In my work, breathwork is offered as a facilitator-led, body-based practice that brings intentional attention to the breath. Depending on the session, this may include gentle observation of the natural breath, paced breathing, or continuous, rhythmic breathing. My approach is trauma-informed, with choice, pacing, and participant agency at its center.

Breathwork may support body awareness, emotional steadiness, and a greater capacity for nervous system regulation. It does not, however, produce one predictable response. An experience may feel settling, activating, emotional, subtle, or physically intense. No one response is a measure of success.

Rather than forcing change, breathwork creates space to notice patterns of holding, bracing, or reacting—and to explore what becomes possible when there is room for a different response. Some people notice a shift after one session. Over time, breathwork can become less of a “technique” and more of a practice of recognizing changes within ourselves and finding a steadier way to respond.

Within that space, the breath can serve as a bridge between mind, body, and awareness. Nothing particular has to happen. The invitation is to listen, remain curious, and allow the experience to unfold at a pace that honors individual choice.

For riders, this awareness can include how breath, posture, muscle tension, timing, and attention enter their communication with the horse—often before a deliberate aid is given.

The breath can become a place where awareness begins—and where choice becomes possible.

Because sometimes understanding something intellectually does not change what happens in the body.

We may know how we want to respond and still find ourselves holding our breath, bracing, reacting quickly, or becoming overwhelmed. Stress can become so familiar that it appears as tension, fog, fatigue, reactivity, or a quiet sense of not feeling quite like ourselves—even when life on the surface looks fine.

Breathwork offers a way to notice these patterns as they are happening. By bringing intentional awareness to the breath and body, the practice can create a pause, widen the possibility of choice, and support a steadier response—without requiring anything to be forced or explained.

With practice, you may notice:

• more room between stimulus and response

• earlier awareness of bracing, breath-holding, or overwhelm

• clearer recognition of what you feel and what you need

• a greater capacity to remain present during demanding moments

• a body that feels more like an ally than something to manage or override

For riders, this same awareness can make patterns of breath-holding, bracing, and urgency easier to recognize before they shape the seat, timing, or aids. The intention is not to control the horse through calmness, but to become more aware of what the rider brings into the relationship.

This is not about pushing, performing, or achieving a particular state. It is about learning to be with yourself—quietly, honestly, and at a pace that respects your capacity.

Breathwork can help us recognize breath-holding or tension in the jaw, shoulders, hands, hips, and pelvis before those patterns become automatic. For riders, that awareness creates an opportunity to soften unnecessary effort and explore a more responsive seat.

Earlier awareness of tension and bracing

Breathwork can help riders recognize breath-holding or tension in the jaw, shoulders, hands, hips, and pelvis before those patterns become automatic. That awareness creates an opportunity to soften unnecessary effort and explore a more responsive seat.

More room under pressure

Intentional breathing may help soften physiological reactivity before a demanding moment, making it easier to orient, assess what is happening, and respond more deliberately.

Clearer access to internal cues

By bringing attention to the breath and body, riders may become more able to recognize sensations, emotions, and needs rather than immediately overriding them.

More deliberate rider–horse communication

Breathing, posture, muscle tension, timing, and aids are all part of the interaction between rider and horse. Greater self-awareness may help the rider communicate with more intention and observe the horse’s response without assuming what it means.

Support after fear, falls, or setbacks

Breathwork may offer a way to orient, reconnect with the body, and approach a return to riding with greater choice. It does not replace appropriate medical, psychological, or trauma-related care.

Greater awareness of effort and recovery

Breath awareness can help reveal when effort is becoming strain and when the body may need a pause or recovery—useful during long days, multiple rides, and other sustained demands.

This is not about achieving perfect calm. It is about noticing sooner, choosing more deliberately, and returning more readily.

Breathwork does not make excellence effortless. It can help make effort more conscious.

A few simple preparations can help you protect the time, settle into the space, and arrive comfortably for your session.

Honor the Space

• Treat your session as protected time that belongs to you.

• Silence notifications and let others know you will be unavailable.

• When possible, allow yourself a few unhurried minutes before and after the session.

Prepare Your Body

• If possible, allow approximately two hours between a substantial meal and your session. A light snack is fine if needed.

• Arrive comfortably hydrated and have water nearby.

• Wear loose, comfortable clothing that allows the breathing and movement.

• If you place a cushion beneath your head, choose one that keeps your head and neck comfortably aligned without pressing your chin toward your chest, so your breathing remains comfortable.

Create a Nest

Have supportive and personally meaningful items nearby, such as:

• cushions or pillows

• a blanket or shawl

• tissues

• a journal and pen

• an eye mask

• a favorite crystal, teddy bear, or another object that helps you feel grounded and supported

An eye mask will be offered during in-person sessions.

