7 Ways That Seven Minutes of Breathwork Can Change Your Life

I can pinpoint the seven minutes that changed my life forever for the better. It was the initial seven minutes of my first breathwork practice.

Those first seven minutes woke up something inside me and made me acknowledge a few deep inner truths I had been ignoring for months (even years!) beforehand. After that first session I had the courage to take one little step in the direction I knew I needed to go. And taking that step gave me even more courage to take each subsequent step and make even bigger changes in my life and business.

Some of you might be wondering if seven minutes of active breathing is really even enough to do much of anything. Maybe you’ve been in a group breathwork class and are used to the deeper medicine of a thirty minute practice - leading you to think that in order to have a deep and transformational experience you need a longer and more in-depth practice. But that’s absolutely not the case. 

There are so many benefits to even seven minutes of active breathing - especially when it’s done daily or weekly. 

7 ways that seven minutes of breathwork can change your life:

Breathwork quiets the brain in preparation for deeper work. 

Deep work of any kind (writing, developing, creating, understanding) requires attention and focus - two things our tech-heavy, skim-and-scan, modern thinking weakens over time. Seven minutes or more of focused breathing can settle your brain and release distracting thoughts - allowing you to sit down and focus without inner interruptions. This is the number one reason why I began all of the co-working and writing business groups I led with ten minutes of breathwork. It helped everyone shake off any stress or worries that their brain might have already taken a hold of that day and prepared their brain and body for an hour of deeper creative work.

Breathwork gives you an emotional outlet so you can look at your life/work with a clearer head. 

Let’s face it - we’re not machines, we’re human beings who happen to be living lives and maybe running businesses. And along with our humanness comes our feelings - lots of them. So even though I’m someone who 100% welcomes my emotional self into my business, I also know that feelings aren’t facts and sometimes my business is best served when I let my feelings have my full attention for a few minutes at the start of my day so that they don’t take over completely and run the show. Breathwork gives our feelings the attention they desire. Whether it’s five minutes or fourty-five minutes, breathwork will bring up the emotions that need full attention so that they can be witnessed, worked with, and then moved all the way through so we can get back to our work.

Breathwork helps you rewire your brain and change the way you think. 

Do any of these beliefs feel familiar to you?? 

“I could never start going to the gym, I have no idea how those machines work.”

“I could never start a podcast, I’m a terrible public speaker.”

“I could never make enough to save for retirement, I’m too afraid to ask for a raise / raise my prices.” 

Most of us already know that changing our actions starts with changing our thoughts and beliefs. And breathwork is one of my favorite ways to utilize our brain’s neuroplasticity and do some rewiring up there. You can even think of breathwork as another form of self-hypnosis. Done regularly, you can make huge strides in what you believe you’re capable of. I’ve seen clients use breathwork in this way to shift their beliefs around self-worth, boundaries, and what they’re truly capable of doing/becoming.

Breathwork can help you make tough decisions. 

Making decisions is often one of the hardest parts of life. It’s the number one thing that my breathwork and mentorship clients arrive to our sessions feeling all tied in knots about. Maybe their heart or intuition is pulling them in one direction while their brain or empirical data is pulling them in another direction. And while a good pro/con list is always an option, I find that it tends to keep us in a really heady analytical space. So as a good counterpoint, I always like to finish coaching calls with a bit of breathwork. Afterwards, clients report feeling more clear headed, sure of their decisions, and path forward.

Breathwork cuts through the mental noise.

Speaking of over analyzing - anytime I find myself thinking parts of my own business to death, I’ll lay down for a few minutes of breathwork to help break the cycle. After five or so minutes my brain chatter starts to quiet down and the topic doesn’t hold quite as much of a charge in my body. Even if the breathwork break doesn’t illuminate exactly what the problem is, it always cuts through the noise and allows me to contemplate in peace.

Breathwork supports brainstorming. 

While breathwork helps cut down anxious brain chatter, it doesn’t turn off the brain altogether. It quiets down the overprotective part of the brain so that the creative and problem-solving part of the brain can be let off its leash. Short bursts of breathwork can really help you in brainstorming your next creative project, world-changing idea, or piece of content. Nearly every great idea I’ve had in over the last five years has shown up during a breathwork session. 

Breathwork busts through writer's block and opens up the creative channel.

