Why I bring breathwork to bodywork

When a client arrives on my table, I open with an invitation. A gentle suggestion to turn your attention towards your senses. Noticing the sounds and smells in the room, recognizing the sensation of your body on the table, and calling your awareness to connect with your breath. "If it feels right for you, take a nice deep inhale, and relax into the exhale." Although the cue is simple, everyone responds differently. For some, a cascade of relaxation follows. I can tell that the deep relaxing breath felt good, and often they go for another one or two long exhales before settling into a natural rhythm. For others, their deep breath sounds worried, or hurried, or cut short. As though their body is here on the table, but their nervous system is still at the office, or with the kids, or stuck with some past event. Instead of unfolding and releasing, their breath remains restricted, shallow, or rapid. I hear in the quality of their breath, that some form of stress, whether physical, mental, or emotional, is influencing their nervous system.

Todays normal is to be always working, constantly stimulated, high performing, and multitasking. With the tech age, it is infinitely easier to distract ourselves than to be quiet with ourselves. And it is a small population of people who are learning the skills of tending to their bodies and emotions, without the use of substances or stimulants or food. These bodies will put up with a lot of misuse and soldier on despite an unreasonable amount of stress. However, the body doesn't lie and when we listen closely, signs will appear pointing towards a lack of recovery time or bottled emotions or a broad disassociation from our authentic selves. 

By tuning in to how the breath is moving through the body, we can gain insight on areas of tension and start to discover the more nuanced language of our personal anatomy. I encourage people not to put words to the sensations, but to simply shine a gentle and accepting awareness of the felt sense as it arises. My invitation is to allow the breath to move into the areas that grasp your attention, using the inhale to expand and the exhale to let go. Layer by layer, opening and allowing, relaxing and releasing. The breath becomes a window to our sense of self, and a path for integrating our experiences in life.

One of my heart's intentions in the healing work I do, is to help people understand their own capacity to heal and shift patterns in their body. I believe the breath is one of our most potent ways of accessing this inner healer. It also happens to be something we always have with us, doesn't require a prescription, and has a very long list of positive side effects! The reason I bring breathwork to bodywork, is because I have seen the way it deepens the benefits for my clients on the table, and I've heard that they are using the same notions at home in between sessions. The unwinding they experience is happening not just on the massage table, but in the rhythm of their lives as well. This is one of the most exciting reflections that I hear from my clients, and it is an exploration that can continue to unfold throughout our lives. Coming continually to a more integrated understanding of our body, from a place of compassion and care.

Schedule a session with me if you are curious to learn more about breathwork and how your breath supports healing.