For Online Sessions

• Choose a quiet, private space where you are unlikely to be interrupted.

• Position your camera so I can observe your face, chest, and abdomen throughout the practice. This allows me to follow your breathing and respond appropriately.

Give Yourself a Soft Landing

If possible, leave 5–15 minutes open after the session to remain quiet, drink water, write in your journal, or continue with your day gradually.

These simple steps can help create a greater sense of safety and support as you prepare to receive the work we will do together.

Each breathwork session follows a clear and supportive arc while remaining responsive to the individual or group.

1. Arriving and Setting an Intention

• Private sessions begin with a conversation about what brings you to the practice and what you are noticing.

• Group sessions begin with a shared orientation to the practice and the space we will enter together.

• Questions are welcomed before the active breathwork begins.

• An intention/mantra may be shared in advance, created together, offered for a group, allowed to emerge, or the practice may unfold without one.

• I create a calm, respectful, and nurturing environment while inviting you to share what helps you feel comfortable, grounded, and supported.

2. Settling In

• You may practice seated or lying down.

• Cushions and blankets can be used to support your body.

• An eye mask is offered if you would like one.

• I explain and demonstrate the breathing pattern before we begin.

• You are shown how to soften the breath, return to natural breathing, change position, open your eyes, pause, or rest.

• If you would like my attention during the practice, simply raise your hand so I can see you and respond.

• There is nothing you need to perform or accomplish. We begin with what is present and allow the practice to unfold from there.

3. Guided Breathwork

• A session may include one breathing pattern or a sequence of two or three.

• I guide you throughout with clear verbal cues, including when to begin, continue, soften, transition, or return to natural breathing.

• Periods of natural breathing and rest may occur between patterns.

• During quieter intervals, you may continue with the pattern, return to natural breathing, rest, or listen to the music until the next cue.

• Music usually accompanies the practice. I generally curate the playlist, while honoring a preference for silence or, when discussed beforehand, music you would like to bring.

• I remain attentive to your breathing, movement, and responses throughout the practice.

4. I AM Yoga Nidra™ and Integration

• As the active breathwork concludes, I guide you back to natural breathing and allow time for settling.

• From there, I guide you into I AM Yoga Nidra™ for the second half of the session.

• Rooted in an ancient yogic tradition, I AM Yoga Nidra is a guided meditation practice that brings alert awareness together with deep relaxation.

• Here, the emphasis shifts from doing to receiving, allowing the breathwork experience to settle and integrate.

• At the close, I guide you gradually out of the practice, allowing time to reorient before sitting up.

• You may then remain quiet, drink water, or write in your journal.

• At in-person gatherings and retreats, a cup of warm cacao may also be offered as part of this time for grounding and connection.

For Riders and Equestrians

For those interested in how breath awareness may gradually move from off-horse practice toward the equestrian environment and, when appropriate, into the saddle:

Explore Equestrian Breathwork →

Every breathwork experience is different. It may feel subtle, settling, energizing, emotional, physically active, deeply quiet, or relatively uneventful.
Any sensations or emotions that arise can be met without pressure to intensify them or decide what they mean.

Physical sensations may include:

• tingling in the hands, feet, or face

• warmth or coolness

• lightheadedness

• temporary tightening or cramping in the hands, feet, jaw, or other areas

• trembling, shaking, or spontaneous movement

• sighing or yawning

Emotional or inner experiences may include:

• emotions rising and changing

• tears or laughter

• an impulse to move or use your voice

• images, memories, or insights

• relief, openness, clarity, spaciousness, or stillness

You may also experience very little that feels noticeable or dramatic. Intensity is not a measure of the value of a session.

If the experience becomes too intense, we slow down. You may soften the breath, return to natural breathing, change position, open your eyes, pause, or rest at any time.

Your comfort and choice guide the session—the practice adapts to you, not the other way around.

Humming Breath — Bhramari
A slow inhale through the nose followed by a long, steady humming exhale. The lips remain closed, the jaw relaxed, the teeth slightly separated, and the tongue rests on the upper palate as a soft, bee-like vibration is created and felt internally. The practice may be offered with the hands resting or with the ears gently covered.

Rhythmic Breathing

A steady inhale-and-exhale rhythm practiced through the nose or mouth. The pace, depth, and rhythm can be adjusted throughout the practice.

Three-Part Breath

A connected mouth-breathing pattern in which the inhale begins in the belly, rises through the ribs and chest, and releases through the mouth.

Breath of Fire

An active pranayama practice using short, rhythmic exhalations and passive inhalations. This pattern is used selectively and only when appropriate.

