Moonbird Personal Breathing Coach

£159

Life can feel hectic at times with every day full of work deadlines, chores, and plans, where you never feel like you get a second to relax before it starts all over again the next day. This leaves me feeling stressed, often burned out, and always slightly anxious trying to keep up with everything. Over the years I’ve tried mindfulness and meditation tasks to keep on top of it, but I’ve always found it hard to stay focused, in the moment, and not think about all the things I should be doing. So when I heard about Moonbird I was intrigued.

Moonbird is a breathing device aimed at helping you regulate your breathing to help reduce stress and anxiety, and, in the long term, help promote better sleep. It does this through its innovative ‘breathing’ design which expands and contracts in your hand for you to breathe in rhythm with. Its ergonomic design feels comfortable in your hand made of bio-compatible medical grade silicone. To use you just shake to wake the device, press your thumb on the sensor, and, after a few seconds, the Moonbird starts moving or ‘breathing’ in your hand. It utilises a box breathing technique, something I’ve always returned to during very anxious moments, so having a device that does all the work for you is great. For general use, it expands and contracts in 5-second intervals to regulate breathing and help to reduce stress, however, to help relax before bed and encourage deeper sleep it cycles through 4 seconds of breathing in and 6 breathing out.

Across the device, there are 4 pre-set breathing rhythms, however you can set your own via the Moonbird app. One of the main perks of the app is that you can see real-time data via the optical PPG sensor that your thumb sits on. This allows you to monitor your heart rate and see how your heart rate variability improves as you use the device. Plus the app also gives you unlimited access to audio games and educational content to better relax and unwind.

One of my favourite aspects of the Moonbird is that it is so easy to use and can be taken with you wherever you go. The Moonbird comes with a travel bag so you can throw it in your bag and pull it out when you need 5 minutes to decompress and relax throughout the day. Each session only takes 2-5 minutes, so it is perfect for a quick break from your screen, when stuck in traffic, or even while you enjoy a coffee break. Having this tool in your bag can bring you immediately back into the moment and focus on breathing here and now – this is so important for reducing stress and anxiety as needed throughout the day. However, before bed, I loved using the Moonbird for longer 10–20-minute relaxation sessions, because these helped to slow my thoughts and breathing, to get my body relaxed and ready for bed. 

If you, or a loved one, are always running on a hectic schedule and struggle to find 5 minutes to relax during the day, then the Moonbird is an excellent tool for you. Its compact and portable design makes it perfect for taking with you on the go and provides any user with a moment of relaxation amid the hustle and bustle of daily life.

Pros:

• Ergonomic design that is comfortable to hold and compact to take with you on the go
• Innovative ‘breathing’ design that expands and contracts to help regulate breaths with the rhythm
• Rechargeable 2-hour battery life for around 6 breathing sessions on a single charge

Cons:

• Does take some practice to stay in the moment and focus on each breath when first using the Moonbird, but this is the same with many meditation or breathing regulation tools