The Breath Letter - #20
Dear Subscriber First Name,
“There are no right answers, only better questions.”
A month with ups and downs…full spectrum questions, physical injuries and operating completely in the unknown.
Perceived as opportunities or met with outright resistance.
Maybe both is simply what it is all about.
So…enjoy!
P.S. not the entire letter won’t be as abstract ;)
P.P.S I’m considering running a “Breathwork and Somatics” retreat in October in Portugal. Would you be up for that?
The Breath
Rising and Falling
Let’s do some activation practice, though it can help you relax.
I’d highly encourage full use of body and sound.
Instructions:
Stand on both feet and find your ground.
Breathe deeply and gently through the nose.
The when you feel like you’ve settled your system, raise both your hands as you deeply inhale until you’re fully stretched out.
When you reach the top, fully exhale and let the body and hands drop all the way down to the floor.
From there you breathe in, raising the hands again and drop again etc.
Repeat at least 10x, making the movements bigger and allowing for more sound to come through
The Insights
What if trauma was not to be resolved…
I was introduced to an episode on “The Emerald” podcast (see “The Content”) that kinda rocked my world big time. It genuinely made me question my entire approach and philosophy on why and how to help people which has now been about 6 years in the making.
I’m not sure I fully agree with the following but I ended up writing down the following reflection:
What if trauma (feeling ongoingly unsafe in certain contexts) is not be resolved by going "back to safety".
What if it serves as an ongoing reminder of the unsafety/unknown we live in, that we aren't in control and that it's not about us.
What is it’s a reminder of that we are governed by greater powers and that all we have to do with trauma is be grateful to be alive, humble, become more wild and embrace the wild and make our offerings to the wild in the hope that it will be gentle with us.
It didn't happen to us, it happened.
Again, I’m not sure I agree with the above, and it might be a hard pill to swallow, but it was a provocative thought experiment to say the least.
Curious to hear any your thoughts.
3 forms of safety
As I was reflecting more on what it means to be (emotionally) safe, I think there are roughly 3 ways.
Equally effective but only one allows you to be fully alive.
- Control your environment
- Harden up
- Learn how to be with any sensation
The Content
The Emerald: The Revolution will not be Psychologised (Part 1)
So this is the culprit… An absolute masterpiece when it comes to the listening experience.
The use of voice and music, the rhythm, the conviction to truth.
Regardless of the comments above, there is so much in the podcast that deeply resonated.
The offering, it not being solely about us, not dismissing that which you do not understand, the anima, the breath of life.
The Emerald: The Revolution will not be Psychologised (Part 2)
And yes, there is a part 2…Just listen.
Video course - Breathlife - £75
Yes, yes, I know. But I genuinely believe it’s a good course.
20 videos covering:
- The science behind breathwork and the nervous system
- Relaxation and stress management practices
- Activating exercises that give you an energy boost
- Techniques to improve breath awareness, public speaking and EQ
- Videos ranging between 5min - 15min+ for every moment of day
All recorded from the jungle, so bird sounds included.
The Experiences
28th of February @ Bless Warehouse - Clapton - Breathwork + free card deck!
A stunning, homely, venue in which we have loads of space to work with.
A nice and intimate session with loads of individual attention.
Also comes with a free card deck!
21st of March @ SOMA hOMe - Breathwork Class
My regular Breathwork Odyssey session in collaboration with The Psychedelic Society.
An evening full of connected breathing, movement and music!
Perfect for those who want feel good in bigger groups.
Tickets here
22nd of March @ Soulstice - Primrose Hill - Breathwork session
Such a wonderful venue and perfect for those who live in West-London.
This small studio (max. 8 people), has a great feel and vibe to it all. Like a little safety cave to explore what wants to come alive
Tickets here
28th of March @ SOMA hOme - Breathwork & Somatic Release
Very happy to be having these sessions up and running!
Perfect for those who have some more experience or want to dive a little deeper.
We’ll have 2.5hrs for this session giving us time for more somatic practices and interaction.
At the heart of this session will be exploration, experimentation and the tension between the known and unknown; safety and resistance. Using the body as our entry point.
Tickets here
The Micropractice
Put on some calm, spacy music and walk through your house.
Whenever something grabs your attention start to deeply explore the texture using touch.
Describe whatever it is you feel in as many descriptive words as possible.
