Yoga and ADHD

How Movement and Breath Regulate the Nervous System and Support Focus and Calm

by Sumiko Stacey, ADHD Life Coach & Yoga Instructor

Living with ADHD can feel like having a brain that’s always running fast, busy, and easily overwhelmed. Finding ways to regulate your nervous system and bring your mind back into a calmer state is essential. One powerful, science-backed practice that supports focus, calm, and emotional regulation is yoga.

In this blog, we’ll explore how yoga, through movement and breath, can help people with ADHD reconnect with their bodies, regulate their nervous system, and shift from scattered to centred.

Why ADHD and the Nervous System Go Hand in Hand

ADHD isn’t just about focus or attention. It's deeply connected to how your nervous system responds to stress, stimulation, and regulation.

Many of us live in a constant state of fight or flight, being hyper-vigilant and on edge, always worrying that we’ve forgotten something or missed a step. Our breathing often becomes shallow, and we may carry tension in our bodies without even realising it.

How Yoga Helps Regulate the Nervous System

Yoga is more than just stretching or holding poses. It’s a mind-body practice that activates the parasympathetic nervous system, your body’s natural calming system.

By weaving together movement, breathwork, and focused awareness, yoga helps you:

• Soothe stress and intense emotions

• Enhance body awareness, which supports stronger self-regulation

This makes yoga a powerful tool for managing common ADHD challenges like:

• Emotional dysregulation

• Impulsivity

• Restlessness

• RSD (Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria)

“When the breath is unsteady, the mind is unsteady. When the breath is calm, the mind is calm.” – Hatha Yoga Pradipika

Moving to Focus

People with ADHD often need to move in order to think clearly.

Yoga provides intentional movement that doesn’t overstimulate, yet provides the sensory input and body awareness needed to restore a sense of inner calm.

What Yoga for ADHD Looks Like

Yoga for ADHD isn’t about sitting still or emptying your mind. It’s about using movement and breath as tools to:

• Ground yourself

• Regulate your nervous system

• Improve executive functioning

It can be as simple as:

• 3–5 minutes of movement before starting work

• A breathing break between tasks

• A short evening practice to wind down your mind and body

Yoga Is a Way In, Not Another “Should”

If you’ve ever been told to “just calm down” or “sit still,” you know how unhelpful and even shaming that can feel. Yoga for ADHD offers something entirely different. It doesn’t demand that you “fix” yourself. Instead, it harnesses your natural ADHD strengths to create a pathway into calm and clarity. Rather than being another expectation or “should,” yoga empowers you to be in charge of how you respond.

Want to Learn How to Use Yoga + Coaching to Support Your ADHD Brain?

This integrating approach calms your nervous system and strengthens your executive functions, creating the ideal conditions for deep, lasting transformation.

Curious how this could work for you? Book a free discovery call and let’s explore what's possible!