Regular, daily practice of calm or slow breathing is key for this alternative technique to ease hot flashes, shows a new paced breathing study in the NAMS journal Menopause. Women in this study practiced breathing rhythmically, either at a normal pace or slowly, for at least 10 to 15 minutes every day. All of them had fewer and less severe hot flashes, but the ones who had the most relief practiced twice a day.

Both of these approaches are like meditation, which is known to calm down the autonomic nervous system. That’s the system that controls body functions such as sweating, heart rate, and dilation of blood vessels, which all ramp up during a hot flash. You can try the approach that worked best in this study—breathing slowly and regularly at six breaths a minute for 15 minutes twice a day. These short sessions shouldn’t be too hard to work into your busy day.