Introduction to breathwork
Breathwork is a term used to describe conscious, connected, rhythmic breathing. It has been used since time immemorial, to alter and enhance physical, mental, and emotional awareness. The breath, being both a voluntary and involuntary mechanism, becomes a bridge for conscious exploration.
We use breathwork to harmonize the mind, body, and emotions. Facilitated breathwork involves a continuous, activating breath, through the mouth. This breath charges the body and awakens energy within. Often the energy that becomes activated has been stored or trapped in patterns of physical and/or emotional tension. Once this energy is activated it will begin moving. This manifests as movements of the body, emotional expressions, or sounds. We encourage these forms of release and support them using bodywork and other guidance for ensuring the energy can move as freely as possible.
Breathwork is often associated with trauma, or as a means for “trauma release”. While this is a real application of breathwork, we tend to focus on allowing the breath to guide the experience. Trauma therapy has roots in forms of psychoanalysis that we do not incorporate. We don’t focus on the story or the past so much as what is alive in the body now, in the present moment. Trauma is not the events that happened in the past, it is what the body continues to hold onto in the present. In order to move and release the energy that is trapped, it requires being able to connect to the body and to feel what is there now with or without the story of what happened in the past. Sometimes people can move through trauma without even thinking about past events, sometimes the events which have been forgotten resurface as flashbacks. We use breath as a means for allowing the body’s innate healing power to work itself out.
The Session
Sessions begin with identifying a particular experience, sensation, or area in the body that the patient is wanting to address. The patient is guided into an inner state of awareness, then supported to find a sense of personal resourcing. It is important that people begin in a state that is resourced and feeling safe.
The breath is continuous, through the mouth, and maintained at a steady rate. As the body charges up the facilitator will guide the patient to continue breathing, and perhaps to move the body in certain ways. As the energy begins to move the session will unfold as is needed.
Common experiences range from states of ecstasy and elation, intense emotional/physical release through kicking and punching or screaming, waves of emotion through crying or laughing, gentle physical unwinding through spiraling motions or tremors, and many others. Sessions can reach points of physical and emotional intensity where the energy builds up but cannot move. This may be uncomfortable, which is why we find facilitation necessary to support the body in releasing and allowing the energy to move. Often trauma is the result of intense experiences being faced without the presence of an empathic witness. A facilitator not only witnesses but guides the experience to completion.
Sessions generally end with the patient feeling a deep sense of calm and ease, their breath having found a natural softening and returning to normal, with lots of sighs and any final release of sounds or emotion.
Breathwork as a Practice
Breath is accessible to everyone at any time. Breathwork as a practice is something that anyone can do and grow with more experience. The more one returns to this practice, the deeper the layers will go. Ultimately the breath should move through the body without interruption. This practice moves people towards that free-flowing state of being progressively.
Patterns of Tension
Patterns of tension are psycho-somatic (mind/body) patterns where tension is formed to restrict or inflate the movement of energy in particular ways. During childhood when the mind and body are developing, certain stages are progressed through. For example, at age 1-2 the child has a strong need for soothing through physical touch. A child who is denied this, or who is unable to breastfeed will miss out on important cues which trigger normal physiological development. Let me say here that as severe as this sounds, it is not a life sentence. Luckily, physical patterns of tension which are a result of impeded stages of development persist into adulthood and through breathwork and other bio-energetic practices can be released and a sense of wholeness restored.
These patterns of tension are also associated with mental, emotional, and physical immaturity. Someone whose development was impeded during any particular phase may continue to enact in a “childish” manner, seeking to fulfill the needs of that particular stage.
For more information on the developmental stages, we will refer you to the work of Dr. Laurence Heller and Aline LaPierre. Their book Healing Developmental Trauma expands on these stages of development. They have compiled years of clinical research, built upon the foundation of many great body-based psychotherapists and healers before them.
Becoming a Breath Warrior
After their first exposure to breathwork, many people wonder how they can continue to practice on their own. The answer is simple. Throughout the day, as often as possible, become aware of your breath. This is the single most significant breathwork practice. Basic breath awareness (without changing it) will regulate the nervous system and promote a state of calm, connected awareness. Naturally, when one becomes aware of their breathing pattern, the breath will begin to change on its own, often to a slower, more even rate and depth.
Breathing Exercises
Here are some basic breathing exercises to get you started on your breathing journey.
Empty the Chamber
This practice will help clear out old, stagnant breath from your lungs and help to bring about a refreshed state of alertness.
Exhale all the breath out until you can’t eliminate any more air
Hold for 3 seconds
Inhale slowly through the nose only filling the lungs up halfway
Think of drawing air in from your throat, not sucking through your nostrils
Repeat for 10 breaths
Releasing Sigh
This practice helps stimulate the vagus nerve which will bring the body into a state of restorative relaxation. This is ideal before eating, sleeping, socializing, or unwinding after a stressful day.
Inhale through the nose filling up both the chest and the belly
Think of drawing air in from your throat, not sucking through your nostrils
Hold for 5-10 seconds
Exhale through an open mouth, vocally sighing as you do so
Begin with a high note and descend in pitch as you exhale
Repeat for 5 - 10 breaths
This is also great to do as a group of people
Breath of Fire
Use this breath to charge up your body. It is great in the mornings or in the middle of the day for a quick boost.
The breath is in and out through the nose
The emphasis is on the exhale, pushing the exhale out forcefully like a bellows
Contract the belly inward to push the breath out
The inhale is passive, more like a reaction to the forceful exhales
It may take a few breaths for the inhale to find a rhythm
Continue this pattern anywhere from 30 seconds up to 10 minutes
Alternate Nostril Breathing
This breath helps to open up the nostril and balance the hemispheres of the brain. For most people, most of the time, only one nostril is operating at full capacity. It is natural for one nostril to constrict slightly while the other does most of the breathing. This practice helps to restore balance.
In a comfortable seated position, cover your right nostril with your right thumb
Inhale through the left nostril
Then release your thumb and cover your left nostril with your right pinky finger
Exhale through the right nostril then inhale through the right nostril
Release the pinky and again cover your right nostril with the right thumb
Exhale through the left nostril then inhale through the left nostril
The alternation between the left and right nostril always occurs after the inhale
Inhale through the same nostril you just exhaled through
Your first breath through the new nostril should be an exhale
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