The power of the breath
It was the fall of 2020, and the world was starting to open up, a little at a time. One of the things I was looking forward to doing again was going to yoga classes. I’m a fair-weather yogi. I will be so into it for months or years at a time, and then it will fall away for a bit. But in 2020, yoga was a necessity to keep me grounded and mostly sane. Right before Covid hit, I’d found a lovely studio nearby, Be Free Healing Center, and had attended a few classes, so I was thrilled to see they were holding classes again. My first one back was taught in the yard adjacent to the studio and led by one of the studio owners. It was lovely to get to move in the sunshine in a group again!
But an even more powerful occurrence happened that day – I learned about Be Free Breathwork. While I knew Be Free was a yoga studio, I quickly became aware of the many other amazing services they offered: wellness practitioners (everything from massage to Ayurvedic treatments to behavioral therapy), educational workshops, and regular breathwork journeys. I didn’t know much about breathwork other than that there were many kinds, and it was supposed to be good for stress relief. It was clearly a favorite offering at the studio, so I signed up to check it out.
Getting unstuck
When I tell you that my first experience with Be Free breathwork changed my entire life, I am not even remotely exaggerating. My first thought after coming out of the three-hour workshop was, “If I had known about this sooner, it would have saved me at least a decade of talk therapy.” I had been struggling with the same few issues for so long – my childhood relationship with my mother that left me with deep scars and terribly low self-esteem; body and food issues, as well as other addictive patterns; and lingering trauma from being blindsided by divorce in my early 30s. I was frustrated that these issues still had a hold on me. But something happened in that breathwork session that shook loose those stuck parts and let them rise to the surface so I could truly begin to heal them. I learned that shit really is stored in your body, and the only way for me to move it through and out was by somatic (relating to the body as opposed to the mind) practices.
Be Free Breathwork
Be Free Breathwork is in the family of holotropic breathwork practices, which was developed by psychologist Stanislav Grof; holotropic means “moving toward wholeness.” It uses a deep, cyclical breathing pattern to enter an altered state of consciousness. The high oxygen levels produce physiological changes in the brain and nervous system, which allow us to activate our stress response. In this state, we can bring to the surface things we’ve locked away or disassociated from that need our attention. Along with the breath itself, Be Free Breathwork pulls from Shamanic and indigenous traditions, such as the Celtic wheel of the year. It also utilizes a blindfold and specially curated (loud!) chakra-based playlist to create a container in which we feel safe to explore our internal landscape without the distraction of the external world.
I became a regular at monthly breathwork sessions and slowly healed a lot of those stuck traumas, along with some others I didn’t even know were buried under there, like some serious guilt from my experience with debilitating post-partum depression. So when Be Free offered a training to become a breathwork facilitator, I jumped at the chance.
From student to teacher
The only thing more powerful than experiencing breathwork as a participant was becoming a facilitator. It was a 10-month long process that not only taught me how to hold the space for others, but also helped me uncover and process even more about myself.
A breathwork session always begins with a grounding meditation. Then I invite a check-in, where you can share what’s on your heart and set an intention for the session. I’ll discuss the “how to” of Be Free Breathwork – how to breathe, what you might experience during your journey, and the variety of tools you can use to activate, regulate, deepen, or soften your process.
Then we move into the breathwork portion, which lasts about an hour. I’m there every step of the way to support you in whatever comes up. When the journey is complete, you’ll have some quiet time to journal or draw to help integrate your experience. We’ll have another check-in, and I’ll give some after-care instructions and provide information about how to receive additional support if needed.
Following the journey
One of the greatest healing devices available to us is also one of the most accessible – the breath! Breathwork is a practice of getting in touch with the wisdom of our body, mind, spirit, and soul. Exploring the breath can shift our conscious thought from the thinker/planner/doer mind to a much deeper, creative, soul-led experience.
I now lead private, small-group, and large-group breathwork sessions, and each one is incredibly special. Please reach out if you’d like to experience this powerful healing practice.