Open the app, tap once, and close your eyes. That is the whole thing.
A low tone rises as you breathe in and falls as you breathe out. Follow it if you can, ignore it if you can't — it is a guide, not an instruction.
It stopped on its own. Is that a bug?
No — that is the design. The guide fades out rather than ending, so on a good night you never notice it finish. If the guide starts fading while you are still awake, the screen shows a ring of small amber points going out and the words "still awake? tap". Tapping brings the guide back.
The pace felt too slow, and I couldn't get enough air.
Raise the slowest pace. Tap settings on the bedtime screen and use the slowest pace control. Feeling short of breath means the pace is wrong for you, not that you are doing it wrong.
Can I use it without sound?
Yes. Turn taps on in settings and the pace arrives as a tap instead. On iPhone the taps only work while the screen is on; with an Apple Watch they continue with the screen dark, which is the better arrangement if you share a bed.
Does it work with the screen off?
Yes. The audio continues with the screen off and the phone locked. Keep the app running rather than force-quitting it.
Nothing happens at my reminder time.
Check that notifications are allowed for Long Exhale in your device settings. If permission was declined or later revoked, the reminder switches itself off rather than pretending to be on.
Why does it want my heart rate?
Only on Apple Watch, and only to slow the pace as you settle — a falling heart rate is a sign the breathing is working, so the guide eases off rather than holding a pace you have already moved past.
It stays on your watch. It is not sent to us and not even sent to your phone, which is told the resulting change in pace rather than your pulse. If you decline, the app works exactly as it otherwise would, on its fixed schedule.
Will it track my sleep?
No. The app records when a session ran and what you answered in the morning, and that is all, and it stays on your device — nothing about your sleep is uploaded. (If you buy the paid features, the fact of that purchase is handled by RevenueCat. It carries no name, no email and nothing about your sleep.) See the privacy policy.
How do I delete my data?
Delete the app. Everything it stored goes with it.
If you paid, the record that a purchase happened sits with RevenueCat rather than on your phone, so deleting the app does not reach it. To have that removed as well: open settings, tap your data reference, and email the identifier to admin@royalnationllc.com. Do it before deleting the app — the reference lives on the phone, and afterwards nobody can tell which record was yours.
Long Exhale is not a medical device and is not a treatment for a diagnosed sleep disorder.
If you are pregnant, or have a respiratory or cardiac condition, check with a doctor before taking up paced breathing.
If you are consistently unable to sleep, that is worth raising with a doctor rather than an app.
One person reads this, so a reply may take a few days. Include your device and whether you were using a watch — it is almost always the first thing that matters.