Day 11: Breathwork

Intimate Insights:

An Essay by Tony Lupinacci

Breathe for Love

I know that I can change the way I feel at any time by breathing in a way that I want to feel or conversely breathing in a way that I don’t want to feel - that also has the power to act as a catalyst for change. This is the real alchemy of the breath and is probably also the most profound teaching that I’ve received over the last 15 years of practice. For most part, I’ve focused on the traditional yogic pranayama exercises like nadi shodhana (alternate nostril breathing) or viloma (interrupted breathing). These practices are simple and beautiful, they have a way to calm the nervous system and soothe the fluctuations of the mind. These classics help me to ground as I move through the world and aide in releasing tension.

I was always somewhat skeptical of active breath-work like holotropic or rebirthing because I felt that they didn’t have as clear of a lineage, this type of breathing somehow felt less legitimate and I admittedly judged. That was until I had one of those WOW experiences that I often heard people talk about. The other day my husband Anton was leading an active breath-work ceremony on the last day of our Costa Rica new year retreat. It began with me thinking that my journey wasn’t going anywhere interesting, I felt a little anxious and agitated. After 3 or 4 rounds of two breaths in and one out (all through the mouth) Anton invited us to laugh!

Through the pain and discomfort pleasure emerged! At first the laugh felt forced (it was) - then it transformed and snowballed into a complete emotional diaphragmatic release. it was hard to stop, it felt so good and I felt so free. I was cracking open in a way that was completely unfamiliar and in a way that I didn’t know was possible. It felt as if I was flossing my soul.

I then started to get messages from my mom who died 17 years ago and her mom (my grandma) who passed away a year and a half ago. It feels crazy to even write this but I was fully channeling them with my breath. There were messages, jokes and clear sentient heart based communication. They told me that all is love and all is forgiven, they also told me that they were proud of me and that I was endlessly supported and infinitely held by the grace of god.

Anyway you slice it the breath is a doorway to pure love, to consciousness and to the truth of who we are. The wisdom is infinite and I’m just scratching the surface. All I can say is that I know that I know with total certainty that love is the truth, it’s the ultimate expression of pleasure and the breath is the most direct way to the heart. I feel grateful beyond measure to have the chance to feel it and to share it.

An Essay by Alden Price 

My first experience with the specific style of breathwork I practice and teach was with my teacher, Krissy Jones at Sky Ting yoga in New York City. It was a spring afternoon, and I had no idea what to expect. With our mats set up in a circle, we each shared our intentions for breathing with the group. People said things like– to recharge, let go of fear, feel more grounded and present, let go of control. I can’t remember what I said. We were then instructed to lay completely flat on the mat with an eyemask covering our eyes. The active portion of the breathing went like this: two inhales, the first inhale directed in the low belly and the second the chest, and one exhale. All through the mouth. Over and over again. That’s it. “Stay with the breath,” Krissy encouraged. “The first few minutes are the hardest. The ego will tell you to stop, but just keep going,” she directed the group. Energy began to course through my body, my hands cramped up, and I felt myself entering a different state of consciousness. People started screaming, crying and moaning. What the fuck was going on, I thought. With each breath, I felt my bodily sensations increase: tinglingling, coldness then heat, intense hand cramping, lip numbness, and an overall sense of euphoria. At the end during our rest phase, I felt a wave of love towards my family, my partner, past partners, and friends– basically everyone– wash over me. I thought of my father and how much he would benefit from a practice like this and I felt the desire to gift him a class.

A year or so and a few breathwork classes later, the idea to teach started recurring. With little contemplation, I signed up for and completed my training with David Elliott in August of 2024. The 8-day intensive training was life-changing. David explained in words what I’d felt so viscerally in that first class with Krissy. Breathwork is extremely effective in moving energy and opening the heart. Something I personally struggle with are blocks around love. This affects every aspect of my intimate relationships. Over the years I’ve noticed that the closer I get to people the more I shut off love. I’m less interested in connecting with my partner sexually and romantically. The quality of my thoughts become bitter and comparative. Breathwork is a tool I use to move from my mind, my psyche-centered life, and into my heart and the somatic body. It helps me move from a transactional lens of the world towards a softer, more loving perspective. The nature of my thoughts become kinder and more thoughtful of others after a breathwork session. I’m generally less concerned with myself– which tends to be the root of my dis-ease in general. I like the metaphor of trauma being stored in the body as an energetic block or imprint, and the breath as a tool to sweep those imprints up and out in the form of emotional release.

I remember in the weeks leading up to my breathwork training I felt like I had lost touch with the universe. I was no longer noticing the signs and little winks from god that I was on the right track. I felt depressed and was mentally and physically sick. I broke out with Epstein Barr for the second time in a year. The self-awareness I gained in therapy was doing nothing towards changing my life. The training provided a container to not just examine, but actually process, my internal landscape on a psychosomatic level. The first few sessions of breathing I literally felt like my heart was trapped in a chinese finger trap, and the more I tried to breathe through it, the tighter it got. I asked David about this after. “Is there any heart disease in your family?” He asked me. “Yes,” I replied, “a lot.” “Now you know what it’s like to have a heart attack,” he said. By the end of the training, I accessed a reservoir of emotion and felt safe to express it in a way I hadn’t in years. My frame of awareness had shifted such that I began to notice the little nudges from the universe reminding me that I am on the right path and that I am connected to a source much larger than my comprehension. These reminders came in the form of dreams, dragonflies, squirrels, feathers, and people. For the first time ever, I felt the sense that I was perfect just the way I am. While that experience of self-love comes and goes, I now have the reference of actually feeling that in my bones.

My teacher David says that breathwork is the fastest, cheapest and most effective method towards healing.