Sit back, leave behind the cares of the day and take a sonic journey with Dr Michael Mosley. In this new podcast series, designed to help you let go and unwind, each episode focuses on a scientifically proven technique for activating the body’s built-in relaxation response, and takes a deep dive to explore what’s happening inside as we find stillness and calm.

By deliberately slowing your breath you can help bring peace and calm to your body and mind. We discover a sweet spot (it’s around six breaths per minute but varies from individual to individual) where bodily rhythms align to enhance this relaxation response, and encounter the wandering Vagus Nerve with its central, critical role in all of this.

Guest: Mara Mather, professor at the University of Southern California.

Series Producer, sound design and mix engineer: Richard Ward Researcher: William Hornbrook Production Manager: Maria Simons Editor: Zoë Heron Specially composed music by Richard Atkinson (Mcasso) A BBC Studios Audio production for BBC Sounds / BBC Radio 4.