so that capacity can grow organically rather than through pressure.

Ways to Experience Breathwork with Breathing Space (for free)

If you’re curious to explore breathwork for high cognitive load:

Jennifer Nolan
Next

The Vagus Nerve & Breathwork: A Guide to Nervous System Regulation