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Guide

# Breathwork in Therapy 

Breath is the one lever of the nervous system you can reach directly. You cannot order your heart rate down or your muscles to unclench, but you can change your breathing — and the rest follows. In therapy, breathwork is a way of helping the body settle enough that the deeper work becomes possible.

## Regulating Before Processing 

There is a sequence to good therapy that often gets skipped. If your nervous system is running at full alarm, talking about the hardest thing in your life mostly just rehearses the alarm. Regulation comes first: enough steadiness that you can touch the difficult material without being swept away by it. Breathwork is one of the simplest, most reliable ways to get there.

This is why many of my sessions begin with a few minutes of grounding — arriving, noticing the breath, letting the day fall away enough to be present.

## What Breathwork Is and Is Not 

Breathwork in therapy is not a performance, and it is not about doing it right. It is gentle and paced to you — sometimes simply breathing a little more slowly and fully, sometimes a guided practice that helps you notice where you hold and where you can let go. Nothing is forced. Your body sets the speed.

It is also not a replacement for the rest of the work. Breath steadies the ground; the therapy happens on it.

## Starting Each Session Grounded 

Most people arrive at a session straight from a meeting, a commute, or a hard conversation. Beginning grounded means the hour actually belongs to you rather than to whatever came before it. Over time, the practices we use become yours — tools you can reach for before a difficult conversation, in a sleepless night, in the waiting room of your own life.

I offer this work online throughout California, integrated with psychodynamic, depth-oriented and holistic therapy. A free 15-minute consultation is an easy way to ask questions and see how it feels.

## Related Reading

-   [Somatic & Body-Based Work Read more → ](/guides/somatic-therapy)
-   [Holistic Psychotherapy Read more → ](/guides/holistic-psychotherapy)
-   [What to Expect in Your First Session Read more → ](/guides/what-to-expect-in-your-first-session)

Sharon Meyers is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker offering telehealth sessions to adults located anywhere in California.

In Case of Emergency

This website is for informational purposes only. This practice is not a crisis service. If you are experiencing a mental health emergency, please do not wait for a reply.

-   Call [911](tel:911) or go to your nearest emergency room if you are in immediate danger.
-   Call or text [988](tel:988) to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
-   Text HOME to [741741](sms:741741) to reach the Crisis Text Line.

## Steady first. Then the real work. 

Reach out for a free consultation and we can begin.

[Schedule a Free Consultation](/begin-here)

### Sharon Meyers Therapy

LCSW #106887  
Online therapy throughout California  
Office located in Berkeley, CA

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Contact

-   [(415) 335-7446](tel:4153357446)
-   [sharon@sharonmeyerstherapy.com](mailto:sharon@sharonmeyerstherapy.com)

[Psychology Today](https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/sharon-meyers-berkeley-ca/1080260)

**In case of emergency:** call or text [988](tel:988) or go to your nearest emergency room. This website is for informational purposes only.

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