What is Breath Therapy?

Integrative Breath Therapy uses a wonderful tool for self-exploration called Conscious Connected Breathing. This is a simple and gentle yet powerful technique which allows you to access, release and integrate memories, emotions and patterns stored in your body, mind and soul that hinder your full potential, physically, emotionally and mentally.

How does it work? Breathing is essentially an automatic process but can be controlled consciously as well (e.g. Pranayama breathing exercises). Thus the breath forms the bridge between the conscious and the subconscious and allows for access and release of deep seated emotional material held in the body. Integrative Breath Therapy works on the principle that there is a direct connection between mental and physical well-being and the openness of the breathing. Relaxing and releasing the breath dissolves tension in the body and mind.

Physiological explanation
Through breathing continuously without pauses, your body becomes super oxygenated, which changes the CO2 level in your brain. You enter a self-induced trance state where memories, pictures or emotions held in the sub-consciousness can come up to the surface to be reviewed, released and integrated. The power of Integrative Breath Therapy is that in this meditative state you are simultaneously the experiencer as well as the observer of a past incident, and therefore able, to release or re-interpret what previously happened, from a new and conscious perspective.

Holistic explanation
Through conscious connected breathing you accumulate life force energy (Prana, Chi, Ki) which starts to move freely through your body (experienced as tingling , energy rushes or waves). This loosens up stored blockages held in your four-body energy system (physical, emotional, mental and spiritual), thus working on all four levels at the same time. Possible experiences can be manifold and may vary every time. The spectrum ranges from physical sensations of energy moving, pain or pleasure to release of emotions (sadness, anger etc.); realisations of unsupportive thought patterns or new thought connections and insights, as well as deep spiritual or visual experiences or any combination thereof.

The Breath Therapist
The Breath Therapist is your guide on the journey. He/she will skilfully manoeuvre you through the surfacing material, witness and validate your experiences, help you to stay present and maintain your mental clarity. Additionally your Breath Therapist's will provide a safe and loving space, be supportive and non-judgmental and making it easy for you to relax and let go. To release and integrate what has come up a skilled Breath Therapist will use various psychotherapeutic integration tools (e.g. Counselling, Family Dynamics, Inner Child work, Psychic Surgery, Past Life Healing etc.). It is important that you feel comfortable with your Breath Therapist , therefore check out several till you find the person who feels right for you. Breath Therapy with a man will be different from Breathwork with a woman and will bring up different issues.

Safety
Integrative Breath Therapy has an innate self-regulatory mechanism. Your subconscious and your "Inner Healer" decide what is appropriate and safe for you to experience right now, and how much to release. Whatever surfaces might be challenging for you, but is never more than can be safely integrated. You don't necessarily have to understand or review certain incidents as pictures or thoughts to be able to release the charge around them and the whole process has its own innate intelligence. All you have to do is trusting the breath and to engage in the process. It will take you where you need to go, and it will bring up what is most important for you in this moment, enabling you to take your next step towards becoming more whole and happy.