The 30-Second Awakening Breath for a Mid-Day Energy Reset

There is a specific kind of exhaustion that tends to hit right in the middle of the afternoon. It’s that moment when you realize you’ve been showing up to your day from minute one, and you are already tired. Now, your mental load has reached max capacity. When we carry so much for everyone else, our brains can easily become numbed or paralyzed, leaving us feeling completely unable to catch up with the tasks still in front of us.

Sometimes, mid-day, we don’t have the choice to just stop, but we can choose to give our nervous systems a quick interrupt. I love using the Awakening Breath for this because it’s a natural way to switch your brain and body back “on” when you’re feeling buried by the weight of the setup. It’s a simple micro-move: take a long, deep inhale to raise your blood pressure and wake up your senses, followed by a short, sharp exhale. 

If you repeat this just a few times – ideally for about 30 seconds – you’ll notice the grogginess start to lift and your concentration begin to return. This works because we understand how our nervous systems respond to those long inhales, and it becomes a simple way to support yourself even in those low-energy moments. You deserve to have tools that hold you instead of just pushing you to do more.

I’m Sarah, and I’m here to help you simplify the mental load so you can actually feel like yourself again. If you’re ready to get unburied from the heavy invisible load and feel more in control of your days, I’d love for you to check out the services and resources I’ve built for you right here on the site, just like my FREE workbook “How to Add Joy @ Work”!

Sarah Rose is a workplace well-being coach, recovering over-worker, married mother of 2, and founder of Fresh Rise Group. She helps maxed-out mid-career women who are juggling approximately 47 roles (but only getting paid for one or two) reclaim their energy, boundaries, and confidence without quitting their entire lives. A former “good girl” turned possibility pusher, Sarah challenges long-held beliefs about productivity and being good, but also teaches quick, doable strategies that work even on days when your brain feels like mush.