Training courses in "breathwork" or breath therapy are increasingly being offered either partially or entirely online. This format is logistically simpler and more cost-effective for organizers, as it eliminates the need for travel arrangements and venue rentals, while allowing for arbitrarily large group sizes. Prospective participants are also drawn to the perceived convenience and financial savings of completing a training program from the comfort of their own homes.
However, there are compelling reasons to question the suitability of
online formats for breathwork training. In essence, the information exchange
that is essential for guiding a breath session is significantly impaired in
digital communication compared to in-person interaction. For anyone aspiring to
master the art of facilitating breath sessions, the online format presents
substantial limitations, which will be elaborated upon in the following
sections.
Direct Experience of the Breath
The breath itself guides the sequence and internal process of a breath
session. This can only be perceived directly when the facilitator is physically
present with the breather, who is sitting nearby. A shared experiential field
emerges from this proximity—one in which a dense, complex web of information is
exchanged on multiple levels. This field is vastly richer when both parties are
physically co-present and breathing together than when interaction is mediated
through a screen and microphone.
The Complexity of the Communicative Field
Every communicative act includes unconscious, nonverbal components,
which represent the largest and most significant portion of transmitted
information. In breath therapy, spoken language plays only a minor role; the
essential connection between client and therapist takes place primarily on the
nonverbal level. When both persons breathe, a field of resonance is created in
which the therapist receives signals from the breathing person via her body – a
dimension that is only effective to a very limited extent in online sessions.
The Limited Field of Vision
Digital communication restricts the flow of information. The
facilitator’s view of the breather is typically fragmented—either focused
solely on the face or on the whole body at the expense of a detailed view of
facial expression. These perspectives are two-dimensional and partial, lacking
the holistic visual engagement necessary for subtle observation. It is not
possible, for example, to intuitively shift one's gaze to focus on minute
diaphragmatic movements. In contrast, live sessions allow the facilitator to
adjust their visual focus fluidly and immediately, depending on what is needed
in the moment.
As a result, important physical cues—such as early signs of tetany, indicated
by cramped hands—may go unnoticed online, simply because the hands are not
visible. Subtle changes in skin coloration or tone, which often reflect shifts
in blood circulation and emotional state, are also difficult to discern. These
details, easily perceived in person, are often missed in digital sessions.
Reduced Acoustic Perception
Acoustic fidelity is also compromised in digital formats. Breathing
sounds—especially soft or subtle ones—may not transmit accurately, leading the
facilitator to mistakenly believe the breather has paused or stopped breathing
altogether. In physical proximity, however, even the faintest respiratory
activity can be heard, seen, or felt.
A high-quality breath session relies on the facilitator’s ability to
perceive the client’s breathing through multiple sensory channels—auditory,
visual, and tactile. Online, the auditory and visual channels are diminished,
and tactile perception is entirely absent.
Insufficient Information for Somatic Tracking
Effective facilitation requires access to a wide spectrum of sensory
information, not in the sense of quantity alone, but of perceptual richness.
The subconscious mind of the facilitator draws upon this pool of impressions to
make intuitive, context-sensitive decisions. Online-only experience restricts
these perceptual channels, which may result in a lowered capacity for
meaningful guidance. Opportunities for therapeutic depth that would naturally
arise in live sessions may remain unrecognized or untapped.
Training Intuition
Intuition is not an esoteric gift but a highly refined cognitive process
that integrates complex and sometimes contradictory inputs into meaningful
impressions and appropriate responses. In breathwork training, intuition is
honed through repeated real-world experience, supported by feedback—often
nonverbal—from clients. While intuition can be developed to some extent in
online settings, the reduced volume and quality of perceptual information
limits this development. Only extensive in-person training can compensate for
this deficit.
Depth of Experience
Unguided breath sessions are generally less profound than those
facilitated by an attentive presence. To engage with deeper layers of the
psyche, individuals must feel safe—and this sense of safety is significantly
enhanced by the actual presence of another person. These deeper layers often
harbor early relational wounds. Healing requires a new relational experience,
embodied by a benevolent, attentive other.
Virtual presence cannot offer the same sense of security. It may even
reinforce earlier patterns of neglect or emotional unavailability, particularly
if the facilitator is present only in part—visually and aurally, but not
physically. This ambivalence may echo childhood experiences with caregivers who
were inconsistently present, potentially reinforcing rather than healing
attachment wounds.
If the breathwork training consists solely of online sessions, it is
likely that many areas of the psyche that would otherwise come to light in live
breathing sessions will never surface. In a virtual space, it is much easier to
hide one's own dark sides, and resistance to confronting unpleasant feelings will
prevail. However, it is particularly important for training that these aspects
of the personality come to light so that clients can later be guided through
these areas of the psyche with confidence.
