Breathe Easy: The Truth About Breathwork and Its Quiet Power

In recent times, breathwork has gained significant attention online, often accompanied by intense images of people sobbing, shaking, or having emotional outbursts on yoga mats. While these dramatic portrayals can be genuine experiences, they only represent a small fraction of what breathwork truly offers. For most people, breathwork is not about having a breakdown or a breakthrough. It’s about gently coming home to yourself.

As a calming and empowering practice, breathwork can help you regulate your nervous system, reconnect with your body, and develop a deeper awareness of your inner landscape. And the best part? You don’t need to “lose control” to feel its benefits.

What Is Breathwork, Really?

At its core, breathwork refers to conscious, intentional breathing. It’s the practice of guiding your breath to support mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Unlike our everyday automatic breathing. which is often shallow and ineffective, breathwork invites us to slow down and pay attention to each inhale and exhale.

There are many different styles and techniques, ranging from gentle and restorative to more dynamic and energising. Some people may associate breathwork with intense emotional releases, but most practices are actually deeply soothing, supportive, and grounding.

Dispelling the Myths

You don’t have to cry, shake, or relive trauma to get the benefits of breathwork.

Yes, some advanced or cathartic breathwork techniques can stir deep emotions, and yes, those practices can be powerful in the right context with the right support. But for most people, especially beginners or those simply looking to manage stress and anxiety, breathwork is a gentle and nourishing practice. It’s about regulation, not dysregulation.

Breathwork is not about pushing yourself to the edge; it’s about creating space within. In fact, many breathwork sessions feel more like a moving meditation or a slow dance with your breath.

How Breathwork Helps

When you consciously control your breath, you send a powerful message to your body: You’re safe. This shifts your nervous system out of “fight, flight or freeze” mode and into “rest and digest”, the parasympathetic state where healing and calm can occur.

🌿 Reduces Stress and Anxiety

Slow, diaphragmatic breathing helps lower cortisol (the stress hormone) and calms the mind. Even a few minutes a day can reduce anxious thoughts and physical tension.

💓 Lowers Heart Rate and Blood Pressure

Breathwork has been shown to improve cardiovascular function by slowing the heart rate and reducing blood pressure. It's like giving your heart a well-deserved break.

🧘‍♀️ Reconnects You to Your Body

Many of us live in our heads all day, disconnected from our physical selves. Breathwork invites you back into your body with gentleness, helping you become aware of sensations, emotions, and energy.

🌬️ Improves Focus and Clarity

By practising mindful breathing, you increase oxygen flow to the brain and train your attention, making it easier to focus and think clearly.

😴 Supports Better Sleep

A calm nervous system and a quieter mind set the stage for deeper, more restful sleep. Breathwork before bed can help you unwind and drift off more easily.

💫 Builds Emotional Resilience

With regular practice, breathwork helps you respond to life’s ups and downs with more grace and less reactivity. It strengthens your inner anchor.

A Simple Breathwork Practice to Try

You don’t need fancy techniques to get started. Simply 5 minutes of quiet, where you can focus on yourself, is all you need. I love this box breathing technique and use it regularly, first thing in the morning to start my day off calm and focused and at the end of the day to help me calm my mind and drift off into a peaceful sleep.

Box Breathing (also called Four-Square Breathing)

1. Inhale for 4 counts

2. Hold the breath for 4 counts

3. Exhale for 4 counts

4. Hold at the bottom of the breath for 4 counts

5. Repeat for 3–5 minutes

   
   

This technique is used by everyone from meditation teachers to Navy SEALs. It’s incredibly grounding and can help calm racing thoughts or anxious feelings quickly.

Making Breathwork Part of Your Daily Routine

Like any wellness tool, breathwork works best when practised consistently, not just when you’re feeling stressed. It's best to practice breathwork first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Just 2 to 3 minutes at the beginning and end of each day can make a huge difference to your mental health and well-being. You can try setting your alarm 5 minutes earlier in the morning, having a note on your bedside table to remind you, or you can download apps such as Insight Timer and follow along with a guided breathwork practice.

Breathwork as a Path to Inner Peace

At its heart, breathwork is a doorway, one that leads you gently inward. It’s not about fixing or forcing. It’s about noticing. Listening. Softening. From 1 July 2025, I will be offering Breathwork Meditations at the Serenity Sanctuary.

In a world that glorifies doing and striving, breathwork invites you to simply be.

So if you’ve been curious about breathwork but wary of the emotional extremes shown on social media, know this: it doesn’t have to be dramatic to be effective. In fact, the quietest practices are often the most powerful.

Breath by breath, you can learn to calm your nervous system, reconnect to your body, and anchor yourself in the present moment. It’s a gift you carry within you, always—your breath is your most faithful companion.

Want to experience the calming power of breathwork for yourself? Join me for a gentle guided session where we’ll explore breath as a tool for healing, grounding, and self-connection. No tears, no overwhelm—just a quiet return to yourself.

Book Here

If you are not able to make an in-person session and would be interested in a live, online breathwork practice, please reach out to Wendy at wendy@thespirituallycurious.com.au