Weekly Body-Mind-Breath Classes

Drop-in AND Online

Mondays 10am-12pm Canaries/London timezone

Breathe Deep is a weekly global gathering to connect via breath. It is a gentle practice suitable for everyone, focusing on the deeply relaxing and restorative rhythm of breath to activate the parasympathetic system and enable the body to regenerate from stress, training, sickness or injury, to face life’s challenges with calmness and courage, and encourage the mind to settle into its natural still vastness.

Whether you are a freediver looking for a regular complementary dry practice to help you manage mind, nervous system and breathhold, with one of the world’s deepest female freedivers…

Or whether you have zero intention of going in the water but are curious about the potential of integrated body-mind-breath-work with someone with deep experience of mastering the body-mind connection for non-reaction in highly stressful situations…

This practice also supports certain physical conditions such as high blood pressure, asthma, insomnia and any stress-related condition. And on the mental level conscious breath is the most direct and practical tool to help with anxiety, panic attacks, depression, fear, self-doubt or any other limiting or negative pattern that is causing you distress and holding you back in life.

Breathe Deep is an open, supportive and fun environment where everyone is welcome.

La Palma community and visitors : Drop-in

Classes are weekly on Monday mornings in Puntagorda in La Palma. Everyone is welcome to join, although spaces are very limited. For drop-in information and to confirm your place, please join my Breathe Deep Whatsapp community at least 24 hours before the class you wish to join, or send me an email via my contact page. You can either pay via the online link below or in person before class.

Global COMMUNITY : online

For the global community interested in joining us remotely, please sign up below at least 24 hours before the class you wish you join (ie before 10am on Sunday, Canaries time), in order to receive the access link to the class. I ask that all global members keep their connection on mute until invited to share to prevent distraction for everyone during practice.

ABOUT THE PRACTICE

I have been practicing and teaching the powerful breathwork of Kundalini yoga since the early 2000’s, and it was this that brought me to the deep breath discipline of freediving. Later I studied Classical Pranayama with one of the great modern Indian masters and my classes are a unique blend of these three paths which I have woven together and have been teaching and refining for many years.

The secret to breathwork is that through correct deep, slow and rhythmic breathing we are able to target our autonomous nervous system - the part of us that directly determines whether we go into panic and fight or flight (sympathetic response), or remain calm and able to think and respond clearly and appropriately (parasympathetic response), in stress situations.

THE WARM-UP
We warm up and our spine and breathing muscles and cleanse our blood with energetic breathing to begin each practice. Even though this is an activating practice, the strong gaseous exchange (a filling up with oxygen, and a cleansing out of carbon dioxide) is the start of balancing our nervous system to leave us feeling deeply calm and relaxed.

CORRECT LONG DEEP BREATHING
In each class we spend time correcting years of shallow, unconscious breathing - to deepen the inhale and lengthen the exhale. In order to do this we learn about our own breathing apparatus - of course the lungs, diaphragm and intercostal (rib cage) muscles, but also our throat, the complex abdominal muscles, and deep into our pelvic floor.

VAGUS NERVE ACTIVATION
Correct technique, and slower, deeper breathing is then supported by rhythm, both between the inhale and the exhale, and with breathhold. Various ‘pranayams’ (exercises) are used to either awaken our energy and create heat within the the body and alertness in the mind (without feeling stressed), or to calm, cool and relax us, to help us switch off. Targeted exercises can help to balance our moods, regulate our body in the extremes of summer and winter, and overcome extreme tendencies, such as lethargy and depression, or over-stimulation, stress and anxiety.

PARASYMPATHETIC RESPONSE
The result of prolonged practice is that the parasympathetic response (also known as our rest and digest mode) gets switched on, and the entire system relaxes. It is only when we are in our parasympathetic mode that all of our other autonomous functions can work properly - such as digestion, hormones, sleep patterns, reproductive system, and our response to the world around us. We take time to bathe in this deeply relaxed state in savasana, allowing time for the body to integrate the practice, and for the new rhythm of the breath to settle deeply into our cellular and muscular memory.

PLAYTIME
In this state I will guide you through a series of simple, short and playful breathholds and breathing phases, which are designed to adapt the body to increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the blood - which is what triggers the urge to breathe (NOT a lack of oxygen - you will still be 95-98% saturated with oxygen when you get the first impulse to breathe again, so you are TOTALLY safe). Everyone works at their own level and there should not be any stress - it is an opportunity to observe how we react when the urge arises… can we become the observer to something that feels uncomfortable but we know is safe…? Finally, you are invited to try a longer breathhold, and, who knows, you might just surprise yourself….

Frequently Asked Questions

I have asthma - is this class safe for me? Can it help me?

Asthma can be a frightening medical condition - our breath is our most vital connection to life, and feeling like you can’t breathe is scary. An asthma attack is when the airways tighten or contract and don’t allow a person to exhale properly. Any kind of fear causes the breath to become shorter and more shallow, so fear of an asthma attack can feel doubly awful. Learning to slow down and deepen our breathing especially in stressful situations, can dramatically change our stress levels. Understanding how to step back from the panic of an attack, and slow the breath and calm the mind, gives people a sense of control and agency, in what might otherwise feel like a highly threatening, potentially life or death situation. I guide everyone to trust their own body and observe how they are feeling, and will never encourage anyone to push themselves. I wish to support asthma patients or anyone suffering from breathing problems (either physical or through anxiety) to experience their breath, and their own capacity to breathe deeply, freely and calmly.