All posts by : Ankit Singh

In September, ABA member Joshua Alexander attended New Zealand’s annual Breathwork conference, set among the rolling mountains of the Coromandel Coast, near Hot Water Beach.

Each day commenced with a group breath, followed by a series of breath related workshops. The evenings were by candlelight, with amazing food and conscious conversations. One of the highlights for Joshua was that natural landscape, in particular, the labyrinth set among the valley’s forest floor (pictured). It became a space to process, ground and connect with the energy of the land.

New Zealand’s Breathwork community invites Australia’s Breathwork community to come across the ditch and join future Breathwork events. That invitation is, of course, reciprocated to NZ brothers and sisters too.

The New Zealand Breathwork community had this to report:

“Our weekend live-in Conference, Friday 13th to Sunday 15th September 2019, was a time of connecting, breathing, sharing and learning at beautiful Te Moata Retreat Centre in Tairua, Coromandel, New Zealand.

Practitioners and interested others came from all over New Zealand and an Australian Breathworker (Joshua Wrest) came all the way from Canberra, Australia.”

If you are visiting New Zealand and would like to contact the Breathwork community:
Email –  breathworkersnzab@gmail.com

Breathwork is alive and well in Tasmania with Cindy Aulby being the lone voice for Breathwork for many years.
Over the past few years Cindy has been training a new generation of Practitioners and now has decided to step back and return to her personal practice with Breathwork sessions.

This is what Cindy writes about her Training experience:

“The Journey to the Heart Breathwork Training has now come to an end in Tasmania. It was an absolute privilege to teach the course, and I take my hat off to trainers all around the country and the very hard work they do to teach – it’s a massive task and a mighty commitment!

We celebrate six graduates of the Professional Training in Breathwork and Body Centred Counselling. Shouting out the wonderful work and stellar performance of Juliet Chapman, Ebony Prins, Leah Musik, Andrew Doube, Ninna Millikin all in Hobart, and Jenny O’Bryan who now lives and works in Melbourne. These students completed the two year training and have my heartfelt and proud recommendation as excellent Breathwork Professionals.

I’m incredibly grateful to the ABA and the community of professionals we represent – the community of trainers have been so very generous in supporting me and each other. I’m now focusing back to one to one sessions, and supervising students and practitioners, and I’m very happy to support emerging trainers to share the love and wisdom I have received!  Cindy Aulby”

The ABA is grateful for Cindy’s work and her past tenure on the committee in various roles including most recently Madam Poobah President 2016 – 2019:) We love her and appreciate her contribution to the community with her Training and graduates.

In March, right at the moment attention was brought to the breath through COVID-19, there was a Breathwork Summit.

The Shift Network live event aired March 23–27, 2020 which was hosted by Jim Morningstar and Jessica Dibb, two well know Breathwork Trainers in the field.

The Shift Network’s groundbreaking Breathwork Summit revealed the science, art, and power of full-spectrum breathing… with our extraordinary speakers sharing simple, yet deep breathwork practices to move you from stress, anxiety, fatigue, or depletion into easeful states infused with vitality, relaxed alertness, awakened consciousness, and connection with others and with life.

If you did not register the FREE live event you can purchase the Breathwork Wisdom Collection 2020 includes lifetime access to every recording and transcript from each session of the Breathwork Summit series here

In March one of the elders of Breathwork in Australia, Ahrara Bhakti passed on Ahrara Bhakti has an honoured place in the ABA Breathwork lineage.

Here are some words from Mirabai Rose:

“It is with sadness that I inform you that Ahrara Bhakti passed from our world last week. Finally in the dreaming, in rest and at peace.
Bhakti was one of the first Breathwork Trainers in Australia and birthed many practitioners/trainers who went on to form their own schools and traditions in Breathwork. We honour Bhakti as a teacher, mentor and friend.
Bhakti was surrounded by family in the precious days before her final breath and was ready to pass over. I only have one photo of Bhakti which was taken only a few years ago. I am sure many of you have your own earlier memories and shared times together with her that you may like to share too. I am personally SO grateful for the support and mentoring, and the kindness, that Bhakti gave me during intense kundalini times and my own awakening; as well as breathwork practice.
I will continue to pass forward, with love.
With loving breath, Mirabai”

Everyone in the ABA acknowledges the great contribution that Bhakti made to Breathwork and wishes her friends and family great peace and love at this time.