Alternate-Nostril Breathing
A practice that alternates the flow of air through one nostril and then the other, traditionally understood as a left–right balancing breath.

Ujjayi — Ocean Breath

A soft, audible throat breath created by gently narrowing the back of the throat. The ocean-like sound provides an audible point of attention.

Box Breathing

A structured cycle of inhale → hold → exhale → hold, often practiced using an even count. The length of each phase can be adjusted.

Intentional Holds

Brief, gentle holds following an inhale or exhale. When included, holds are optional and adapted to the individual. Holds remain brief rather than intense or prolonged.

Each pattern is an invitation. It may be softened, modified, or set aside in response to your experience. Choice and responsiveness guide the practice.

Music is an integral part of this work—not as background noise, but as an intentional element that supports rhythm, pacing, and movement through the session.
Music accompanies most sessions and is chosen for its tempo, tone, and emotional arc, as well as its volume, instrumentation, and frequency. The music offers an auditory structure within which your own experience can unfold.

In this space, music becomes a sensory and emotional companion that may:

• deepen focus and embodied presence

• support smoother transitions between breath states

• offer continuity as the pace and intensity of the practice change

• provide a point of return during quieter moments

Listening to music engages distributed networks across both brain hemispheres, including regions involved in hearing, attention, movement, memory, and emotion.

Every musical sound contains frequencies, yet the experience of music arises from the complete composition and the person listening. A particular frequency is not assigned a guaranteed effect.

When breath and music move together, rhythm can offer a steady thread through the changing phases of the practice.

Because music is personal, I usually curate the playlist while remaining attentive to your preferences and sensitivities. You are welcome to let me know beforehand if you prefer silence or would like to bring or suggest music that holds meaning for you.

Music accompanies the practice; your experience remains your own.

Research into intentional breathing continues to grow. Because breathing occurs automatically and can also be consciously influenced, changing its pace, depth, or rhythm can affect respiratory and cardiovascular activity and processes associated with the autonomic nervous system.

Studies suggest that some breathing practices may support reductions in stress and improvements in self-reported symptoms of anxiety and depression. Research into slower-paced breathing has also identified changes in heart rate variability and other measures associated with autonomic regulation.

Breathwork, however, is not a single technique. Studies examine different breathing patterns, session lengths, populations, and outcomes. The findings from one method cannot automatically be applied to every form of breathwork—or to every individual.

Research helps us understand possible mechanisms and benefits, but it does not determine what a participant should feel or experience. In my work, evidence is considered alongside professional training, careful observation, participant feedback, and choice.

The research informs the practice; your direct experience remains your own.

Holotropic Breathwork® and the work I facilitate are distinct approaches.

Developed by Stanislav and Christina Grof, Holotropic Breathwork® is a specific method that combines accelerated breathing, evocative music, an extended session structure, and, when appropriate, focused bodywork. It is intended to support expanded or non-ordinary states of consciousness.

My sessions are rooted primarily in Kundalini Yoga pranayama. Pranayama is an ancient yogic discipline of working consciously with breath and prana, traditionally understood as vital life energy. I may also draw from other intentional breathing practices when appropriate.
The breath pattern, pace, and duration are adapted in response to the participant and what is present. Throughout the active breathwork, I provide clear verbal cues and opportunities to soften the breath, return to natural breathing, pause, or stop.

After active breathwork, I guide a gradual return to natural breathing. The session then moves into I AM Yoga Nidra™, the integrative second half of the practice, allowing time for stillness, awareness, and receiving.

The intention is not to pursue intensity or produce a particular state. Choice, responsiveness, and respect for each person’s capacity guide the practice.

I facilitate breathwork with careful attention to pacing, consent, participant choice, and what is being communicated during the session.

You may soften or modify the breath, return to natural breathing, change your position, pause, or stop at any time. During active breathwork, when there is little conversational exchange, you may raise your hand whenever you would like my attention.

Physical sensations, emotions, memories, images, or periods of quiet may arise. Experiences vary, and I do not assign meaning to what emerges; you determine what, if anything, the experience means to you.

Breathwork is a facilitator-led, trauma-informed practice offered for personal exploration, education, and well-being. It is not medical care, psychotherapy, crisis intervention, or a substitute for diagnosis or treatment. If you have health concerns or are receiving medical or mental-health care, you are encouraged to consult your licensed provider and share any relevant considerations with me before participating.

For equestrians, active breathwork begins off the horse. Any practice brought into the saddle is limited to gentle breath awareness, with attention, sound judgment, and established riding-safety practices remaining primary.

My responsibility is to facilitate within my training and scope while honoring your capacity, communication, and choice throughout the experience.