What my breath has been teaching me as of late

Last year, I started doing deep breathing right before I went to bed. It helped me ease into a very peaceful sleep state at a relatively fast rate.

This year, I embarked on a 12-week journey in a breathwork training lead by Siedeh St. Foxie. To say that the training was transformative is still an understatement. I did breathwork for 12 weeks straight. I knew that the program would change me, but I did not anticipate what it did for me.

The breath is the most available tool we have. It is the most accessible healing tool; just about everyone has access to it, it is always with you and you do not have to pay for it. I have been coming to a deeper place of understanding regarding how to use this tool and how to use it more efficiently.

The first distinction that I learned is that breathwork and pranayama are not the same. They are two different practices that both use the breath. From my understanding, pranayama is a means to get clear and tap deeper into one’s self, into The Self aka the Divine within. Breathwork is a practice used to move and release stored energy, memories and feelings from the body. It is a very physical method that elicits physiological change. The specific mechanisms of each practice also differs.

Coming to my breath has allowed me to naturally breathe deeper and feel into myself, into the present moment more. Sometimes I can lay down and literally feel the different chambers of my heart beating. I am more aware in the present moment. Just by me checking in with my breath and becoming aware of it, I am drawn to the now moment and to my body. When I practice pranayama, I can tell which major channels in my being are more open. I am able to make more conscious choices by using my breath to center myself.

My breath has been cultivating more gratitude. Being that I am in the present moment more often, I am able to call in and be in more moments of gratitude. I am able to witness more of things that I can be grateful for in my daily life.

With my breath, I have experienced less anxiety and more control over my nervous system. Sure, I still cry, I still get upset, but I am able to move the emotions and feelings through and out of my body. For example, a couple of weeks ago I got really upset. I sat in front of my altar and started crying. Back in the day, well really a few months ago, I would have started crying and it would have been uncontrollable, me unconsolable. This time, I could feel where the upset was and that it felt “stuck”. As I cried, I immediately shifted into facilitating my own breathwork session for myself. I moved through the different breaths and with those breaths, the upset moved up and out. I was able to speak to my husband clearly within a few minutes of being done. I have also been able to have more difficult conversations without crying (these kinds of conversations would have me feeling very emotional). I do not think anything is wrong with crying AT ALL, I am proud of myself for being able to express myself, tears and all without things spiraling out or me getting “stuck” in my emotions or feelings. I am able to look at situations and people from a more objective point of view. My breath allows me to “zoom out” more often than I was able to before I completed my breathwork training.

My breath has taught me that I have more capacity for feeling and emotion than I thought. My ability to feel has expanded and deepened. I have learned that as many “negative” or adverse things I have experienced, I am also able to feel the opposite. If I can feel deeply into depression, I also have the ability to feel deeply into joy. This is one of the benefits of living in a world of duality.

My breath has also shown me that there is more freedom in my being. There feels like more space to take up and even more space to explore as if new levels have been unlocked. To be honest, this feels very external internal and I am delighted to see how that translates in my external world.

My breath is also teaching me to be more in right relationship with my body. Although the breath itself is the vehicle of Prana and nutrients our body needs (like oxygen), it reminds me of the connection and importance of breathing with the body. There have been times when I have experienced physical pain and I begin to breath deeply instead of hold my breath. I breathe through it and remember that my breath is here to help me. My body always wants to be in balance, to be in ease, to be pain free and the breath is one way to access those states.

I would love to continue this conversation with you in the comment section and/or you can book your breathwork session with me by clicking here.