World Breathing Day was celebrated on 11 April and is part of an initiative of the International Breathwork Association and their IBF UNECOSOC (United Nations Economic and Social) special consultative status that ties into the UN Goal Development Goals. World Breathing Day is one activity  they need to demonstrate, provide evidence for and be active in doing in the field to maintain that status. The three projects that the IBF funds are:

• Conscious Breathing in Schools
• World Breathing Day
• Conscious Breathing Trauma Recovery (Africa)

This years World Breathing Day hosted a number of speakers online along with practitioners worldwide hosting Breathing events. You are invited to watch and listen to the videos of the speakers below that interest you:

Breathe to be free. It’s a kind of Magic. – Geert De Vleminck

Conscious Breathwork – Tool for personal transformation and spiritual growth – Heinz Gerd Lange

Breathing Awakened Somatic, Emotional, Cognitive, and Spiritual Intelligence for … – Jessica Dibb

Respiración Consciente – Maria Alejandra Chacin Herbert

Breathe better – Live better — Silke Modersohn

Breathing for Grounding. Breathwork session – Ghislaine Bouskila

Interview with Brigitte Martin Powell by Viola Edward

Breathing together to create the new world – Rabia Hayek

Breathing for the new world – Veronique Batter

Conscious Breathing for Trauma Recovery,… tool for stress management – Brigitte Martin Powell

Learning to feel with “Essence of Breath” – Annie Langlois

Interview with Omar Chtioui by Viola Edward

Breathwork & Anxiety (with a corona bonus!) – Pippa Wheble

Meet2Breathe – Alicia Velazquez Berumen

Breathwork Trainings Central West Campus delivers Breathwork Training in 8 day modules. In October, students in the Central West completed an 8 day Level 1.1 Breath Awareness retreat.

Had CoVid not happened, this Spring would have seen the students graduate this level. This level will now be completed in Autumn 2021.

ABA Endorsed Trainer, Ann Harrison has been delivering Breathwork trainings twice a year in autumn and spring retreat training format for the past few years.  The 6 modules of Breathwork practitioner training completed Spring 2019. This Spring was the beginning of a new cycle.This is what Ann had to say about the Spring Training:

“I like to run trainings over 8 days, because  that allows a gentle deepening of the process, and at the same time gives the participants time out to devote to themselves.

It is always humbling to be supporting the Breathwork process, and now I have discovered another enriching aspect for me as a trainer – the Student Practicum, the mentoring of a student into their own Breathwork practice.”

Ann was humbled indeed to read what one of the students in this Spring trainings, a Breathwork practitioner herself wrote:

“Ann Harrison is a master Breathwork trainer. She guides with astounding clarity and compassion, always encouraging participants to access the strength and wisdom of their own inner process. She has a deep understanding of psyche and process, and guides participants to deep reservoirs of insight and assimilation. Her practices are simple, and because of their simplicity they become powerful everyday tools for participants. This training is powerful.”

If you would like to know more about Breathwork training with Ann you can contact her through the Breathwork Trainings website.

Looking for a Breathwork trainer in your area? You can get to know all of the ABA Endorsed Trainers here

Claire Belton is a breathwork practitioner, group facilitator, and trainer recognised by the Australian Breathwork Association. Claire has worked and studied in the healing arts for over 32 years specializing in breathwork, shamanic and energetic healing, bodywork, yoga and meditation. 

This is what Claire had to say about her graduates from 2020:

“I am so incredibly proud of my Transpersonal Breathwork Training Graduates as well as my current students! I met up with them the other day and we had a wonderful morning breathing and Shamanic journeying out in Nature.

The quality of the Breathwork is exceptional because of the depth that they have all travelled to and continue to travel to doing their own deep work. It is only through a deep immersion over time in Breathwork and Shamanic healing states of consciousness that you can truly hold another person in safety and depth.

I highly recommend Transpersonal Breathwork practitioners Shanie Sims, Shanie Lou,
Maxine Santich, Rebecca Moore, Paula Flynn, Paula Michelle, Sharon Jennings Follow Your True North, Kristine Gomez, Donna Blakeway Phil’n’Donna Blakeway, and Katherine Harding Farrant. They are all amazing women and practitioners and trained to Australian Breathwork Association standards.”

If you would like to connect with one of these practitioners for a Breathwork Session you can find their contact details here

Claire is commencing new training in TRANSPERSONAL BREATHWORK TRAINING
Module One starts again 4th March 2021. 

If you are you interested in training in BREATHWORK? Breathwork is a fast growing modality due to its profound healing capacity. The Transpersonal Breathwork Training is a powerful immersive training in Breathwork and Shamanic Healing and brings together Claire’s 30 years of experience working as a Breathwork practitioner and in the healing arts. Claire’s training is endorsed by the Australian Breathwork Association and upon completion of the training you will be able to apply for professional membership of the Association.

