A guide for the devout Christian to choose a Breath Coach
Earlier this year, I wrote another blog, called “Christianity and Breathwork – are they compatible?” Christianity and Breathwork - are they compatible? — SUDA PREM STUDIO (suda-prem.com) and as expected, there was a lot of confusion centered around why this question was even raised? Now almost a year later, I feel it is time to talk about the other side. Is there some truth to Christians being worried about implementing breathing techniques into their lives?
As a Christian, it is prudent for us to always be aware of the people and teachings we bring into our lives. We are an average of the 5 closest people around us, and this would include people we are greatly influenced by. Choose these 5 people wisely for your nature will be influenced by the virtues and vices that are present in the people you hang around with all the time. No one knew this better than St. Anthony of the Desert who went far and wide to look for people he could learn virtues from.
So, will breathwork help us in our journey of being in union with God? Or will it draw us away?
There were two times, that made me think hard about my role as a breath coach in society. The first was when I watched Karate Kid, and Jackie Chan tells Jaden Smith – “No such thing as a bad student, only a bad teacher.” The second time was when I read the line in Scripture,” Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” (James 3:1). I remember when I read this scripture verse, I almost wanted to stop teaching. I thought to myself, why would I want to take on the burden of possibly being judged to have not taught well, and steer people the wrong way?
But then you have St. Paul stating in his letter to the Corinthians, that when we are called to a vocation, we have a choice to do it willingly or unwillingly. (First letter of Saint Paul 9:16-19)
Now both lines, do have caveats. If you have been a worker of any sort for a prolonged period, you are bound to have had a few cases where things did not go as smoothly as you expected. Also, if you are called to teach, and you do not go down that route, then you do not have the Marian attitude of – “Be it done unto me according to thy word”, rather you do not want to deal with the great responsibility that comes with being a teacher or a coach. This is worse, in my humble opinion, because you are consciously not fulfilling your vocation.
Yes – Being a teacher, is a great responsibility. A lot of teachers today, do not want to take on this responsibility and this has led to many people losing faith in their religion (since a child’s first teachers in faith are their own parents), in their identity (who am I? Am I worthy of love?), and leaves them hanging in limbo, unable to move forward in any direction, for they do not understand what and who they can trust. Even something as basic as “breath” now takes them to a place that can be very traumatizing or scary. How did something so simple as breath, get so complicated?
Taking a couple of steps back, I have had a ton of students come to me with such issues, and it breaks my heart, that they have encountered someone in their life, that guided them either through breathwork or meditation and werent walking with them or the experience left them with a bad taste in their mouth and they did not want to try it again for fear of what could potentially come up.
Breathwork is very powerful when done correctly. Very traumatizing when done incorrectly. A lot of videos today, show people screaming, crying, and shouting when they are doing breathwork. This is a very wrong opinion of what breathwork stands for. Can you get to these states? Absolutely. Is this the goal? It depends on what you are looking for.
Breathwork brings balance in to my life. It destresses me, and helps me stay energized. It takes my athletic performance to the next level. It enhances recovery and helps me sleep well at night. It has made me a calmer and more composed person. I am yet to have an experience through breathwork where I felt like I was dancing with the gods, in fact most of my experiences with breath have been uneventful. How ever I continue to do my breathing techniques because it keeps my state of mind in check, and allows me to process through emotions extremely fast and helps me with decision making because my mind is very alert without taking any other supplements. In Christian terms, I do breathwork not because it gives me consolation, but more so because I know it helps balance my hormones, and enhances me physiologically, which is necessary to maintain a happy and healthy state of being. Oh, and did I forget to mention that thanks to breathwork, I rarely ever fall sick these days?
Sounds like a no-brainer, doesn’t it? So why this article? Because most devout Christians have historically associated breathwork with Yoga and other pagan practices. Breath as a modality was also always tied to spirituality – be it through meditation or Buddhism. Breath has recently become very much associated with psychedelic experiences where people take plant medicine and indulge in breathwork to enhance the experience. It was not till James Nestor wrote his book “Breathe” (please read this book if you haven’t already), that people started realizing there is more to breath than just the spiritual angle. It can even make an impact on your children needing orthodontic treatment! This is what I do as a breath coach – I help you understand the implications that bad breathing practices can make on your health. You can get rid of aches and pains that you have been carrying most of your life and always thought of it as a function of growing older. It enhances your sleep and reduces ailments like asthma and sleep apnea. Your cellular health has a direct impact on how young or old you are. My teacher, Wim Hof, at the age of 63 has no problem running around with his young child, because he feels great! Not to mention he can still balance his entire body weight on one hand! Too old? I do not think so!