This is my all time favorite use of mini-breathwork. Anytime I’m looking at a blinking cursor on my laptop with a sense of dread, I stop what I’m doing (or not doing!) to lay down and breathe for a few songs. Every. Single. Time. I end up with a great idea or message that feels so on point I generally want to write about it before the playlist is even over. Many of the folks in the co-working groups I used to lead loved our group breathwork for this reason as well. During our time together they’d use the mini-breathwork as a means to connect to their creativity and then the quiet focus time to write blog posts, podcast episodes, and course content. 

So there you have it. If you needed a reason to try a shorter style breathwork practice, you now have seven! 

Want to try it yourself?

If you love music as much as I do and prefer to use songs as a timekeeper instead of a timer, I’ve made you a little playlist to use today for your mini-breathwork practice. 

Use the active breath for the first two songs and then rest with a passive breath for the last song.

Brand new to breathwork?

Here’s a short how-to video I made to teach you the practice. It’s quick, easy, and a great way to introduce yourself to a breathwork practice.

How to navigate anxiety during breathwork: Tips for a gentler practice

I recently got an email from someone asking for some help with breathwork - and as I was writing my response to them I realized how many of you would benefit from reading this too. So here’s the question and my response, in full. 

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Hi Amy!

I recently signed up for your breathwork course. I don’t have a lot of breathwork experience, but I’m looking forward to your class. 

I’ve tried small forms of breathwork during yin and kundalini yoga classes, and have had some anxiety creep up a little too far and have had to tap out. I think this would be really beneficial for me, so I want to try even if it might bring some stuff up again. 

Do you have any advice for how to handle these emotions in breathwork or how someone with anxiety can best benefit from a session like this? I’ll listen to my body, and do what’s best, but wanted to hear if you had any suggestions.

Thanks!

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Hello! And thanks for reaching out with this question - it's a super important one that I’m happy to answer. 

Right now I think most humans are dealing with some amount of anxiety.

Between living under an ever increasing authoritarian government, surviving a global pandemic, and witnessing multiple wars and human atrocities - it’s a traumatic time to be alive. 

If you've ever read up on trauma, you might know that trauma isn't a thing that happens to us, it's the resulting imprint (or excess energy) the body that wasn't able to fully discharge concluding the stressful event. * And we've all experienced trauma in our lives in one way or another. Some of us have experienced what folks call “big T trauma” (ex: war, major accidents, survivor of violence) while others have experienced lots of “little t trauma” (aka surviving in the world right now). 

I bring this up because a common reason why folks feel anxiety at the start of breathwork, is because the breath is a vehicle for that stored trauma energy to be released and discharged fully from the body. This doesn't always happen in every session, but it can and often does. I share all this because sometimes even having a framework of understanding of what is happening can help decrease anxiety - as a lot of anxiety is triggered by the unknown.

I'll also preface the rest of this email by saying that in situations like this, I think it can be a good idea to do a private session with a trained facilitator before joining a group class. In a private session the facilitator can offer you more individualized support and you can talk to each other through the breath practice and work through the anxiety together, in the moment.

While I'm going to share a few suggestions below for working with the anxiety when it arises, know that these ideas may or may not resonate with you and in the end. But giving them a try might be worth a shot.

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Tips for doing breathwork with anxiety:

Set up your space to feel as safe, secure, and grounded as possible before the practice begins.

Meaning, do whatever needs to be done to your physical space so that you feel a sense of safety which will unconsciously give your body more permission to let its guard down during the breathwork. Trying to both do the breathwork and be "on alert" will likely trigger anxiety.

This will look different for everyone, but if you’re practicing at home a few you could try are:

• Asking roommates or family members to go on a walk so that you can have the home to yourself

• Gathering lots of blankets to cuddle under and keep warm

• Locking your bedroom door

• Holding stones or items that make you feel safe and loved while doing the breathwork

While safety isn't something that can ever be promised, we can try our best to offer it to ourselves. If you’re joining an in-person group, the facilitator will most likely do their best to create a container of safety, which should include:

• Holding the group in a private, closed-door space

• Not take photos, videos, or any other non-consensual recording of the practice

• Explain the practice to the group and what participants might experience so there are no surprises

• Remind you that you have full autonomy during the practice to engage (or disengage!) with the breath as you need to

• Invite you to an connect to a person, place, or object that offers you a sense of regulation and safety, so that you can come back to this resource when you start feeling dysregulated

Imagine your anxiety as your inner child, and offer them words of comfort.

