What is Breathwork?
Breathwork is a term that describes a variety of intentional breathing techniques designed to support mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. At its core, it’s a tool to regulate your nervous system, which is the system that controls how your body and mind respond to stress. By consciously controlling the depth, rhythm, and pace of your breath, you can activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which is the “rest and digest” mode, to promote relaxation, emotional balance, and mental clarity.
This practice can be especially beneficial for managing conditions like anxiety, depression, stress, trauma, and addiction, because it helps you increase awareness of your body, release stored tension, and reconnect with your own inner resources.
Why Breathwork is Important
Most people breathe in a shallow, chest-focused way, often without realizing it. This type of breathing keeps the body in a heightened state of alert, the sympathetic nervous system, or “fight/flight/freeze” mode. When we spend too much time here, we are more likely to hold onto stress, negative thoughts, and even trauma.
Intentional breathwork gives the body a chance to complete its natural stress cycles. By consciously controlling your breath, you provide your system with the opportunity to release stored emotions and tension, return to a calm state, and support emotional regulation. In short, learning to control your breath is learning to influence your mind, body, and emotions in a positive way.
The Benefits of Breathwork
Physical Benefits
- Boosts immune function
- Lowers blood pressure
- Increases lung capacity and strengthens the diaphragm
- Improves heart rate variability, helping the body adapt to stress
- Increases vagal tone, supporting nervous system flexibility
- Promotes healthy digestion
- Relieves physical tension and pain
- Expands your window of tolerance for stress
Mental Benefits
- Supports neuroplasticity, allowing the brain to release old patterns and form new ones
- Improves focus and attention
- Enhances overall mental well-being
Emotional Benefits
- Reduces stress, anxiety, and panic
- Helps release heavy emotions stored in the body
- Supports processing of grief, trauma, and emotional pain
- Encourages self-compassion, joy, and emotional resilience
- Improves confidence and self-esteem
Spiritual Benefits
- Fosters connection with your Higher Self
- Opens pathways to self-awareness and intuition
- Supports access to different states of consciousness
- Shifts your energy state and promotes inner peace
How I Incorporate Breathwork with Clients
I integrate breathwork into therapy in a few ways, depending on the client and their goals:
- Short grounding exercises at the start of a session to help clients settle into their body and nervous system before talk therapy.
- Targeted techniques that support emotional regulation and nervous system flexibility based on the client’s presenting needs.
- Full meditative breathwork sessions where the majority of the session is spent breathing and releasing stored emotions, with supportive guidance and music to enhance the experience.
The Synergy Between Yoga and Breathwork
Both yoga and breathwork are somatic, “bottom-up” practices, which means they start in the body and allow the mind to follow. This is different from traditional talk therapies, which often prioritize cognition over sensation. Together, yoga and breathwork can calm the nervous system, reduce stress and anxiety, and create a deeper sense of relaxation and mood uplift through endorphin release.
How to Integrate Breathwork Into Your Daily Life
- Start the Day with Intention: Begin with 3–5 minutes of conscious breathing. I love pairing it with an uplifting song, breathing deeply through the nose and exhaling through the mouth. It sets a positive tone for the day.
- End the Day with Pulse Breath: Before bed, try 3 deep inhales (into belly, chest, and head) and 3 slow exhales through the nose. Pulse your breath in and out and optionally add affirmations like “I am…” on the inhale. This helps your nervous system relax and primes the subconscious for restful sleep.
- Combat Anxiety with Snake Breath: Inhale through the nose, then exhale with a long “SSSS” sound, activating the vagus nerve to calm the body. Repeat for 3–5 minutes or until you notice a shift.
- Shift Low Mood with Blow Breath: Rapid, forceful exhales through the mouth, with inhales following naturally, like blowing out candles one by one. This energizing breath can lift mood and help move stagnant energy, but start slowly if it feels intense, and you can pause every 20 breaths if needed.