
Health and fitness is a concern for many people and especially those looking to
lead a healthy and fulfilling business and personal lives.
Health is looked
at from different perspectives such as physical, mental, spiritual, and
emotional health. Meditation and mindfulness have grown in popularity in recent
years due to their usefulness in improving various aspects of human health.
We have seen
numerous practitioner centres being established to offer lessons and guidance
on how people can use meditation exercises to improve their well-being.
A search on
Amazon Books will highlight the publishing industry niche that has grown up
around meditation and mindfulness which is an indication of the important role
that they hold in the health and fitness spectrum in today's society.
However, there’s
a new kid on the block!
Breathwork has
been gaining popularity as a means through which individuals can improve their
well-being. Could it replace meditation and mindfulness?
Breathwork is a
collective term used to describe a variety of contemporary wellness practices.
These practices aim to influence the mental, physical, spiritual, and emotional
wellness of an individual through the conscious control of breathing.
Several forms of Breathwork
therapy currently exist. The main objective of any Breathwork therapists work
to improve the well-being of an individual through an improvement of the physical,
mental, emotional, and spiritual state of the individual by practice of various
therapeutic Breathwork techniques.
It is believed
that these techniques can be used to minimize anxiety, relieve chronic pain,
deal with anger issues, overcome depression, cure trauma and post-traumatic
stress, and solve the negative emotional impacts of physical illness.
Types of Breathwork
Re-birthing Breathwork:
This Breathwork
technique is also referred to as conscious energy breathing. It is considered
as a means through which individuals can release traumatic memories that have
been suppressed since childhood. Participants are usually asked to lie down on
their backs, relax, and engage in normal breathing. Through deep relaxation,
pent-up energy and subconscious issues are released.
Holotropic Breathwork:
The primary goal
of this exercise is to achieve the wholeness of body, mind, and spirit. It is
often conducted in groups with participants lying down and engaging in
breathing exercises. The session ends with participants sharing and discussing
the issues that they have discovered about themselves.
Clarity Breathwork:
Deals with any
issue that hinders the healthy and free flow of breath and energy. It is
founded on the belief that many people do not breathe properly or to their
maximum capacity. It, therefore, aims to enable people to breathe properly and
achieve mental clarity.
Where Breathwork differs
While Breathwork
and mediation aim to achieve similar results, they are different practices. In
meditation, a person focuses his or her mind on a specific thought, object, or
an activity such as breathing to achieve emotional calm or mental clarity.
Just like Breathwork,
it can also be used to reduce anxiety, stress, pain, and depression.
Mindfulness, on
the other hand, is the psychological process of focusing on the present. It can
be achieved through meditation and Breathwork.
All of these
practices differ individually but are complementary in various ways. The
increasing popularity of Breathwork as a self-help practice is, however, due to
the ability to apply the practice in both meditation and mindfulness.
If in doubt, consult your
doctor.
Mayfair, we care.