I've found in my own practice, when I'm feeling anxious or resistant or guarded and want to tap out of the breath pattern, it helps to identify that emotion with the lil kid inside me and then have a conversation with her. Yes, this means that I'll actually start talking out loud to myself/my lil kid while I'm laying down doing the breathwork.

I'll ask her questions like:

• What's bringing up this resistance?

• How can I help you feel safe right now?

Or I'll offer her reassurance with statements like:

• You're allowed to be unsure right now.

• I'm right here and not going anywhere.

• You can do hard things.

We each have inner kids inside us, and they all have different fears and wants and needs. Even if you spend half of the session having a conversation with your inner kid instead of actually breathing, you'll still be deeply supporting and healing yourself.

Reorient yourself as needed.

Some folks like to have their eyes covered during breathwork to help quiet the thinking mind and really drop into the body. But for other folks, they prefer to be able to reorient themselves to their space when their thinking brain starts to release control to the unconscious mind.

Reorienting ourselves to our space can look like:

• Using our hands to touch the floor or bed we're lying on

• Touching our bodies or items that we've brought to our practice

• Opening our eyes during the breath practice to remind ourselves where we are

Or any other practice that reminds us what we're doing and that we are choosing to be here.

Give your anxiety an outlet through your voice.

While this isn't always the case, sometimes I find that the experience of anxiety during breathwork is the result of the push/pull friction created by our desire to release pent up energy and our fear of what might happen when we let our "wildness" go free.

For those of us who use control as a sense of security (a very common and normal coping response to trauma of any kind), letting go of that control with the breath can bring up a big wave of anxiety. This is something I'm personally very familiar with and I've found that what helps me a lot is releasing physical energy with my voice through a yell/scream/shouting an explative at the top of my lungs. This is a technique that I was physically incapable of doing for the first handful of breathwork sessions I participated in, but over time I gathered the courage and will to offer myself this release and now it's a tool I rely on every time I breathe.

Lastly, and most importantly, be compassionate with yourself.

The suggestions above might help, and yet your anxiety might still demand you to end your practice early. That's ok and nothing to beat yourself up about. I deeply believe that breathwork offers us exactly what we need in that moment. Sometimes that's healing past trauma, sometimes it's envisioning a better future for ourselves, and sometimes it's shining a light on where we need additional support in our mental, emotional, or physical health. If your anxiety really wants to be present during the practice it will be, and maybe that's not a terrible thing.

*Here is an affiliate link to the clinic’s Bookshop shelf with books we recommend reading to learn more about how trauma is stored in the body.

What kind of bodywork do I need? A guide to our massage offerings.

You know you need bodywork - but where do you even start?

Maybe your shoulders have turned into bricks. Maybe you’re recovering from recent surgery. Or maybe you’re just ready to feel more like yourself again. You hop onto our booking site, ready to schedule some time to take care of yourself… and then you see the long list of appointment offerings: Neuromuscular Therapy, Craniosacral Therapy, Manual Lymphatic Drainage, Ayurvedic Detox Massage - wait, which one is right for you?

At Constellation Acupuncture & Healing Arts, we offer a wide range of massage and bodywork because different bodies - and different seasons of life - need different kinds of care. But we also know it can be overwhelming to choose when you’re not sure what each session involves.

Here’s a simple guide to help you choose the right session for your needs.

If you're in pain: Try a Neuromuscular Therapy & Myofascial Release session

You don’t have to be an athlete to need deep, targeted (read: not full-body) work. Whether you’re recovering from an injury, dealing with chronic pain, or carrying tension that just won’t quit, Neuromuscular Therapy sessions offer slow, precise techniques that release the fascia (the connective tissue around your muscles) and help you feel like you’re living in your body again - not fighting against it.

These sessions are great for:

• Chronic pain

• Acute injury

• Postural tension

• Scar tissue

• Limited mobility

If you need deep rest and nervous system support: Try Craniosacral Therapy

Not all healing has to feel intense. Craniosacral Therapy is an incredibly gentle, hands-on, fully-clothed technique that works with your craniosacral system (yep, that’s your skull, spine, and cerebrospinal fluid) to downshift your nervous system and allow your body to unwind stored tension - physically and emotionally.

We offer Craniosacral Therapy on its own or in combination as a Cupping + Cranio session for a dynamic duo of restful healing. Many of our clients describe these sessions as a reset for their entire system.