A year ago, I felt very wronged by the Church because I did not receive the necessary encouragement, I felt I deserved, for being a breath coach when I thought it was such a game changer and scientifically based. However today, I understand why. Most breath coaches today, aren’t religious and indulge in psychedelics. I am also amazed at how many of them are fallen away Christians who were baptized at birth. So, if breath work is so great, how is it that it has not brought any of them back to Christianity? This question is like asking, “if God breathed into us, why has not every breathing human acknowledged God?” I do believe God sets out different journeys for each one of us and things happens in God’s time, not in our time. I am an example of someone who came into Christianity after I started breathwork. I had been doing breathwork for one year, before I had my first encounter with God. The rest is history. I believe breathwork helped me understand what stillness meant. “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). Since then, breathwork also helped me tremendously during my period of conversion from Islam to Christianity, which till this day was probably one of the hardest periods of my life. It has helped me in following the will of God, for it has helped me in reducing my anxiety and fears when I quit my oil and gas job and decided to go back to school to pursue public policy. Not to mention, my love for Christ continues to grow with every passing day because breathwork helps me in digging deep into my heart and loving more.
“I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints and what Is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.” (Ephesians 1:17-19). Breathwork helps with opening the eyes of your heart.
It has taken about a year and a half of me continuing to be a devout Christian and a breath coach, to have finally gained the trust of a lot of Catholics around me and I am happy to say that I have more catholic students today from all over the United States, in comparison to about a year ago, where a lot of people were extremely doubtful of the practice.
This does not mean that I only teach Christians, I teach people from all faiths and those who do not have faith either. However, if you are a devout Christian and are looking for a breath coach, I hope this document will help you clarify some of the questions you may have in your mind.
But why should one indulge in breathwork if the risks of finding a “false prophet” are so great? The inverse risk of not trying, is fostering a society that suffers from stress, anxiety, suicidal tendencies, children being diagnosed with anger and ADHD as early as the age of 4 and being put on medication. The risk is having our older generations die from heart diseases, diabetes, cancer, etc. The risk is for women never realizing that they do not have to take birth control pills to overcome their mood swings or menstrual cramps, that there is a medication-less life that is waiting for them. That menopause doesn’t have to be filed with hot flashes. And as a Christian, going through life, never experiencing stillness. I can go on and on as to what a society without good breath training looks like, and for this reason, I highly encourage all of you to learn how to breathe correctly.
This is a quick guide for both Christian teachers and students who do not want to walk a path that could potentially lead them down a rabbit hole they do not want to be in. Since I am Catholic, my language might make more sense to Catholics, however I would think the gist would be applicable to anyone who is a faith filled person and is very worried about breathwork not being in alignment with their faith.
1) Be cognizant of the level of faith you have – what is acceptable and unacceptable to you.
Depending on who you are, this can vary. I heard my priest saying the other day – “Just because you wear a cross around your neck, doesn’t tell me a lot about your faith.” As a Christian, I do not indulge in psychedelics or drugs of any sort. When you approach a breath coach, do not be shy about being open about where you are at with regards to substances and ensure that your coach never promotes supplements to you that go against your religious beliefs. Most coaches will respect your wishes. If you are around someone who tells you that you are narrow minded and you need to try out psychedelics or marijuana, I would suggest looking for another coach. If you are in a group class, be aware of the people you are in class with as well, and if anything makes you uncomfortable share it with your coach. A good coach will honor your request and either suggest for you to come to another class or make it clear to the class that substances are not to be used during class hours.
2) Look for a coach, that you share common interests with. It may not necessarily only be faith based, but it can also be sports, or musical interests. Even if you work in the corporate world, look for others who have worked in the corporate world for they will understand the level of stress you experience on a day-to-day basis. Do your due diligence and follow them on social media or read up on them. In today’s world it is so easy to find information and read up reviews on any instructor. Do the work up front, and if there are people you know who have attended a class by the coach, speak to them!
