Holotropic breathing is a unique technique created for use in psychotherapy. With the help of this technique, people experience experiences associated with unconscious experiences. The method is used as self-knowledge, as well as a journey into the hidden corners of a person’s consciousness.
The secret to the effectiveness of the technique lies in the activity of the subcortical layer of the brain, due to which the individual releases experiences. The practice of holotropic breathing was first discovered by Stanislav and Christina Grof, researchers of emotions in the field of psychotherapy. Experts have noticed that the air absorption technique replaces medications.
Definition of the concept
Before the appearance of the works of famous psychotherapists, people did not know what is remarkable about holotropic breathing, what it is and how it helps specialists. In Russia, this method has been officially used since 1993. According to the popular version of its origin, the followers of S. Freud actively practiced psychoanalysis, and they used psychotropic substances to put the patient into a trance.
Holotropic breathing is a technique that involves very deep and rapid breathing. The session is always accompanied by music or other sounds. At the end of the manipulation, the ward draws a plot that came to his mind while entering a trance. After the ban on certain medications in the United States, the holotropic breathing method gained recognition among psychotherapists.
Holotropic Breathwork is a technique for use in couples. The person performing the technique of rapid and deep breathing is called a holonaut, and his partner is a sitter. Holotropic breathing training is conducted by a facilitator - a teacher involved in psychotherapy.
The holotropic breathing method includes the following components:
- Breathe frequently and deeply;
- musical accompaniment;
- holonaut support;
- creation.
A holotropic breathing session cannot be carried out independently, as the experiences can be harmful to the person. Doing this alone is also not recommended due to the risk of injury. The technique is often accompanied by sudden movements, screams and a desire to escape from memories.
Holotropic breathing at home
Many experts do not recommend performing holotropic breathwork at home. However, the popularity of this practice encourages people not to listen to warnings. And here you just need to give recommendations so that home holotropic breathing does not lead to negative consequences:
- You need to choose a room that will have as much space as possible and as few items as possible.
- It is imperative that throughout the entire session someone must be next to the holonaut to ensure his safety, without imposing his ideas and behavior patterns.
- All items should be covered with a soft cloth to avoid injury during the session.
- First, you need to pay attention to deep and very frequent breathing. At some stage you will not want to breathe this way at all, which should be taken calmly.
- When the immersion into an altered state begins, you need to listen to your own feelings and continue to breathe intensively.
You should choose the right music that:
- During the first 8 minutes you should be calm and motivating.
- Then 12 minutes of stimulating breathing.
- The next 20 minutes should be active and drumming.
- The next 20 minutes should mark a breakthrough.
- Then the music of flight and liberation should play for 15 minutes.
During the session, the body may initially behave inappropriately, for example, twitch or shrink. These are the so-called physical clamps that have always been present in a person, but now must be unlocked.
All this time the sitter must be in a safe place. At the end of the session, the holonaut should rest a little, lying down, and then draw a mandala - a circle with any of its contents.
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Purpose of application
Before the session, it is important to understand how holotropic breathing is useful, what it is for the average person, and how to get the maximum effect from the technique. The purpose of the session is to release hidden emotions and unpleasant physical sensations; the holonaut must rethink his life.
A breathing person can not only cry and swear, but also jump and laugh. Holotropic breathwork treatment is used to correct the following conditions:
- anxiety and nervous tension;
- addiction;
- middle age crisis;
- stress.
Holotropic breathing also helps people decide on the choice of a creative component in life and realize their desires. This technique also provides an additional incentive to do what you love.
Technique for performing holotropic breathing
The principle of frequent and deep breathing is explained in simple words. The practice of holotropic breathing causes the lungs to work harder, which means oxygen accumulates in the blood while carbon dioxide levels drop. The acid-base balance in the body changes and its disturbance occurs.
The pressure drops, the blood vessels narrow, and hypoxia begins. And this, in turn, inhibits the function of the cerebral cortex, so a person’s consciousness changes. Therapy will give you a chance to see visions that are inaccessible outside of the technique.
Holotropic breathing and the technique of performing the method involve unpredictable reactions. To avoid problems, you need to breathe deeply and often predominantly through your mouth. The inhalation should be sharp and the exhalation should be smooth. The session begins with taking a comfortable position, it is best to lie with your back on the sofa.
The arms and legs are in any position - this will make it easier to breathe correctly. A necessary condition is that the holonaut's eyes are closed. Now he should concentrate on breathing. A holotropic breathing session begins with a deep breath.
Holotropic breathing therapy will have an effect within 25 minutes. Then comes a significant period that brings the person into a state of experiencing emotions, so the Grof technique involves special control over the ward. As experience shows, the practice of techniques allows a person to reach a peak and get the body’s reaction to new knowledge.
What else is holotropic breathing used for?
The holotropic technique with unique breathing cannot be considered a panacea for all ills and illnesses of people, but its use still has a positive effect in many cases. The use of such breathing psychotherapy is so widespread that it is compared to the infinite possibilities of human consciousness.
- For weight loss. During the application of breathing used in holotropic therapy, hyperventilation occurs. A huge amount of oxygen enters the body, which promotes the effective burning of fat cells. As a result of such breathing, metabolic processes are accelerated, and this helps cleanse the body of harmful substances and toxins.
