INTRODUCTIONRebirthing is a unique breathingmeditationtechnique that, according to its creator, California-basedNew Ageguru Leonard Orr, helps release the trauma of being born from the unconscious mind. This consequently can help human beings get in touch with the reservoir of divinity innate in them—and perhaps make them immortal!
Describing the rolerebirthingplays in what Orr calls the "Great Game of Immortality", he says: "Each session dissolves body memories and emotional traumas forever, especially the birth trauma. This also helps heal diseases such as epilepsy, asthma, migraine headaches and common cold. In fact,rebirthingis asiddhi, or the ultimate maturation of the soul. It has healed every disease known to man. I have even had experiences of biolocation."
One of the many uses of biofeedback training is to learn to monitor physiological aspects of one’s body. One of these aspects that people can learn to monitor, and then control, is their breathing. Breathwork is similar in that it is a conscious alteration of breathing. It can refer to altering the rate of breathing, the depth of breathing, or the amount of time in between breaths. There are several types of therapies that involve breathwork, and some believe that this can result in spiritual or psychological benefits.
So, what is breathwork, exactly? In this case, it is a therapy where the patient monitors and changes breathing levels in order to obtain desired results, which some people believe can have direct effects on one’s physical well being, emotional well being, and spiritual well being. The practice has been in use for thousands of years and has its roots in Buddhism.
One type of breathwork that is very common around the world is yoga. Many people may not realize that yoga is a type of breathwork, but it is. In yoga, a person will combine slow, sustained movements and stretches with patterns of breathing in and out with specific patterns of motion. This helps the person relax, and can also help loosen muscles and increase flexibility.
Another variant of yoga that evokes breathwork is Zen Yoga. This is a more modern method that invokes aspects of several ancient methods. Its aspect of breathing comes from Qigong, a traditional Chinese system of self-enlightenment and physical well being. It involves diaphragmatic breathing, a healthier and deeper way of breathing that brings in more oxygen.
Diaphragmatic breathing is a type of breathing method that is taught on its own. It is so effective that many people use it to combat stress and other symptoms such as mild nausea. It involves breathing by flexing the diaphragm rather than through the rib cage, as is typically done. This takes practice, but with enough time, people have been shown to make it their default way of breathing. Breathing with this method can help people have a better well being overall.
Another interesting therapy that surfaced over the past several decades is the rebirthing-breathwork. This is based off of a theory that birth is one of the most traumatic events in life, and so recreating it can help people work through other trauma or stress that they are facing. People who practice this method try to connect the inhalation and exhalation stages of breathing seamlessly without any break in between.
There are dozens of other styles of breathwork, including Integrative, Transformational, Shamanic, Clarity, Conscious Connected Breathing, Radiance, and more. These methods each focus on a different aspect of breathing as well as a different aspect of health. It is true that the validity of some of the methods in this last list are debated, but it is also true that many aspects of breathwork have been validated by science and can have real and lasting positive effects on one’s health.
Breathwork as a Doorway to Inner Fulfillment“Breath of Love” breathwork offers an effortless exchange of giving and receiving with the Universe. Encouraging us to relax into pure awareness where surface turmoil of emotions, feelings and thoughts does not touch us, we open to Love and the ever present stillness that lies underneath all personal perceptions of reality.
What Is Real?
When we stop believing that our feelings and thoughts, hopes and wants are real and inescapable parts of our realities, we open to the possibility that there might be something much bigger and grander than just what our mind believes to be real. We stop old notions of the past, let our mind rest in the present moment, and open to experiencing pure awareness and peace underneath all emotions and personality. In that realization we see that no appearance of fear,pain, or separation can touch the core of our true Being. We see that no fear and no struggle can be an obstacle to the presence of our Spirit. We realize that there is no need to strive towards joy or calm in order to Know Peace. Peace is always here. It’s not bound by any feeling or appearance. It’s always here even when the fear is present, or suffering is taking place. It never needs to get rid of anything in order to be. It is the ever welcoming presence of all aspects of this creation. It can be perceived as unconditional love or clarity, peace or deep wisdom but no matter what we call it, it is who we truly are in the core of our Being.
Fear
One of the main experiences that surfaces in the process of breathwork is fear. It is what we try to run from the most, deny and repress as much as possible. Yet, fear is a great servant. There is no growth if there is no fear to open our heart to, to expand our personal awareness THROUGH. Fear is the fuel for inner opening. It’s like wood for the fire - fire of Love. When we take fear as an opportunity to open up we stop resisting it, and we grow. When we see it as a beautiful opportunity and we feel grateful for having it presented itself, we welcome it in. We welcome the fear in as a great teacher, and through that we get to embrace ourselves on a deeper level, allowing ourselves to forgive what ever this fear was caused or held by. We become more aware of our wholeness and deepen our ability to love.
