Conscious Connected Breath — method & sessions in Utrecht

My approach is shaped by Lars Faber's year-long programme 'The Wounded Healer'. The method assumes that we only really make space for change when we're willing to fully experience the physical sensations in our body, without reasoning them away or softening them. Instead of spending a lot of time talking and analysing, in a session we go straight to the physical experience. We look very precisely at your current breath pattern: Where do you feel the breath? Where does it stall? Where in your body do you feel the activation? By breathing into those places we bring movement to stuck emotions and physical pressure that have often built up over years.

In sessions we use two different ways to reach deep trauma and unprocessed blockages. Both techniques are equally powerful and use connected breathing (breathing without pause), but they address different parts of the body: 1. Connected breathing through the belly: this technique focuses on a deep, continuous flow from the belly and diaphragm. By removing the pauses we open the nervous system and address areas where deep emotional armour is often held. 2. Chaotic breathing through the chest: this targets the rib cage specifically. We still breathe without pause, but by bringing the breath high into the chest we create powerful physical activation in the upper body. Depending on what your body shows us and which areas hold the most tension or activation, we choose the doorway that gives the most direct access to your process.

Breath coaching at The Breathwork Shop is, in essence, working with the physiology of your nervous system. Many clients live in a constant state of readiness, or in a sense of freeze. By combining the principles of The Wounded Healer with these breathing techniques, we create a safe setting in which you learn to recognise where your body stores tension — whether that's in the jaw, the shoulders, the chest or the pelvis. We focus on: • Body awareness: where do you feel it in your body? Which parts are activated? And how do you then breathe towards them to meet the blockage? • Safe transformation: holding a container in which intense emotion and physical energy can be fully expressed without judgement. • Self-regulation: developing the capacity to bring your own nervous system back into balance after a deep activation.

An individual session at The Breathwork Shop lasts 2 to 2.5 hours; the investment is €125. That generous time is needed to safely move into the deeper layers of your process. • Welcome and focus: we start gently with a cup of tea to arrive in the space. • Input and activation: we use the Focusing method. With targeted prompts, including timeline work, we find the focus of the day. We don't only look at the story — we go straight to the activation in the body: where do you feel it? That physical doorway becomes the start of the breath session. • Targeted activation: based on the focus we choose the breath form (belly or chest) that gives the most effective access to the blockages in your body at that moment. • Integration: after the active breathwork there's a phase of deep rest in which the nervous system integrates the new space and the experience can settle.

This form of breathwork is, in principle, suitable for anyone who wants to listen to what their body has to say, rather than stay stuck in the stories we tell ourselves in our head. Because we work with deep physical activation, there are contraindications for certain medical conditions; please check the FAQ at the bottom of this page to see whether a session is appropriate for you right now. Breath coaching offers support with: • Unprocessed trauma: making space for deep experiences stored in the body as physical blockages in chest or belly. • Stress and burn-out: restoring the capacity to let go of control and actually feel what's happening in your body. • Personal growth: exploring your inner world from the deep Wounded Healer perspective. • Physical restrictions: reducing chronic tension in the diaphragm or chest.

The Breathwork Shop is located at Kanaalweg 84, 3533HA Utrecht. The studio is a quiet, safe space, centrally located and easy to reach. Want to discover what your breath has to tell you right now? Get in touch via hallo@thebreathworkshop.nl to book a session in Utrecht.