- For the treatment of alcoholism. Holotropic breathing technique has a therapeutic effect for patients suffering from alcohol addiction. When using it, a person plunges into the depths of his consciousness and faces the negative experience that led him to this problem. The patient experiences this situation in his head in a new way, gains awareness and heals from the previous trauma. The need for alcohol doping disappears, which allows you to successfully overcome addiction.
Instructions
The instructions for performing holotropic breathing at home are to increase its intensity and depth. But just like in a specialist’s office, the holonaut listens to his own feelings and then plunges into a trance. According to Grof’s methods, it is important to overcome psychological pressures that prevent a person from knowing himself.
Before breathing properly, it is recommended to lie down in silence and relax. Jewelry, uncomfortable clothes and shoes are incompatible with psychotherapy sessions. The psychologist nearby must inspire confidence in the person.
Grof also advised his patients to visit the toilet before going into the world of emotions and to avoid large meals. Home comfort relaxes a person and makes treatment softer. But you shouldn’t practice holotropic breathing on your own, since doing it without an observer is dangerous.
Breathe deeply and intensely, and don’t be afraid to regulate your breathing rate. An experienced sitter perceives his ward at such a moment as the only significant person in life.
Contraindications
Holotropic breathing according to Grof is still a subject of debate among experts. Some scientists do not recognize the simple technique as a technique, and in some regions of the United States such instructions are prohibited by law. Strict measures are associated with a death that occurred to a child during a session.
This is why holotropic breathing has contraindications. They also concern the chance of cerebral edema due to excess oxygen, which gives an additional risk of death. The holonaut must understand the possible consequences and not use the technique at home in the presence of chronic diseases.
Harm and benefit of the method
Like any method or phenomenon, holotropic breathing has both positive and negative sides.
Benefits of HD
When used correctly, holotropic breathing is an effective way to get rid of long-standing psychological problems. Since there is a deep immersion into the subconscious, a person is able to discover repressed emotions and experiences, give them an outlet and level them out. Moreover, problems manifest themselves not individually, but as a whole block.
Therapy occurs independently, without the involvement of a psychotherapist. For example, in psychoanalysis, which is also based on the method of immersion in the unconscious, a person depends on the degree of qualification and integrity of the psychoanalyst and the decisions he makes.
You can practice sessions as often as necessary to achieve harmony and psychological comfort. HD is a great way to relieve everyday stress and tension.
Harm HD
In the professional environment, the attitude towards holotropic breathing is not unambiguous. Many scientists do not recognize it as a psychotherapeutic technique at all.
In two states of America, the use of a technique similar to HD, “rebirthing,” is prohibited at the legislative level. This is due to a fatality that occurred in 2000 with a 10-year-old girl during a rebirthing session. There are other examples of harm to health when using technology, including in Russia.
An argument against the use of HD is the fact that hyperventilation of the brain leads to the leaching of carbon dioxide from its cells and a sharp narrowing of blood vessels. This can cause deterioration in brain function due to the death of nerve cells.
In addition, despite the body’s existing protective resources, due to an excess of oxygen, cerebral edema and death can occur.
In this regard, the holonaut must be aware of the consequences that may occur, especially when using the method without the support of a sitter and the participation of a specialist.
This breathing technique, like medications, has positive and negative effects on human health with side effects, so the opinions of psychotherapists are radically divided. Those who practice holotropic breathing claim that it is the safest way to treat psychological problems.
- It is compared to the way a woman breathes during childbirth, an athlete during a sprint race, or a tourist when climbing mountains. As a result, the following happens: the level of carbon dioxide in the tissues increases sharply, which causes hyperventilation of the lungs. These processes are a catalyst for such dangerous reactions as: reflex vasoconstriction, a sharp increase in blood pressure, a decrease in hemoglobin in the blood, and metabolic disorders. A person experiences temporary suffocation of the brain, and the nerve endings gradually begin to die.
- During one breathing exercise using holotropic technique, the human body loses up to three liters of carbon dioxide, which can lead to dizziness and loss of consciousness.
- If you perform such holotropic therapy on your own, without knowing all the features of the correct breathing technique, there is a risk of cerebral edema and death.
- By making even one incorrect manipulation during a breathing exercise using the holotropic technique at home, it is possible to cause irreparable harm to the central nervous system, myocardium, liver, and kidneys.
Psychotherapists who are supporters of the holotropic method of therapeutic breathing hold the opposite opinion. They claim that an absolutely healthy person who has no contraindications and has undergone professional training from Stanislav Grof’s followers in certified centers will receive only positive health effects. Here's how this technique affects the human body:
- Holotropic breathing is considered the fastest-acting technique among other psychotechniques. It leads to rapid personal changes. This happens because during a holotropic session, not each traumatic situation from the past is considered separately, but a whole generalizing block.
- Your internal system of the body itself chooses which psychological problem should be considered at the moment, thanks to which a specialist psychologist does not manipulate your consciousness (unlike other areas of psychotherapy). This is called the non-manipulative feature of holotropic technique.
- Breathing, on which this technique is based, helps to work through the deepest particles of the negative psychological experience received during the lesson.
- Thanks to classes using holotropic techniques, a person, while breathing, becomes aware of the roots of his psychological stress and is freed from them.
- The holotropic breathing technique effectively treats psychosomatic diseases (pathologies caused by a person’s negative psychological state) even in the most hopeless cases.
- The patient can easily overcome bad habits and addiction by attending classes based on rapid breathing.
- By performing the exercises of their holotropic technique, a person almost immediately gets rid of the consequences of chronic stress and fatigue, and a sense of inner harmony returns to him.
