Introduction:

Stress, anxiety, and depression are neurological disorders with a high prevalence among university students. The most effective strategies for their management include progressive muscle relaxation and controlled breathing, among others.

Objective:

To determine the effect of breathing techniques and progressive muscle relaxation on levels of stress, anxiety, and depression in medical students.

Methodology:

A quasi-experimental, prospective, cross-sectional study was conducted. Fifty-nine fourth-semester medical students participated, selected through non-probabilistic convenience sampling. The DASS-21 test was applied before and after the implementation of diaphragmatic breathing techniques and Jacobson’s progressive muscle relaxation, followed by a post-test.

Results:

The sample consisted mainly of young adults aged 18 to 20 years (42.4%), predominantly female (54.2%), of Brazilian nationality (76.3%), and marital status single (56.1%). Before the intervention, extremely severe, severe, and moderate levels of depression (6.8%, 15.3%, 59.3%), stress (8.5%, 13.6%, 33.9%), and anxiety (11.9%, 23.7%, 37.3%) were recorded. After the intervention, a significant reduction was observed across all levels: depression (0%, 3.4%, 10.2%), stress (0%, 6.8%, 22%), and anxiety (0%, 8.5%, 28.8%), demonstrating the effectiveness of the techniques.

Conclusion:

Breathing techniques and progressive muscle relaxation are effective in reducing levels of depression, stress, and anxiety, thereby improving the emotional well-being of students.

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