In this episode of Pause Here, we explore the power of micro-pauses. Those tiny moments of breath, awareness, and intention that are quietly scattered throughout our everyday lives. From waiting for the kettle to boil and standing at traffic lights, to walking through a doorway or taking one breath before replying to a message, we discover how these often-overlooked moments can become opportunities to reset, reconnect, and return to the present.

Press play, slow down, and discover how calm doesn’t always need more time. Sometimes, it simply needs a doorway.

Every episode of Pause Here is inspired by current research across neuroscience, psychology, physiology, mindfulness and wellbeing. While we’ve done our best to translate complex science into everyday language, we’ve also aimed to preserve the nuance behind the findings. The references below are a great place to begin if you’d like to explore today’s topic in more depth.

• Zaccaro, A., Piarulli, A., Laurino, M., Garbella, E., Menicucci, D., Neri, B., & Gemignani, A. (2018). How breath-control can change your life: A systematic review on psychophysiological correlates of slow breathing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 12, 353.
• Wood, W., Mazar, A., & Neal, D. T. (2022). Habits and Goals in Human Behavior: Separate but Interacting Systems. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 17(2), 590-605.
• Lieberman, M. D., Eisenberger, N. I., Crockett, M. J., Tom, S. M., Pfeifer, J. H., & Way, B. M. (2007). Putting feelings into words: Affect labeling disrupts amygdala activity in response to affective stimuli. Psychological Science, 18(5), 421-428.
• Creswell, J. D. (2017). Mindfulness interventions. Annual Review of Psychology, 68, 491-516.
• Clark, A. (2013). Whatever next? Predictive brains, situated agents, and the future of cognitive science. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 36(3), 181-204.
• Chen P, Chavez O, Ong DC, Gunderson B. (2017). Strategic Resource Use for Learning: A Self-Administered Intervention That Guides Self-Reflection on Effective Resource Use Enhances Academic Performance. Psychological Science, 28(6), 774-785.
• Albulescu, P., Macsinga, I., Rusu, A., Sulea, C., Bodnaru, A., & Tulbure, B. T. (2022). "Give me a break!" A systematic review and meta-analysis on the efficacy of micro-breaks for increasing well-being and performance. PloS one, 17(8), e0272460.

In this episode of Pause Here, we explore the sigh - what it is, why we do it, and why this simple breath may be one of the body’s quietest reset tools. We look at how sighing supports the lungs, interrupts stress, and helps shift the nervous system as a natural part of how the body regulates itself. We also adapt Pausing Point’s Calm breathing pattern into a simple sigh-based practice: inhale for 4, take a soft extra inhale for 2, and exhale for 6.

Press play, take a breath, let it out, and discover what your body may have been trying to tell you with every sigh.

• Shaffer, F., & Ginsberg, J. P. (2017). An overview of heart rate variability metrics and norms. Frontiers in Public Health, 5, Article 258.
• Ramirez, J.-M. (2014). The integrative role of the sigh in psychology, physiology, pathology, and neurobiology. Progress in Brain Research, 209, 91–129.
• Li, P., Janczewski, W. A., Yackle, K., Kam, K., Pagliardini, S., Krasnow, M. A., & Feldman, J. L. (2016). The peptidergic control circuit for sighing. Nature, 530(7590), 293–297.
• Knudsen, L., & Ochs, M. (2018). The micromechanics of lung alveoli: Structure and function of surfactant and tissue components. Histochemistry and Cell Biology, 150(6), 661–676
• Hirsch, J. A., & Bishop, B. (1981). Respiratory sinus arrhythmia in humans: How breathing pattern modulates heart rate. American Journal of Physiology-Heart and Circulatory Physiology, 241(4), H620–H629.
• Grossman, P., & Taylor, E. W. (2007). Toward understanding respiratory sinus arrhythmia: Relations to cardiac vagal tone, evolution and biobehavioral functions. Biological Psychology, 74(2), 263–285.
• Balban, M. Y., Neri, E., Kogon, M. M., Weed, L., Nouriani, B., Jo, B., Holl, G., Zeitzer, J. M., Spiegel, D., & Huberman, A. D. (2023). Brief structured respiration practices enhance mood and reduce physiological arousal. Cell Reports Medicine, 4(1), Article 100895.

In this episode of Pause Here, we explore temperature - hot, cold, and why your body cares so much. We look at how temperature shapes your stress levels, energy, recovery, and sleep, not just as background comfort, but as one of the body’s core signals for safety, readiness, and rest.

You’ll learn why cold exposure can feel sharp, intense, and strangely clarifying, why warmth can help the body soften into recovery, and why the natural drop in body temperature before sleep is one of the quiet ways your system prepares to rest. From cold showers to saunas to the science of cooling down at night, we unpack how temperature shifts can influence the nervous system in real, practical ways.

Press play, warm up, cool down, and listen to what your body’s been trying to tell you.

• Van Someren, E. J. W. (2000). More than a marker: Interaction between the circadian regulation of temperature and sleep, age-related changes, and treatment possibilities. Chronobiology International, 17(3), 313–354.
• Tai, Y., Obayashi, K., Yamagami, Y., & Saeki, K. (2023). Association between circadian skin temperature rhythms and actigraphic sleep measures in real-life settings. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 19(7), 1281–1292.
• Lee, E., Kolunsarka, I. A., Kostensalo, J., Ahtiainen, J. P., Haapala, E. A., Willeit, P., Kunutsor, S. K., & Laukkanen, J. A. (2022). The effects of regular sauna bathing in conjunction with exercise on cardiovascular function: A multi-arm randomized controlled trial. American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, 323(3), R289–R299.
• Laukkanen, J. A., Laukkanen, T., & Kunutsor, S. K. (2018). Cardiovascular and other health benefits of sauna bathing: A review of the evidence. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 93(8), 1111–1121.
• Haghayegh, S., Khoshnevis, S., Smolensky, M. H., Diller, K. R., & Castriotta, R. J. (2019). Before-bedtime passive body heating by warm shower or bath to improve sleep: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 46, 124–135.
• Cain, T., Menzies, V., Fay, N., Gray, P., Norton, C., & Stevens, C. J. (2025). Effects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLOS ONE, 20(1), e0317615.
• Buijze, G. A., Sierevelt, I. N., van der Heijden, B. C. J. M., Dijkgraaf, M. G., & Frings-Dresen, M. H. W. (2016). The effect of cold showering on health and work: A randomized controlled trial. PLOS ONE, 11(9), e0161749.