Craniosacral is great for:

• Stress and anxiety

• Nervous system regulation

• Insomnia

• Emotional overwhelm

• Post concussion/TBI (traumatic brain injury) support

If you’re feeling puffy, swollen, or are recently post-op: Try Manual Lymphatic Drainage

Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD) is a gentle technique that stimulates your lymphatic system - a key part of your immune and detox pathways. It can be especially helpful if you’re recovering from surgery, experiencing hormonal swelling, or simply feel like your system is a bit “sluggish.” 

These sessions are so gentle they are often recommended by medical doctors in the immediate aftercare from surgery, without the typical waiting period for hands-on bodywork.

MLD is great for:

• Post-surgical healing, including immediately after top surgery or mastectomy

• Bloating and fluid retention

• Supporting immunity

• Chronic inflammation

If you want to zone out and feel better after: Try a Relaxation or Deep Tissue Massage

These sessions are customized, full-body massages that utilize Swedish or Deep Tissue techniques based on what you and your practitioner decide is most needed that day. If you like gentler pressure, choose a Relaxation Massage, and if you prefer deeper pressure, choose a Deep Tissue Massage. These sessions are incredibly relaxing while still therapeutic.

Bonus - our Relaxation and Deep Tissue massages also can include Fire Cupping when your practitioner finds it appropriate for your condition at no extra charge!

Relaxation and Deep Tissue massages are great for:

• General stress or mild pain relief

• People new to massage

• Anyone who wants a well-rounded session

• Anyone who sits all day at work and suffers from desk-related aches and pains

If you're curious about Ayurvedic healing or want to strongly boost your circulation: Try an Ayurvedic Detox Massage

Rooted in the Ayurvedic Indian system of medicine, our Ayurvedic Detox Massage uses substantial amounts of oil tailored to your constitution. Through vigorous and enlivening strokes it supports increased blood flow, lymphatic circulation, and tissue nourishment to your system. These sessions stimulate your internal organs, immune function, and promote skin health.

Ayurvedic Detox Massages are great for:

• Boosting your immune system 

• Supporting seasonal transitions

• Bringing hydration and luster to your skin

• Whole body detoxification

What about Fire Cupping?

At our clinic, the Chinese medicine technique of Fire Cupping is a cornerstone of many of our treatments. All of our practitioners (both acupuncturists and massage therapists alike!) are trained in fire cupping and will add it to a session when it’s appropriate for the patient and condition. 

We also offer a few cupping specific appointment types - like our Cupping Massages - that blend fire cups and traditional massage techniques into 60-min of whole body bliss. If you’re short on time, our 25-min Quick Cupping sessions are perfect for established patients who just need a quick cupping tune-up. And as we mentioned above, Cupping + Cranio seamlessly blends the fascia support of gentle cupping with the deep rest of Craniosacral. 

Fire Cupping is great for:

• Improving athletic performance and recovery

• Generalized aches and pains

• Whole body detoxification

• Releasing tight fascia
  
  

All Sessions Are Trauma-Informed & Gender-Affirming

You won’t find a “gender-affirming massage” on our services menu - because all of our sessions are offered in a way that honors your body, your story, and your identity. Our practitioners are trained to create a space where queer, trans, and nonbinary folks feel safe, respected, and centered. We believe healing touch should never require you to explain or justify who you are.

Still not sure?

It’s okay! You can always book a 15-min free consultation and talk directly to one of our practitioners to help you decide. 

We all need more hands-on care right now. Our clinic is happy to be here and provide the care you need.

Ready to book?

*The information provided on this site is intended for your general knowledge only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment for specific medical conditions. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease without consulting with a qualified healthcare provider. Please consult your healthcare provider with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your condition.

Two Cooling Drink Recipes for the Summer Time

What do you reach for on a hot summer day to quench your thirst?  Ice water, iced tea, iced or frozen something?  If you said yes, you are in good company.  We’ve been brought up to believe that iced beverages are the best thing to cool our bodies in the summer heat.

But let’s look at what actually happens to our bodies when we ingest cold/frozen liquids or foods:

• Normally your body ingests food/fluids and begins the process of extracting nutrition from them, which is, long story short, how we get the energy to live our lives.  All of this needs to happen at approximately 98.6 degrees for the myriad of digestive processes to occur in a healthy manner.

• When you drink cold liquids, your body’s first response is to expend energy to bring the cold liquid up to a useable temperature (i.e. body temperature.)  After your body has warmed things back up, then it can begin the digestion process. This extra energy that is expended to warm up our drinks means our digestive system has to work harder, and that’s rarely a good thing.  So, while drinking ice water can make you feel refreshed in the short term, it actually serves to drain energy in the long run.

