Before I share some tips, you might be wondering: What is integrative breathwork? Or breathwork at all? Breathwork is a healing modality that is gaining more mainstream popularity, but can still be mystifying – especially since breathing is already something we’re always doing, so knowing what makes something “breathwork” can be confusing.

To me, breathwork is simply bringing conscious attention to the way that you’re breathing, and trying out different methods of breathing to meet the moment you find yourself in. Integrative breathwork is one of many types of breathwork, and it’s focused on noticing, expressing, and releasing built up or unconscious tension, energy, and emotions that are stored in the body. 

While breathwork has only recently started gaining popular awareness for some (thanks in part to books like Breath by James Nestor), it’s generally thought of as being part of a large body of awareness practices that date back thousands of years in the East and South Asian cultures of China, Japan, India, and Tibet. However many cultures, especially the intact Indigenous cultures around the world, have developed philosophies and relationships to breathing unique to their cultural and geographical setting (which often get lost in the commodification of wellness). 

The breathwork techniques that are most well-known right now involve intentionally controlling how we breathe, and each one revolves around how much or little to breathe, how fast or slow to breathe, and how much to hold the breath or let it go. 

Breathwork is important for so many reasons. It can reduce anxiety and stress, regulate our nervous system and emotions, and build our resilience for challenging situations. Many of us typically aren’t breathing at even one third of the capacity of our lungs, and when we minimize or suppress our breathing, it’s harder to recognize what’s happening in our bodies and hearts.