Resisting the fear is like throwing useful wood away. Instead of throwing it into the fire of love, we throw it as far as possible from the fire, avoiding it, and trying to run from it. The gift of fear lies in facing and feeling it. Feeling it doesn’t mean holding on, reacting to it, or letting our mind make a big story out of it. That’s like holding on to the wood. Its place is not in our hands, neither far away from the fire. It belongs into the fire of love. It’s given to us to grow our ability to love and accept.
When we relax and embrace the fear or any uncomfortable feeling, it is free to flow in us. When we let ourselves get to know it in a childlike wonder, the energy it holds is set free to nourish and fill us with vitality. . Even when our mind says no, we can look passed this no, and allow our heart say yes. A big part of the human mind or ego is simply a survival mechanism. It says no to pretty much to everything that feels dangerous or unfamiliar. Yet, who we are is consciousness. Consciousness knows that all there is consciousness. It doesn’t need to be afraid of itself. It doesn’t need to defend itself against itself. It loves meeting itself through different forms and in endless ways. It encourages all growth and opening, constantly gifting us with more opportunities for inner freedom.
In breathwork process we choose to say yes to those opportunities. No matter what our habitual resistance is telling us we choose to dive passed our fixed ways of being and feeling. Without judging or pushing them away we simply look passed them, see them as transient appearances of the human experience.
The only reason why any fearful feeling, thought or image feels scary is because we have not looked it in the ‘eye’ yet. As soon as we allow ourselves to look at it we see that there is nothing to be afraid of. We see it was just a story or an assumption that was holding us back from going deeper and keeping our heart open. The human survival mechanism does a good job in telling us to expect the worst, and therefore to always be on the fence when it comes to bringing awareness to deeper parts of ourselves and diving into the unknown feelings of our personal, cellular or collective memory. We find ourselves running from whatever feels unfamiliar or more intense than we are used to, and with doing that we cut ourselves off from a huge part of life, enormous vitality within us, and a powerful potential of our being.
Yet every moment is a new choice, and breathwork reminds us of that with every new breath. We can change our breath pattern to a releasing and welcoming one any time we choose to. A cleansing and releasing breath triggers neurophysiologic impulses that open our body and energy; send a message ofsafetyto our limbic and nervous system. Liberating us from the prison of the flight or fight habit, the breath assists with making peace with all manifestations of Life within us. It lets consciousness and Love override the old habits of resistance and brings up courage to face all fears and doubts as they are surfacing from our subconscious during the breathing process.
This kind of breathwork reprograms our mind and psyche altering the habitual thoughts of fear into the conscious choice of Love. It opens us to the wholeness of our Being and helps us embrace everything that has felt separate. It shows us that no matter how ugly, scary or terrifying any part of us might seem it’s just another unmet energy, it is just another piece of Unknown that wants to be known. It is just another expression of Love that we are made of. It is the sameSourceenergy, same pervading light that also joy and laughter are born from. Even if we don’t understand it rationally, and most likely we don’t because it cannot be grasped by the mind, there is something in our hearts that listens and wants to embrace this loud and scary roar of denied energy. Our hearts trust. Our inner knowing listens. Our Spirit bows in humble reverence to all creation. When we surrender to the Spirit, it embraces even the loneliest and abandoned roars of our subconscious. Our Light radiates into them with no resistance, with effortless strength, and as long as we trust and surrender to it, we experience its flame that cannot be shaken by any sound, image, thought or feeling. The Light that we are is always here and is always waiting for the opportunities to love and expand through our human experience. The Self is always looking for a next opportunity to flood our bodies with its Love, Clarity and Strength.
Sometimes it feels as if our light faded, or our inner knowing became unclear. It can seem so, yet in truth it is only our attention that can fade in and out of the clarity and love of our Being. It is only the matter of where we put our attention. Do we let it rest in our heart, or we give our energy to the thoughts of conditioning, experiences of the past, and fears of the future.
The peace that is really available to us through a direct experience of surrender together with Breathwork is much more than anything we could ever imagine, much deeper than any word or understanding can give. It is Love that consumes our every cell. It diminishes the illusion of separation bringing us into the oneness with each other and the world. The more we open to surrender, and let breath assist us in that, the more we begin to feel that there is nothing left from the old “me”…no more old stories or struggles. That’s why breathwork often can feel like death to the ego or our old personality. Yet, if it is a death of anything, it is a death of illusion of fear; a cessation of who we thought ourselves to be, and realization that the Self is significantly more powerful and real than anything our minds alone could conjure. We are much bigger than anything we could ever think or ask for.
