what is breathwork?
what is breathwork?
Conscious connected breathwork is a form of breathing performed over an extended period of time that allows for the release of limiting beliefs, behaviours and emotions in order to live a more creative, inspired and connected life.
Unlike traditional talk therapy, breathwork takes a bottom-up approach to work directly at the subconscious level in order to access deeper intuition and wisdom held within. Breathwork is a perfect complement to talk therapies that typically take a more top-down approach.
What arises during a session is highly personal and of relevance in your life, guided by your intention for the session. Over repeated sessions you will work to release and reframe biographical material, develop a greater sense of connection to yourself and engage with the world around you with a fresh perspective.
Nothing in breathwork is forced; while gentle guidance, support and encouragement and provided, you are in control of the process. This ensures safety in processing held beliefs, memories and emotions and gives you agency over your own processes. Challenging emotions and memories can be truly felt and released rather than overwhelm us as they so often do.
Remember that if a memory or emotion is too painful to feel in the present, it still negatively impacts our conscious behaviours subconsciously. Is now the time to let go?
As you develop a familiarity and relationship with breath over a number of sessions, you will have the opportunity to work on different layers of your biography, letting go of what holds you back from realising your full potential until only the truth of you remains. Like any new practice of deep self-inquiry, multiple sessions are recommended to develop a relationship with the breath and the experiences that arise during sessions.
how it feels
Conscious connected breathing is a highly experiential modality that allows us to feel and witness our biography and place in the world directly.
As breathing begins there is a period of activation in which energy builds in the body, highlighting areas of holding. Energy can take the form of physical sensations, thoughts and emotions that spontaneously arise.
As we continue to breathe towards what arises, energy can continue to build until a tipping point is reached in which reframing occurs, held emotions are released and new insights are gained. These held beliefs, emotions and memories often play out in damaging ways as an adult; breathwork allows these to be transmuted from anchor to ally.
What has been held can often be freely and fully expressed for the first time in a breathwork session, whether these are words that have always needed to be said, emotions that have every right to be felt or movement and sound that bring back much needed flow in your life. All expression is valid and welcome in order to let go.
While all of us are required to carry burdens at various times in life, they are meant to be put down. Working with the breath allows us to put down our burdens to feel the sense of lightness that follows.
the process
The active breathing phase of a conscious connected breathwork session runs for a total of 90 minutes. Additional time is allowed for session preparation and integration.
Prior to the introductory session we will discuss your history, background, reasons for exploring breathwork and safety. The breathwork technique is demonstrated and practiced, following which an intention is set that will guide your session. Standard breathwork sessions consist of a shorter check-in and discussion regarding your intention compared to an introductory session.
The breathwork session itself is commenced after a short period of relaxation and somatic grounding. All sessions are conducted with tailored music that helps guide your process regardless of what arises. My job as a practitioner is to hold a safe space for you to explore your own process through gentle guidance and inquiry.
At completion you will have an opportunity to share, journal and draw to capture the essence of your process to help you carry any insights forward into everyday life.
