Breathwork & Benefits
WHAT IS BREATHWORK?
Breathwork is the art of consciously effecting our breath, and there are many techniques that fall under this. Conscious Connected Breathwork is a transformational and immersive experience, where we breathe in a circular and rhythmic pattern without pause, alongside a deep experiential journey within.
By breathing in this way and eliminating the pause between inhale/exhale,we intentionally increase oxygen levels in the body and deplete carbon dioxide levels. This increased state of oxygenation allows us to enter expanded states of consciousness by shifting into higher brainwave states (alpha, theta and gamma waves), regulate and soothe the nervous system, and access the subconscious mind, emotional & energetic body.
THE SACRED BREATH METHOD
The Sacred Breath Method, is a style of Conscious Connected Breathwork, created by Sacred Breath Academy Founder, Kaya Leigh. The Sacred Breath Method was created as a more nourishing, therapeutic, trauma-informed, body-based and parasympathetic-led alternative to breathwork journeying. This was created as an alternative approach to much of the rigorous and forceful mouth-inhalation breathwork out there.
Sacred Breathwork is a profound transformational and self-healing modality that invites spaciousness and freedom of expression through your personal process of healing, releasing, reclaiming or awakening.
We work with the principles of opening, allowance and receptivity, alongside a gentle increase in oxygenation and descent into deeper layers of self. In this approach, we offer longer, spacious and nourishing journeys, integration and deeply regenerative savasana. We incorporate intentional spaces for sharing, processing and connecting, so you may integrate and ground the experience/insights into your body for lasting effects. We invite and encourage intuitive, free-form and uninhibited movement, vocal or emotional expression into the space, led by the innate intelligence of your body and breath. Sacred Breathwork creates a holistic and immersive experience through ceremonial, intentional and safe containers, incorporating healing instruments, soul-inspiring music & essential oils.
The Sacred Breath Method works with a nourishing nose-inhale breath cycle to activate the parasympathetic nervous system (rest, restore, recalibrate system) that evokes body safety, nervous system coherence and full system recalibration. During breathwork, it is important to first establish somatic safety and nervous system regulation before any deeper healing, emotional rebalancing or subconscious work can be explored.
Why Breathe?
The breath is the only part of the autonomic nervous system we can consciously control, and in this way our Breath is a direct bridge to our nervous system!
Sacred Breathwork is multidimensional, holistic and works on all layers of our being; the physical, emotional, mental and energetic.
"Breathing is the key that unlocks the whole catalog of advanced biological function and development. Is it any wonder that it is so central to every aspect of health? Breathing is the first place, not the last, one should look when fatigue, disease, or other evidence of disordered energy presents itself” - Sheldon Saul Hendler, MD, Ph.D
BREATHWORK & THE PHYSICAL BODY
Breathwork soothes, unwinds and regulates the nervous system, a potent antidote to the chronic states of anxiety and stress many live in. Deep, diaphragmatic and conscious breathing activates the parasympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system (aka the rest, restore, recalibrate response) that awakens the body’s natural relaxation state.
Other benefits may include:
Restoring a sense of safety, presence and grounding in the body
Release areas of tension/contraction
Awaken our full lung capacity and deliver more oxygen to our cells & tissues
Oxygen provides the body with 90% of its energy, with only 10% coming from food & water. Deep breathing during breathwork floods the body with fresh oxygen to enhance vitality and nourishment.
Diaphragmatic breathing stimulates lymph flow and enhances detoxification, as 70% of the bodies detoxification occurs through the breath alone.
May promote restful sleep
“The importance of breathing need hardly be stressed. It provides the oxygen for the metabolic processes; literally it supports the fires of life. But breath as “pneuma” is also the spirit or soul. We live in an ocean of air like fish in a body of water. By our breathing we are attuned to our atmosphere. If we inhibit our breathing we isolate ourselves from the medium in which we exist. In all eastern and mystic philosophies, the breath holds the secret to the highest bliss”
- Alexander Lowen, The Voice of the Body
THE MIND & SUBCONSCIOUS
Breathing in a conscious, connected way and increasing oxygen levels in the body allows us to shift out of the “monkey mind” (beta brainwave) and into expanded states of consciousness (alpha, theta or gamma brainwaves). When we are in these higher brainwave states, we can access into our subconscious mind, where our unconscious beliefs, stories, wounds, conditioning and programs reside.
Cognitive neuroscience suggests we are majority (around 95%) influenced by our subconscious mind, therefore what resides within motivates & influences us in real time in our lives for better or worse. Through breathwork we can explore, illuminate and uproot disempowering, limiting, negative or self-sabotaging unconscious beliefs, narratives or programs. In this expanded state of awareness, we can forge new neural pathways and choose something new, expansive & aligned.
Enhance clarity and focus
Gain higher perspective or “birds eye” view of situations/experiences
Boost creativity and inspiration
Dissolve mental blockages & move past feeling stuck, stagnant or lost
Return to an empowered, embodied & sovereign state
ENERGETICS & SPIRIT OF BREATH
What breathers may experience on the energetic level is vast and limitless, and often beyond the logical mind. You may:
Attune and deepen your connection to self
Experience expanded or non-ordinary states of consciousness and awareness, including mystical or transcendental experiences
Awaken Shakti/Kundalini energies & life force energy
Receive profound epiphanies, realisations, visions or insights
Access and awaken your intuition, inner wisdom, inner knowing, body intelligence
Feel a sense of peace, oneness and connection to all that is
BREATHWORK & EMOTIONS
Emotional alchemy is one of the big WHY’s behind breathwork. When we embark on a breathwork journey we are opening ourselves to the full depth and polarity of the emotional spectrum.
Breathwork allows us to meet, uproot, excavate, integrate, release or dissolve emotions that have been stored/unprocessed/repressed/trapped in our bodies for many years. We are literally breathing breath and life-force to these parts of self to surface them for healing, release or integration. In this way, we are ultimately transmuting and alchemising our wounds into wisdom.
This is incredibly healing on many levels, welcoming all emotions as body intelligence (even the intense or uncomfortable ones), thereby allowing emotions to flow and move through the body rather than getting stuck & causing dis-ease in years to come. By clearing these emotions, textures and imprints from our energy channels, body tissues and nervous system, we can create more space to experience and receive love, joy, pleasure, creativity, inspiration and other higher vibrational tones. Through Breath, you may also explore the emotional and energetic root of physical symptoms and find empowerment on your healing journey.
