Breathwork for ADHD in Women: How Conscious Breathing Changed My Life
I was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult — at 37. Like many women, my ADHD went unnoticed for years. I was the “high achiever” who managed to keep it all together on the outside, but underneath, I was running on stress, anxiety, and pure survival.
Motherhood cracked that façade wide open. I lost my mum suddenly while four months pregnant with my first child. By the time I had my second, I was already juggling ADHD symptoms, postpartum depression, and the relentless mental load that so many women carry. When lockdown hit and my partner was working 14-hour days, I was left isolated with two small kids, spiralling into panic attacks I hadn’t had in over a decade.
Medication took the edge off the anxiety, but it also dulled me. My focus slipped away. I felt disconnected from myself, my family, and my sense of purpose.
That’s when I found conscious connected breathwork — and it changed everything.
Why ADHD in Women Often Looks Different
ADHD in women is often misdiagnosed or missed completely. Instead of the stereotypical “hyperactive boy” image, women with ADHD are more likely to struggle with:
Emotional dysregulation — quick to anger, quick to overwhelm
Racing thoughts that make rest impossible
Chronic anxiety and self-doubt
Burnout from constantly overcompensating
Feeling like you’re failing, even when you’re doing everything you can
That was me. And what I didn’t realise at the time was how closely ADHD is tied to the nervous system. When you’re stuck in fight-or-flight, your breath becomes shallow, your cortisol spikes, and everything feels like too much.
How Breathwork Helps Women with ADHD
Breathwork became my anchor. With conscious connected breathing, I could finally settle my nervous system and feel safe in my own body. The endless mental chatter softened. The panic eased. I felt focused and present in a way I hadn’t experienced in years.
Breathwork helps ADHD in women by:
Regulating the nervous system — calming the fight-or-flight response that fuels anxiety and overwhelm
Improving focus and clarity — slowing down racing thoughts and creating mental space
Releasing stored stress and emotions — so you don’t carry the tension day after day
Restoring a sense of choice — giving you the power to respond instead of react
For me, it wasn’t just about managing ADHD symptoms — it was about reclaiming my life. I could sit with my kids without the buzzing restlessness. I could make decisions without overthinking myself into exhaustion. And I could finally trust myself again.
Step by Step, Breath by Breath
As Alakh Analda, the founder of Rebirthing Breathwork Mastery, says: change happens when we are ready, safe, willing, supported — or in enough pain to shift. I had reached that point. Breathwork was the tool that met me there.
Breathwork didn’t “cure” my ADHD — but it gave me what I was missing: regulation, clarity, and a sense of agency in my own life. That’s why I now guide other women through this practice. Because whether you’ve just been diagnosed, or you’ve carried ADHD silently for decades, you deserve to feel calm, clear, and connected to yourself.
Breathwork isn’t about being perfect. It’s about finding a way back to yourself, one breath at a time.
