Marking one year since opening our breathwork studio
Twelve months ago, I opened the doors to my breathwork studio for the very first time. I didn’t know then how deeply this work would change not just the lives of the people who walked through that door, but my own.
The journey here started quietly, and like many of the previous steps on my path of trauma recovery, without fanfare. Back in November 2023, I found myself on retreat in Bali, unsure of what I was walking into, but open to the experience. It was there, held by the beautiful presence of Julie Parker, that I experienced my first full breathwork session. I’d known breath in the way we all do, casually, unconsciously. I’d felt the benefits of mindful breathing in yoga and meditation. But I had never been fully immersed in the power of the breath as its own practice.
That session changed everything.
I experienced emotional release, physical sensations I didn’t have language for, and what I can only describe as an out-of-body sense of truth. When I returned from that retreat, I held the memory close but didn’t immediately pursue breathwork again. It sat quietly in the background, like a seed waiting for the right season.
That season arrived in January 2024 when Lino Hola and the team at Mens Medicine, whose work I had long admired from afar, announced their Breathwork Facilitator Training. Without hesitation, I knew it was the next step. Even though I hadn’t done another breathwork session since Bali, there was a deep inner knowing that this practice belonged in my work and my life.
Over the course of the year, I trained with Mens Medicine and went through my own layered, personal journey. One that asked me to sit in discomfort, lean into trust, and stay present to my body. I began offering one-on-one sessions in June, and in July 2024, I opened the studio.
Since then, breathwork has become not just a tool I use with others but an essential part of my own trauma-informed self-care. It’s a practice that grounds me, heals me, and reminds me that healing doesn’t always need words. Sometimes, it just needs breath.
The Science Behind the Breath
While my experience is deeply personal, there’s a growing body of science that supports what breathwork practitioners around the world have known for centuries.
Intentional breath practices, particularly those that regulate the nervous system, can help reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and chronic stress. Breathwork has been shown to:
- Stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, shifting the body from ‘fight or flight’ into ‘rest and digest’.
- Lower cortisol levels helping to reduce stress and inflammation in the body.
- Increase emotional regulation, improving our capacity to feel and process difficult emotions without becoming overwhelmed.
- Improve heart rate variability (HRV), a key marker of resilience and nervous system health.
- Activate the default mode network, a region of the brain associated with introspection, insight, and self-awareness.
When combined with other therapeutic supports like coaching or counselling, breathwork becomes even more powerful. It allows the mind and body to speak to one another. We don’t just think about our healing, we feel it, move it, and breathe through it.
A Combined Approach with Louie
Bringing Louie, my certified therapy dog, into this work has added a whole new dimension. Together, we’ve supported hundreds of clients, offering spaces where healing can happen through softness, connection, and presence. Whether someone is curled up on a mat in the studio, breathing deeply with Louie by their side, or quietly petting him after a powerful session, what we’re doing here is about safety. About slowing down. About remembering that healing can be gentle.
Some clients come to heal. Some come to rest. Some come for both. The beauty of this combined approach is that there is no right way, only the way that feels right to you.
One Breath at a Time
As I reflect on the past year, I know this work will be part of me forever. Breathwork isn’t just something I offer, it’s something I live. Every day. It’s in the way I show up for myself, the way I honour my past, and the way I hold space for others.
Whether you’re brand new to the practice or returning to it after some time away, I encourage you to pause for a moment. Place a hand on your heart. Close your eyes if that feels safe for you. And take one deep breath.
That’s it.
Healing doesn’t need to be hard or dramatic or perfect. Sometimes, it begins with a single breath. And if you feel called, you’re always welcome to join Louie and I for a few more.
