Breathwork
A body-based way of understanding what you are carrying
Sometimes we can understand our experiences through talking and reflection, yet still feel that something remains unresolved. You may know why you feel anxious, sad, ashamed or overwhelmed, but find that these feelings continue to affect your work, relationships and relationship with yourself.
This is because our experiences are not only held in thoughts and memories. They can also affect our nervous system, emotions and the way we experience our body. When our memory is fragmented or difficult to connect with, connecting to our body with breath can help us remember. Our body is our unspoken voice.
I use conscious connected Breathwork as part of counselling and psychotherapy. It offers another way to explore the memories,feelings, sensations and responses that may have been difficult to access through talking alone.
Our breath and our emotions are deeply connected. When we feel anxious, frightened or overwhelmed, our breathing often changes without us even noticing. We may hold our breath, breathe more shallowly or tighten our body as a way of managing what we are feeling.
Many people who have experienced trauma have learnt to disconnect from their emotions and their body as a way of surviving. Feelings such as anger, grief, shame or fear may have felt too overwhelming to experience at the time, so the body learnt to protect itself by holding them back.
At work we may be triggered or activated by someone's behaviour, lifestyle or even their smell or just their way of being which reminds us of an adult who hurt us. We don't know why that person makes us feel very uncomfortable in our body especially. Breathwork can help us to reconnect the sensations, triggers and fears in the present to what happened to us in the past. We can begin to have self compassion and regulate our reactions.
Breathwork offers another way of reconnecting with yourself
Through conscious awareness of the breath, Breathwork offers another way of reconnecting with yourself, your emotions and experiences.
By slowing down and becoming more aware of your breathing and body sensations, you can begin to notice what is happening within you with greater understanding and compassion. This can support you to recognise emotional patterns, feel more connected to yourself and develop a greater sense of safety within your own body.
Breathwork can support the nervous system to move out of patterns of constant stress and protection and towards greater regulation, balance and connection. It can help you become more aware of your internal experience rather than automatically reacting to it.
My approach to Breathwork is gentle, trauma-informed and guided by your individual needs. It is not about forcing an intense emotional experience or pushing you beyond what feels safe. I do not use fast or activating breathing techniques that may feel overwhelming for some people.
Instead, we work with the breath in a way that respects your history, your body and your capacity at the time. Through this process, you may begin to develop a deeper relationship with yourself, your emotions and the experiences that have shaped you.
Breathwork is not about changing who you are. It is about creating the space to listen to yourself more deeply and reconnect with parts of yourself that may have been protected or disconnected for many years.
What arises in a breathwork counselling session can be gently integrated into your everyday life—helping you better understand your reactions, patterns and ways of being at work and at home.
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For many people, trauma is not only remembered as a story. You may feel tension in your body, hold your breath, become numb or disconnected, or find yourself constantly alert and unable to relax. Feelings such as anger, grief, shame or fear may have felt too difficult to experience at the time, so the body learnt to protect itself by holding them back.
Through Breathwork, you can begin to notice what is happening within you with greater awareness and compassion. This may support you to understand your reactions, feel more connected to yourself and develop a different relationship with your emotions and body.
For health professionals who have spent much of their lives caring for others, Breathwork can offer space to turn some of that care towards yourself. You may be carrying the distress you witness at work, your own grief or unresolved trauma, while continuing to support everyone around you.
What breathwork can support
A safe and structured approach
Breathwork can bring awareness to deep emotional and physical responses. For this reason, I take time to understand your experiences, your current emotional state and how your body responds to stress before introducing it.
I will always ask whether you want to work with Breathwork. We check in with your body each session to see whether it feels right for you. You may work with your breath while seated, or you may wish to lie down and breathe. For some of us just getting in contact with our body can be hard, so we will work slowly to reconnect with your whole body at your pace.
My approach is not about pushing into difficult experiences or creating intense emotional release. I do not use fast or activating breathing techniques that may feel overwhelming. The work develops at a pace that respects your individual history, capacity and readiness.
There is no expectation that you retell or relive your trauma. We create space for what is present now, rather than forcing you to return to what happened then.