To find out more go to Claire’s website

ABA Member Joshua Wrest speaks with Indigo Melrose and Therapeia Podcast about being a qualified breathing coach and breathwork practitioner, who has personally experienced the profound transformative effect breathwork has on the individual and collective psyche.

THEY CHAT ABOUT…

• What breathwork is, the origins of breathwork and the two main schools of breathwork
• The difference between breathwork and the Wimm Hoff method
• The concept of the inner healer and how it relates to breathwork
• Josh’s journey with breathwork and how it transformed his life
• What the experience of attending a breathwork session is like and how to prepare for the experience
• The future of breathwork
• A daily practice to help connect in with the power of breath
• And so much more!

LISTEN HERE
SPOTIFY
APPLE PODCASTS

This year has been a big year for authorship in the Breathwork Community. Our wonderful community is being called to put in writing their personal experiences using Breathwork for change and transformation. Wholehearted Wonder Women 50+ just released has a chapter written by the amazing Ghislaine Bouskila.

Wholehearted Wonder Women 50+ is a collaborative book, headed by Lulu Trevena, of 22 women around the world who tell their short story, a chapter each, of how through their life experience they have discovered a different way of being. They tell their stories, genuinely and the tools they discovered or created in order to transform what was in the way of living a courageous, confident and creative life. It’s a profound sharing of testimonials that will make you laugh, cry and heal.

Ghislaine’s chapter is called Healing is love affair, the path, the truth and the life.
It’s about healing from Lyme disease and our beautiful Breathwork tool.  

About Ghislaine:

Ghislaine has been in private practice using Breathwork and Kinesiology since 2003.
Her personal journey in healing herself from Chronic Health Symptoms such as Lyme disease, Crohn’s disease and Depression combined with her clinical practice has led her to put together her Conscious Energy Medicine program using Kinesiology, Breathwork, Energy Medicine and Spiritual Psychology for the healing of one’s physical, mental, emotional and spiritual imbalance.
She regularly runs Conscious Breathing Workshops in Sydney; has run a Breathe Australia Conference in the past, she is the current International Breathwork Foundation (IBF) National Representative for Australia and is part of the IBF Executive Support Team working on the Future of the IBF.

Purchase a copy through Ghislaines website Conscious Energy Medicine  here

Askam Garlick joined the ABA Committee team at the AGM in November 2019. He brings a wealth of knowledge from his years in other professions and his love of the Breath. You are invited to get to know him.

Where were you born?
I was born in Sydney, July 1955. Cancer Sun  conjunct Uranus and Ascendent, Leo Moon. Big first house stellium. I went to North Sydney Boys High School, University of NSW and several other tertiary establishments.

What is your favourite thing to do that is just for you? 
At the moment, I’m enjoying returning to lapidary, a hobby I had when I was a teenager. I’m now learning how to facet precious gemstones and do simple silver smithing.

What was the last book you read/are reading?
I’m currently intensively studying the Way of Mastery trilogy by Jayem Hammer. I find these channelled teachings of Jeshua inspirational and life-changing. For lighter reading, I’m wading through Richard Tarnas ‘Cosmos and Psyche’, a very academic study of the cycles of civilization related to the movement of the outer planets.

Are you an early bird or a night owl?
I’m both. I am often awake in the small hours of the night. I do a lot of conscious connected breathing and ‘love’s breath’ between the hours of 2.30 and 4.00am. I find this time to be the most conducive to spiritual practice.

What do you love about Breathwork? 
I love and revere the breath. For me, the breath connects universal awareness or Source with the individual bodily vehicle. In this sense, Breath is universal spirit, Sophia, or the Comforter. I find it to be the source of all intelligence.

What do you love about working with your fellow committee members? 
I love the contrast. The other committee members are younger, and in the working stages of their lives. Establishing themselves, and breathwork as a respectable profession and their place in the community is central. I, on the other hand, am both a beginning student in Breathwork, and a retired ex-professional. I am definitely post work and post consumer. I have no interest in establishing myself in a profession and hope to grow old disgracefully. I just hope that this contrast is useful.

Are you a mountains or beach person, or something else?
Ridges rather than valley’s, mountains and wilderness rather than beaches and people, dense city life rather than suburbia.

What are you passionate about?
Life, source, allowing and surrender. My relationship with myself, my partner, my tribe and my god.