The Power Of Breath

Taking a big deep breath is the first thing we do when we arrive on Planet Earth…

…yet believe it or not, most of us as adults aren’t doing it right! Many of us are taking short, fast, chest breaths which signals to our body that we are in a state of high alert (fight or flight) and are subsequently flooded with cortisol and adrenalin.

However, when we breathe correctly, it transforms our health because we activate the parasympathetic nervous system, also called the “rest and digest” system, as well as activating the vagus nerve (the boss of the parasympathetic nervous system) which oversees things like mood, digestion, and heart rate. Big deep breathes will also send more oxygen to your brain and all your other organs, giving them an oxygen boost.

While we could all do with an MOT on our day to day breathing – beginning with slow, deep, belly breaths is a good place to start – to really turbo charge your health and breath, why not try breathwork?

How is breathwork different to breathing?

“Breathwork” is the practice of consciously using your breath or breathing techniques for a certain period of time and for a specific outcome, such as releasing energy, accessing emotions and processing trauma. It cultivates self-awareness and physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well-being, as well as upgrading your physical health.

As you take big breaths in repetitively, you bypass the ego and rational mind and enter a different state of awareness. This is what most people seek when meditating and by breathing in this way, it takes you to that place very quickly; it is in this very space that healing, connection to spirit, and a deeper connection to self can arise.

The science:

Many studies have been done over the years to determine how breathwork can affect the body’s stress response.

A 1979 study from The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology proved that controlled breathing exercises could be used as an effective coping strategy for successful stress management.

The benefits:

Regular breathwork increases your energy levels and boosts your immune system, which contributes greatly to your overall health (including your energy), and the way you breathe has more of an effect on it than we may realise.

Shallow breathing can result in the presence of stress, which triggers the sympathetic nervous system and increases our level of systemic inflammation. Poor breathing will also send unfiltered air directly into our throat and lungs. This can allow dust, bacteria, and other foreign substances to make us sick.

Breathwork has also been proven to greatly improve your blood pressure. It also can help improve your blood circulation throughout your body, and even help in the treatment of hypertension (high blood pressure).

Deep breathing has also been credited as a popular method of pain management (including chronic pain). This is because many breathing techniques help trigger the feeling of relaxation in stressful or uncomfortable situations, and following certain techniques also provides a distraction from the pain itself. This makes breathwork contribute to a positive change in mood, which is beneficial for those experiencing physical pain.

Many people use breathwork as a way to improve their mood and/or build their confidence, self-esteem, self-image, and self-love. Those struggling with negative thoughts and feelings, especially self-directed ones, can use breathing techniques to help ground them in the present moment. Breathing into your heart space also magnifies the feelings of love by opening up that space.

Certain breathwork systems can actually activate our own DMT (spirit molecule) and make it possible to journey to a place of higher consciousness. It’s a powerful tool that can have profound effects as it by-passes the ego and rational brain and drops you in to your body – a place we so often bypass.

When breathwork is done with a specific intention, it can bring about quick change, answers to issues that have been stuck, and life changing illuminations. As you breathe, you will become aware of thoughts, feelings, memories, and patterns that have lived and got lodged deep in your unconscious mind and although you may have processed your childhood and early limiting beliefs or patterns of behaviour through talk therapy, we don’t always release the stuck emotion that has resided in the body and which is linked to the early memory. Once those energies are released, there is more space for your inherent life force to flow through you.

Another major health benefit of breathwork is its ability to help you release toxins in your body. As we breathe throughout the day, we tend to breathe in everything bad that’s in the air: dust, bacteria, and various pollutants. Learning how to breathe properly allows us to help new toxins leave, while also alkalising our blood’s pH level and helping us avoid disease. Most diseases cannot thrive in an alkaline environment, particularly cancer.

Cat Raincock teaches conscious, connected breathing which means there is no gap after each breath. It’s done lying down on your back in a comfortable position, curated to music to help motivate, relax and release anything that’s stuck within your mind and body. She guides you through the process and uses a variety of tools to activate your senses and create a safe and beautiful space to heal and ultimately release. It’s powerful and you can experience profound effects:

Massive stress relief and deep relaxation
Greater self-love and more loving relationships
Better emotional balance
Relief from physical pain
Overwhelming feelings of joy
Ability to manifest greater abundance
Deep healing of wounds, grief, and traumas
Access to expanded states of consciousness, including higher guidance and clarity
Transcendence of the mind and emotions; awakening to the truth of who you really are
Release of toxins from the cells of the body
Deep inner peace

“Deep breaths are like little love notes to your body.”

Women’s Wellbeing

Cat is a Clinical Hypnotherapist who specialises in helping women to improve their emotional and physical wellbeing; by accessing the unconscious mind, we can change the way think, live and love.

The mind and body are intrinsically linked and any physical ailment and emotional issue has a root cause which you can access using regressive hypnosis and repair the mind and body. Whether it is a physical ailment that is troubling you, or a feelings of being blocked, struggling with anxiety, depression, overwhelm, or fear of change, Cat will journey with you to find the origin of the issue and heal it.

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