Trainees are thus doubly disadvantaged: They neither experience the full
depth of their own processes, nor are they exposed to those of others. They
also cannot learn from the experiences of others with deep processes. This lack
of exposure undermines their capacity to hold space for future clients
navigating similarly profound material.
Touch and Physical Interventions
Physical touch is a sensitive yet integral component of breathwork. The
ability to discern when and how to use touch—and to be aware of one’s own
boundaries and comfort with physical contact—cannot be taught theoretically.
These are skills that require in-the-moment feedback and lived, embodied
experience. They can only be cultivated through live interaction within a
carefully held training environment.
Shared Breath and Somatic Resonance
When two people share a physical space, they also share the air they
breathe. Air, far from being a neutral medium, carries olfactory, thermal, and
kinesthetic information. Breathing the same air generates a subtle yet powerful
sense of connection. When breathing synchronizes, interpersonal resonance
intensifies.
None of this is possible in a digital format. At best, breath can be
heard, but not felt, not smelled, not shared. The sensory richness of shared
breathwork cannot be approximated through virtual means.
The Importance of Presence in Transference Dynamics
In any therapeutic modality, transference and countertransference can
arise—projections that reveal deep relational patterns. These phenomena are crucial
to therapeutic insight and healing, but require rich informational exchange to
be recognized and addressed. The impoverished data stream of online
communication makes it more difficult to perceive and work with these dynamics.
Integration and Closure
Especially after intense experiences, integration is a vital part of the
breathwork process. Clients need to feel held, reassured, and not left alone. A
physically present facilitator can provide this essential reassurance through
subtle but powerful forms of co-regulation. In contrast, virtual presence often
cannot meet this need, and in some cases may even trigger feelings of
abandonment, thus risking retraumatization rather than supporting integration.
Technical Vulnerabilities
Online sessions are vulnerable to technical disruptions. A frozen screen
or lost connection in the middle of an emotionally charged breathing session
can have serious consequences. The sudden loss of a facilitator’s presence may
unconsciously evoke abandonment trauma or attachment rupture. Even less
dramatic disruptions can break immersion, trigger frustration, and reduce the
therapeutic value of the session for both client and facilitator.
Regression and the Return to Adult Consciousness
Breathing processes often induce regressive states in which individuals
revisit early developmental stages. In such states, the breather may become
highly dependent on the facilitator. The facilitator, in turn, must guide the
process with great sensitivity, helping the breather to reestablish adult
consciousness at the appropriate time. This delicate task requires close
attunement, which is much more effective in physical proximity, where verbal
and nonverbal cues can be perceived and responded to instantly and
holistically.
Group Dynamics and Shared Space
In live training, the group space itself becomes a meaningful container.
It functions as a ritual environment, a space of collective safety, or even as
a symbolic womb that facilitates regressive and prenatal experiences. Virtual
spaces, by contrast, can only offer a pale imitation of such richness.
The group field—which contributes significantly to individual breathwork
processes—is greatly diminished in online settings. The screens remain sterile;
shared breath and bodily resonance are absent. Trainees who have only
participated in online group sessions miss out on essential experiences that
inform both individual and group facilitation.
The Value of Embodied Experience
Training to become a breathwork facilitator involves absorbing diverse
types of sensory, emotional, and cognitive information. These impressions are
stored in the unconscious and form the foundation for intuitive action.
High-quality facilitation depends on the depth and breadth of real-world
experience. If a person has only practiced virtually, their ability to respond
to complex client needs will be inherently limited.
Theory Versus Practice
Theoretical content may be well-suited to online presentation . However,
the practical aspects of breathwork—reading body language, tuning into
intuitive impressions, applying touch, and sharing breath—can only be learned
through direct, embodied experience. Those who have only trained online will
require substantial in-person practice to compensate for what was missed,
particularly in terms of mutual breathing experiences, observational skill
development, and the subtleties of nonverbal communication.
Online Sessions with Clients
Conducting online sessions with clients is indeed possible—provided the
therapist has received adequate in-person training. This prior experience
allows the facilitator to interpret subtle cues effectively and maintain
presence, even through a screen. Trust established during previous live
sessions can carry over into virtual settings, supporting continuity and effectiveness.
Still, online sessions are likely to be less emotionally and somatically
profound than those conducted in person.
A practitioner who has trained holistically in live formats can adapt to
constrained formats such as online work. The reverse is not true. Those who
have only experienced virtual training are unlikely to competently facilitate
live sessions, as they lack the embodied understanding of full-spectrum
interpersonal dynamics. This embodied competence cannot fully substitute for embodied experience; it must be lived, felt, and practiced repeatedly.
