Psychedelic breathwork has the power to activate non-ordinary states of consciousness very
much like psychedelics and plant medicine. These non-ordinary states of being have been shown
to help treat symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), addiction, depression and
anxiety.

The Frequency Psychedelic Breathwork is a practice to access deep self-love, create cellular
healing, and release pain and trauma that gets stored and stuck in the body.

By activating the parasympathetic nervous system, conscious rhythmic breathing not only calms
our physical body, it works to calm our emotional state, too. Depending on the type and duration
of breathwork, the practice can often result in transpersonal psychedelic experiences –
comparable to experiences induced by MDMA and psilocybin therapies. There are many names
for rhythmic circular breathing, including psychedelic breathwork, Holotropic breathwork, two
part breathwork, and rebirthing.

 

Psychedelic Assisted Therapies for Treating PTSD
The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) found that PTSD patients
who participated in MDMA-assisted therapy showed significant improvement in symptoms and
no longer met the criteria for PTSD by the end of the study. Johns Hopkins Magazine reports that
MDMA suppresses the amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for reactions such as fear and
panic. The researchers also note that, after MDMA-assisted therapy, PTSD patients report
feeling, “safe, empathetic, and emotionally open, an ideal frame of mind for therapeutic
breakthroughs.”

Additionally, this study found equally revolutionary and compelling results. The researchers
found that people suffering from depression who participated in psilocybin-assisted therapy
noticed rapid and significant reduction in depression symptoms. Some participants even achieved
remission.

Johns Hopkin Magazine notes that psychiatrist and later breathwork pioneer Dr. Stanislav Grof
participated in studies that involved LSD-assisted therapy, and many of the patients experienced
“the resolution of deep, persistent trauma as a result.” When psychedelics were criminalized in
the late 60s, Gof and his partner Christina Gof developed Holotropic Breathwork as a completely
legal and accessible method to tap into the emotions, insights, sensations, and therapeutic
benefits offered from psychedelic medicine.

 

Breathwork for Treating PTSD
The previous and ongoing research on psychedelic psychotherapy is promising for treating
PTSD. While psychedelic medicine may prove to be an outstanding aid for PTSD patients,
breathwork always has been and always will be available. Additionally, unlike psychedelic
medicine, breathwork is legal and accessible now.

Psychedelic breathwork activates DMT endogenously in the brain. DMT is the chemical
compound that can be attributed to the psychedelic experience with ayahuasca, and breathwork
allows us to activate and access it naturally, consciously, and safely. One study found that 82%
of the 482 patients reported having transpersonal or mythopoetic – the hypothetical stage of
thought that myths come from – experiences, as a result of Holotropic breathwork. This altered
state is an ideal state for therapeutic breakthroughs and treatment of PTSD.

One of the unique things about breathwork is that the breather is in complete control. Unlike the
journey that occurs after ingesting a medicine, the circular breath can be modified – slowed,
quickened, deepened, paused – at any time, creating a shift in the experience. The breather has
agency over their breath and their body. With psychedelic breathwork we can access altered
states of consciousness, reap the therapeutic physical and emotional benefits, and treat PTSD
from a safe and embodied state.