BREATHE INTO SPRING - WOMEN'S BREATH CIRCLE
Week 1 - 24 February
Grounding
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Arriving, creating safety and finding an embodied sense of support. What does it mean to fully arrive? We will practise simple breathing techniques which are calming for the nervous system and stabilising for the mind. Including; Awareness of breathing, Belly breathing and Coherent breathing. There will be time to look at breathing patterns through questions such as:
- Are you naturally breathing into your belly or your upper chest?
- Are you breathing more on the right or the left?
- How is it for you to hold your breath after the exhale and after the inhale?
As well as time to explore bio-mechanically informed functional and grounding movement to support the breathing muscles and encourage optimal function.
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Week 2 - 3 March
Undoing
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Often we hold tension in the key muscles of breathing from daily life, and also from difficult experiences in the past. This tension constricts the capacity to breath fully as well as the capacity to feel. Undoing is a necessary part of the continuous process of feeling fully and inhabiting our natural aware breath and conscious breath. Releasing knots in body and mind, with self massage and fluid movements to support and release the deep central muscles of breathing, which are often subtly expressed including the central chain of muscles from Psoas to diaphragm. We will explore using the mind as fluid attention, and work with a wave-like rocking motion in the pelvis and spine and a gentle wave breath practice.
Week 3 - 10 March
Transformation
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Breathwork techniques can be used to stimulate, and generate a powerful energised feeling as well as our capacity to focus. These techniques are great for overcoming negative thought states especially when we have a lot of emotional disturbance but need fast results and have to attend to activities with our full mental capacity. They can also give a sense of expansion and interconnection. In order to practise breathwork of the more energising nature it is necessary to have a strong body awareness and ability to down regulate. We will work with banda (internal muscle locks) and one point focus. Using visualisation, building up a powerful breath, breath holds, as well as stronger movements that induce focus and energy.
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Week 4 - 24 March
Positive States
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Focusing on pleasant sensations, and actively cultivating a positive mind can be a very powerful tool for contradicting habitual or even clinical negative states, or simply to counteract the natural negativity bias which we evolved as a safety mechanism. It can also help us to put our attention outside ourselves through active compassion.
These techniques may appear to some that we are denying reality, being sugar coated or spiritually bypassing, but as long as we are also paying attention to what is naturally arising and have tools and places to process the more difficult aspects of existence then we are simply cultivating positive states as a tool, rather than as an avoidance technique. We will look at positive mental states as well as breathing techniques that generate bliss and pleasure.
We will also begin to dive into Conscious Connected Breathing *(CCB) but in a quiet, soft and gentle way.
Practising *CCB in a quiet and soft way is particularly good for people who are new to the practice or feeling delicate or know they get distracted or triggered by other peoples sounds.
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Week 5 - 31 March
Negative States
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Often we have feelings inside that don’t fit with our idea of how we want to feel or how we should feel. Creating space to find these feelings, such as anger, irritation, sadness, hopelessness, disgust, or envy, and allowing them to express can help us to step into our full sense of being, and free up energy that may have been stuck in the effort to suppress or deny. We will begin by moving and breathing out the mouth, making sound. Noticing and naming what feelings and emotions are there; going towards them through physicalization, and moving as these emotions.
We will then practise *CCB for a bit longer than in week 4 and welcome all expressions.
The feelings that come up, may just need to flow through without a story attached, they may also be connected to something tender in our past. The breath through practice of *CCB holds the difficult places, in the light of awareness. We will take a bit of time to integrate at the end.
Week 6 - 14 April
Completion
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Time will be given to inquire into what is alive in you now, using relating tools, embodied movement, awareness of breathing and writing. We will then move into *CCB with no prescription. Practising, breathing, and moving with all that we have learned in the course so far. Closing circle and looking at what is next including how to integrate the practices in your life and what support you might need moving forwards.
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*CCB - Conscious Connected Breathwork (also known as holotropic breathwork or re-birthing) is a practice of breathing deeply without gaps in a relaxed state and in a held environment. Generally people work one to one and do 12 sessions, but it is also practised in a group setting. When practised safely, with clear physical contra - indication assessment and with the use of breath holds and down regulation breathing, this practice can be an amazing tool to access places inside for healing and transformation, as well as to access the feeling of vastness and interconnection.