Are you on a path of self-discovery, healing or personal empowerment? Do you seek ways to expand your consciousness that are integral, healthy and natural? Stanislav Grof’s process of Holotropic Breathwork can be a powerfully transformative, and safe way to move into your own transformation. Holotropic Breathwork integrates insights from modern consciousness research, anthropology, various depth psychologies, transpersonal psychology, Eastern spiritual practices, and mystical traditions of the world. The name Holotropic means literally "moving toward wholeness".

In this article I’ll briefly cover what Holotropic Breathwork is about, how it came to be, what kinds of experiences people have as the do it, and how you can have the experience yourself.

Dr. Stanislav Grof is the originator of Holotropic breathwork. He conducted clinical research into psychoactive drugs at the Psychiatric Research Institute in Prague, exploring therapeutic potential of LSD and other psychedelic substances. In 1967, he come to the US and worked at Johns Hopkins University in Psychiatric research. In the early 1970’s, when LSD became a schedule 1 restricted substance, Dr. Grof began researching alternate ways to access the healing power of altered states. In 1973, Dr. Grof was invited to the Esalen Institute, where he lived until 1987 writing, giving seminars, lecturing and developing Holotropic Breathwork with his wife Christina Grof.

Drawing from his immense experience researching altered states of consciousness Dr. Grof arrived at a few very simple and profound components that make up the Holotropic Breathwork process: it combines accelerated breathing, evocative music, and a special set and setting.

With the eyes closed and lying on a mat, each person uses a specific way of breathing with the music playing in the room to enter a non-ordinary state of consciousness. This state activates the natural inner healing process of the individual's psyche. With the inner healing intelligence guiding the process, the quality and content brought forth is unique to each person and for that particular time and place. While recurring themes are common, no two sessions are ever alike.

Holotropic Breathwork is usually done in groups. People work in pairs and alternate in the roles of experiencer and "sitter". The sitter's role is simply to be available to assist the breather, not to interfere or interrupt the process. The same is true for trained facilitators, who are also available to assist participants.

Since mental set and physical setting also have been shown to determine the quality altered state experiences and healing, they are key components of the Holotropic Breathwork sessions. Facilitators provide information about non-ordinary states of consciousness before participation, about the chemistry changes that occur in the body during the experience, and address questions or concerns of participants. Facilitators also provide a format for the breathing that includes evocative music, a reciprocating partnership in sitting and breathing sessions, art, focused energy release work, and group sharing for integration. This creates an environment of understanding, safety, trust and personal comfort.

The Holotropic Breathwork experience is, for the most part, internal and largely nonverbal, without interventions. Although practitioners suggest to breathers at the beginning of the session that they increase the pace of the breath, breathers are also encouraged to find their own pace and rhythm with the breath. Thus, after the breathwork session begins, breathers are not "coached" in any particular way of breathing. The practitioners begin to play evocative or rhythmic music as the breathing deepens.

Only when the breather feels stuck in some way does the sitter or facilitator take a role, taking his or her clues from the breather and encouraging the breather to amplify the existing symptoms. The breather is encouraged to express fully his or her reaction, whichever form it takes.

During the breathwork, participants may experience a wide range of personally relevant phenomena. They can experience aspects of their own birth, repressed or unfinished trauma, bioenergetic release, an awareness of family patterns, intuitive insight and understanding, an inner journey and contact with guides or angels, and much more.

My own experiences with this form of breathwork have been very surprising and profound. In one session I brought a conscious intent to work on a difficult pattern of anger towards my mother. I believed it had to do with my parents divorce as an adolescent. In the breathwork I experienced a profound distress in my breathing and body that I believe, in retrospect, had to do with my birth. Breathing through this intense fear led to a deep sense of feeling immersed in a loving sensation and has since dissolved that old anger I felt toward my mother.

Working with others, I’ve seen how each person’s inner wisdom brings them through what’s best for their healing regardless what they think they need. Working with the subconscious as a hypnotherapist has cemented my trust in the immense resources and wisdom within each of our subconsciouses. Holotropic Breathwork provides a safe, personally integral way of accessing this wisdom through the altered state experience. The process takes each person through just the piece they need.

So how can you experience Holotropic Breathwork? There are many trained facilitators working around the world. You can go online at http://www.breathwork.com/ and search for one. Each facilitator has gone through at least a 600 hour, two year program and has a thorough personal understanding of the states of consciousness participants experience. Many of these facilitators provide individual sessions as well as group workshops.

Unfortunately, there are no certified intstructors in Montana! But, you do have an opportunity to participate in a weekend workshop here this summer. On August 17th - 19th, at Boulder Hot Springs I will be assisting Ann Little and Jay Dufrechou in a weekend of Holotropic Breathwork. Ann is a certified instructor and transpersonal psychologist living in Vancouver BC. Jay Dufrechou lives in Helena. He has a doctorate in Transpersonal Psychology and leads dream groups. Jay has recently renewed his holotropic breathwork experience through workshops with colleagues of Ann in Calgary, Alberta. Through his transpersonal training, Jay has been involved with numerous personal and spiritual growth techniques, but finds holotropic breathwork the most profound and healing for him personally. He feels that these experiences have given him the closest access to source in this lifetime and have helped jump-start life-changing energetic shifts. I have been facilitating transformational workshops and classes in Montana for the past 10 years. I am excited to have the opportunity to work with these two and offer Holotropic Breathwork to Montanans. You can find out more information on this workshop online at: http://www.innerworkingsresources.com/holotropic.

Patrick Marsolek is a Clinical Hypnotherapist in private practice in Helena and Great Falls.He is the author of Transform Yourself: a self-hypnosis manual and a series of audio CDs on relaxation, trance and hypnosis. As the director of Inner Workings Resources he conducts research into altered states, healing, trance, intution, and communication. He teaches classes in self-hypnosis, remote viewing, and leads experiential intuitive field trips to sacred sites around Montana. Contact Patrick [0].