Breathwork as a doorway to Inner Fulfillment
The integration of our individual mind, physical body and highest Self is much simpler than we have been taught it is. It doesn’t require hard practices or understanding complicated theories. All it needs is our attention, intention, and surrender to our inherent wholeness. We have had a habit ofsearchingfor that outside of ourselves and in doing that we have been overlooking the truth: what we have been looking for has been within us all along.
Although recognizing the truth is simple, it is not always easy. It takes courage to truly stop the familiar surface notions of our fears and beliefs, and take a leap of faith within, into the depth and breath of the Unknown. Yet, once we take this leap there is no end to the gifts that we start becoming aware of. We open to the unlimited fulfillment and wisdom within, and the more we allow ourselves to be lost in it through breathwork processes and everyday awareness, the more its glow will take us over. We will see and experience the perfection in every single moment and allow it to act and live through us freely and fully.
Benefits of BREATHWORK:
Reduces stress and increases energy, aliveness and sense of well-being
Releases toxins from the cells of the body: 70% of toxins are released through the breath itself, so when you breathe more you release more!
Allows old emotions, memories and past traumas to arise and release in a safe and gentle way
Accesses and transforms the source of dis-ease by understanding the underlying thoughts and beliefs systems that attracted the dis-ease
Unravels relationship/intimacy issues and supports one to embrace and heal old wounds of abandonment, loss and rejection
Helps one to attract new relationships based on who one is now
Increases flow, ease, joy, and pleasure in life and relationships
Accesses expanded states of consciousness, including higher guidance and clarity about one’s path and life purpose
Supports the release of limiting thoughts, patterns and imprints from birth, childhood, and past lives
Enhances creativity and expression
Heals the wound of your imagined separation
Increases one’s experience of inner peace & surrender
Allows a feeling of being connected to, and caring for yourself, the earth, and all beings
Transcends the mind and emotions and supports the awakening to the truth of who you really are
Breathwork sessions are about two hours in length and consist of counseling and the breathing process. The breathing process usually takes between an hour and an hour-and-a-half. The experience during the breathing portion varies from session to session, and from client to client. The most basic experience is usually described as tingling or vibrating. Breathworkers refer to this as an energy release, a cellular cleansing of tension stored in the body. This is a result of the breathing process increasing the level of physical and spiritual energy in the body, which washes away old tensions.
Most simply, rebirthing or breathwork begins by working with the physical body and as a result it cleanses the emotional and spiritual bodies. This almost always leaves the client in a state somewhere between peace and ecstasy.
Breathwork Questions and Answers
What is breathwork? Breathwork is a breathing process that increases our ability to feel and resolve the effects of our past. It involves being guided by a trained breathworker to breathe in a full, free manner resulting in an increase in the level of physical and spiritual energy in the body. The breathing process cleanses the tension stored in the body, bringing the physical and emotional origins back into consciousness where they can be healed.
What is a session like? Every session with a breathworker involves both counseling and the breathing process. Your breathworker will help you to contact your true feelings about both current and past issues, and resolve the associated unconscious beliefs. The breathing process assists this journey by increasing your physical and spiritual energy, enabling you to surrender to feelings and open the unconscious mind so past experiences can be released. Breathwork leaves you with an incredible sense of peace, aliveness, and authentic self-worth.
Why do I need a facilitator? A breathworker is a professionally trained counselor who guides your breath in a way that enables the process to occur. S/he also guides and supports you through the variety of feelings, thoughts, and body sensations that you may experience during a session.
How many sessions should I do? Breathwork can be used for either short or long term counseling. We recommend one session per week. The purpose of this is to build a trusting relationship with your facilitator and to maintain that relationship frequently enough to realize and integrate the cumulative results. In most people’s experience, a relatively short-term commitment to the process brings long-term and life-transforming results. Often, after only 15 to 20 sessions, you will be able to start getting results from doing breathing sessions on your own. However, there will always be value in continuing sessions with a professional breathworker. You can also attend trainings and learn to trade breathwork sessions with other breathwork trainees.
How does breathwork relate to childbirth? Breathwork does not directly relate to childbirth, but if both partners are resolved with their own birth and family issues, they will be more able to give birth without complication and to be better parents. Since birth has a major impact on our lives, breathworkers tend to be advocates of gentle childbirth practices.
Why did you change the name from “rebirthing” to “breathwork”? Since the breathing process was about more than childbirth, the name rebirthing has always been a source of confusion. Breathworkers have used different names, such as “conscious breathing”, as far back as 1980. The term rebirthing has occasionally been used by other practitioners to describe completely different processes that do not even involve breathing. This took tragic proportions in 2001 when therapists in Colorado killed an 11-year-old girl while forcing her through a tunnel of blankets and pillows. These therapists called their process “rebirthing” even though it had no connection to rebirthing as it was commonly practiced. Rebirthing as a restrictive therapy, (forcing people through a birth canal or by sitting on people) has since been made illegal in a few states. Rebirthing as
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