3) If you are sensitive to foul language, please let your coach know the same. In today’s world, foul language is very acceptable. In fact, I have heard people say that they trust their teacher/ coach more, if they used foul language. Once again, this is a personal preference. I used to be someone who cussed every other word in a sentence, yes it was that extreme. I have since then come a long way, and I can say that I have gone through coaching sessions now without a single cuss word, it has taken me a while to get here, but it is still work in progress. I have had students who have told me after the fact, that they were so grateful when I stopped cussing because it made them feel more comfortable being around me. I was always surprised as to why they weren’t comfortable letting me know the same while I was doing it.
4) Set up a consultation call with your coach before you start working with them. I do this with most of the people I work with. And I never get offended if they do not call me back after the consultation call. Talking to a person, and feeling their vibe can help decide if you want to work with the instructor or not. We are all different and there are many instructors to choose from.
5) When choosing an instructor, cheaper isn’t always better, most expensive isn’t always better either. Once again, I have paid people money and felt they weren’t worth it, and I have paid people and wondered, “do they realize they need to be charging more based on the experience that I just had?” Charging the right amount is an art. After a lot of trial and error, my price point seems to have found a good place and I am finally at peace with my charges. Find someone that you can afford and make sure you get a good coach, because coaching isn’t cheap yet getting coached by the right person is worth all the money in both the short and long run. Those who know me well know that I cringe when I have to spend over $30 on shoes or clothes and will take 3 days to make that decision, and food over $10 dollars requires a celebration. Yet I have no limits on how much I spend on books, church and workshops to increase my self knowledge. My brother once told me, that the best investment I could make was in myself. I never forgot that line.
6) If faith is important for your journey, then find a coach who has a strong faith filled life and has teachers or coaches in their life. It has taken me a long time in being comfortable with sharing with others about my faith life, I was afraid of being rejected based on my faith. Today I am a different person, I have found strength in Christ. “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service.” (2 Thessalonians 2:17). I have multiple teachers currently (both in breath and in faith) and I am very blessed to have the opportunity to be very close to my pastor, religious sisters, I harbor a very strong church life, and I love scripture. One of my closest friends happens to be a priest who is very interested in breathwork. And so, I go over scripture with him from time to time and discuss how I can incorporate it into my teaching, when I teach Christians, and receive feedback from him. Breath training is a very personal journey, and it has a special gift for each person that indulges in it. If faith is important to you, find someone who has a faith filled life as well.
7) If you are subscribed to Apps like Calm and Hallow, you are only indulging in a very small portion of what breathwork has to offer. Learning how to breathe correctly is a breath-to-breath activity which encompasses all the seconds and minutes of your life. It is instrumental in learning how to become happy, healthy, and strong. In order to be faith filled, your vessel must be both empty and strong to carry your faith and your cross. Breathwork strengthens your foundations so that you can become a soldier for God. The Kingdom needs strong individuals and families. Breathwork helps you become stronger physically, physiologically, and mentally – imagine how much more the Lord could do through us, if he only had a properly functioning vehicle to abide in?
When I visualize Jesus, I see a man who is strong not only in his faith, but also in his emotional management and physical strength. Through the Gospels you see him experience a myriad of emotions and have the ability to know when to retract to be with his Abba, and when to leave to go to the next town. You see him thinking on his feet and responding to the Pharisees yet being compassionate with those who genuinely wanted answers, and last but not the least, he had no problem weeping. Jesus is the ultimate breath coach. I am grateful that to this day, in my silent time with him, he never ceases to share this fact with me.
So, there you go, a beginners guide for devout practicing Christians who are interested in exploring the breath world. It might take you some time to find the right teacher, but like all worthwhile journeys, when you find the right teacher, it is worth it! All the best, and peace be with you as you walk on this journey which will not only enhance your physical, mental, physiological, and emotional states, but it will also radically change your relationship with God. Thanks to my breath training, I can experience God in a way that goes beyond thoughts and words. And it is so comforting to know that a lot of the desert Fathers, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, and St. Teresa of Avila, all promoted breath as a tool to be used in the presence of a teacher of course. How wonderful, that we can now, in a more profound way, have access to the same tool that God gave us from the beginning of time when he breathed into us (Genesis 2:7). I pray that we have more teachers that teach breathwork that is more in alignment with what is stated in Scripture – “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16)