system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How does breathing in and out slowly help to calm our nerves?
gpt
Firstly, possibly most importantly, it distracts and focuses the mind. Our minds are a bit like dogs, in that redirecting them distracts them.

Secondly, it saturates the brain with oxygen, which is the opposite of what stress/distress does.