• Drinking cold beverages/eating frozen foods causes your blood vessels to shrink (cold temperature causes contraction), limiting blood circulation and leading to cramps and overall body discomfort.

• Drinking cold liquids during or after a meal creates excess mucus in your body, which can lead to a decrease in immune system function, making it easier to catch a cold or other illness.  Just as a cold winter's day can give you a runny nose and block up your sinuses, iced liquids creates the same bodily response.

Some folks are of the opinion that drinking ice water is beneficial because it burns more calories. Chinese medicine argues that we do not want to make our digestive system work harder; instead we should make things as easy as possible for our gut!  When our digestive system works efficiently, our body has extra energy to keep all our systems functioning optimally.

Drinking room temperature or warm liquids/food:

• Leads to faster and increased hydration.

• Natural digestive enzymes are stimulated and therefore your digestion is enhanced.

• Food breaks down more easily.

• Your bowel movements are better (warm water with lemon in the morning is great for this).

• Warm liquids help to purify your blood and increases your body’s natural detoxification processes via your skin, kidneys, and lymphatic system.

• Switching to warm water has been found to reduce sugar cravings, helping you maintain a healthy weight.

But, you may ask, how in the world can I stay cool in the heat without ice or a cold drink? Chinese medicine has some great tools to help!

Chinese food therapy recognizes that certain foods have an overall cooling effect on our bodies, while other foods have a warming effect. Believe it or not, these cooling foods will have a cooling effect when they are eaten warm or room temperature. It is common in China during the steamy days of summer to see people drinking hot soup (I know!) made with winter melon, white radish, mung beans, and other cooling ingredients. They know that despite eating something which is hot in temperature, it will be energetically cooling to their entire system.

Here are two delicious drinks, made with cooling vegetables and fruits which will provide cooling energy to your body, replenish electrolytes, and quench your thirst. It is best to drink them at room temperature to receive the full cooling benefits.

Cooling Cucumber Elixir

Refreshing cucumber is the star of this drink. We make this the whole summer long and drink about 3-5 cups of it a day!

Ingredients:

1 large cucumber
1 lemon
2 tbsp goji berries
6 stalks celery
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint (peppermint or spearmint) leaves and/or 2 tbsp chopped fresh sage leaves
8-12 c water
Optional: ½ tsp chia seeds

Instructions:

1. Cut cucumber and lemon into round slices (DO NOT PEEL, and make sure to wash before cutting!)  

2. Chop the celery.  

3. Add 8-12 cups of freshly filtered water to a pitcher or jar.  Add cucumber, lemon, goji berries, and celery to water.

4. After chopping the sage and/or mint leaves, bruise the leaves (rub the leaves back and forth in palms of your hands for 10 seconds) to release the essential oils, then add to the water.

5. Let sit, covered, on counter top for 6-8 hours, or overnight.  Strain and compost the vegetable matter.

6. Refrigerate the liquid.  Each morning, pour out the amount you will want to consume for the day and let it warm up to room temperature.  Add chia seeds to your daily drink if you’d like an additional cooling boost!

7. Note that nothing in this recipe needs to be exact.  Use as much or as little water as you like. If you feel like adding more or less cucumber or anything else, go ahead!

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Watermelon Sports Drink

So delicious and much healthier than sports drinks that have artificial colors, flavors, and tons of sugar.

Ingredients:

3 large slices of ripe watermelon (seeded or seedless), or enough to produce 1 1/2 c juice
1 lemon
1/4 tsp sea salt (I like pink Himalayan sea salt because it contains a variety of naturally found minerals.)
1 1/2 c filtered water

Instructions:

1. Cut the watermelon and discard the peel. Don't worry about removing the seeds at this point!

2. Place the watermelon chunks in a blender and blend at the lowest speed. The point is to liquefy the watermelon, but leave the seeds intact so that they can be separated using a strainer.

3. Pour the watermelon juice through a mesh strainer and into a liquid measuring cup. I used about 1 1/2 c juice for my drink. Discard the seeds and pulp that is strained out.

4. Add the salt and juice of 1 lemon.

5. Stir thoroughly and add to a 20 oz water bottle. Fill remaining space with filtered water and consume.

Stay cool, and enjoy your summer!

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*The information provided on this site is intended for your general knowledge only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment for specific medical conditions. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease without consulting with a qualified healthcare provider. Please consult your healthcare provider with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your condition.