How Breathwork Can Help You Face Your Fears With Confidence
Fear, from my experience, is often the greatest thing that holds people back from creating a fulfilling life. Whether it’s pursuing hobbies, building rewarding careers, or finding balance, fear tends to stand in the way of progress.
Now, ask yourself this:
Have you experienced moments where fear stopped you from pursuing a goal or dream?
Perhaps it was learning to surf, making friends, or applying for a new role at work. You felt so sure it was something you wanted to do, but the grip of nerves and uncertainty has kept you rooted in place, hesitant to take that bold step forward out of your comfort zone.
You’re certainly not alone in feeling this way - I’ve been there more than once! But rather than letting fear dictate my actions, I now use it as something to drive, motivate and excite me - and breathwork has played a crucial role in helping me do that.
Breathwork helps you manage emotions and support your nervous system, which means you can face your fears with a greater sense of control and empowerment. It’s my favourite wellbeing tool because you don’t have to wait a long period of time to experience it’s benefits and it’s easy to incorporate it into a daily routine.
With regular breathwork practice, your nervous system can respond to stress and return to a state of balance with ease, and that means doing the things that once scared you becomes so much easier!
Here are 3 techniques that I’ve found to be incredibly effective that you can practice straight away:
Ground: Use this to bring focus and awareness to the present moment, and to build a stronger connection to your breathing patterns.
Find a comfortable seated position or lie down, keeping your spine straight and shoulders relaxed
Take a few deep breaths to centre yourself
Begin by following the journey of your breath as you inhale and exhale
Notice its qualities - is it fast or slow, deep or shallow? Are there areas of ease of discomfort?
Continue to breath naturally for at least 5 minutes
Best practiced in the morning or at times in the day when you feel disconnected from yourself.
Uplift: Use this to boost energy and build resilience to stress.
Find a comfortable seated position or lie down, keeping your spine straight and shoulders relaxed.
Take a few deep breaths to centre yourself
Breathe in and out through the mouth, gradually shortening the cadence, eg. 4-4 / 2-2 / 1-1
Follow this pattern for around 5 minutes
Add in breath holds on full or empty for an extra buzz
Notice any sensations in your body
Best practiced in the morning (instead of your usual caffeine fix) or at times when you want to feel pumped and focused.
Calm: Use this to move from overwhelm to a state of balance and relaxation.
Find a comfortable seated position or lie down, keeping your spine straight and shoulders relaxed
Take a few deep breaths to centre yourself
Breathe in for a count of 4, hold for a count of 4, breathe out for a count of 4, and hold for a count of 4
Repeat this pattern for at least 5 minutes
Best practiced in times of overwhelm and stress, or before sleep.
If you’re curious to see how breathwork can help you, but don’t know where to start, then head to my shop for ‘Breath Alchemy’, a 3 part guided breathwork series and workbook created to help you face your fears with confidence.
