Guided Breathwork
Breathing support for anxiety, respiratory conditions, chronic health conditions, singing and voice control
Dawn is our certified breathwork coach and professional choral singer with over 25 years of experience.
Combining her expertise in breathing techniques, vocal control and wellbeing, she offers gentle, personalised sessions to support those experiencing anxiety, stress, breathing difficulties and chronic health conditions, as well as individuals wishing to improve their singing and voice control.
Available online throughout the UK and in person at our South Cave clinic in East Yorkshire.
How can guided breathwork help?
Breathwork doesn’t necessarily mean taking bigger or deeper breaths. For some people, repeatedly taking large breaths can actually increase sensations such as dizziness, chest tightness or air hunger.
Instead, sessions focus on becoming more aware of your breathing and how it responds to your body, movement, posture and emotions.
Depending on your individual needs, sessions may explore:
Relaxed breathing and breath awareness
Reducing unnecessary upper-chest breathing
Rib-cage movement
Releasing tension around the shoulders, neck, ribs and throat
Breathing during movement and everyday activities
Developing a steadier breathing rhythm
Relaxation and postural awareness
Managing feelings of breathlessness
Breathing techniques for stressful or anxiety-provoking situations
Gentle vocalisation and humming
Breath support and coordination for speaking or singing
There is no pressure to perform and you don’t need any singing experience.
Who might find breathwork helpful?
Guided breathwork may be helpful if you experience breathlessness or air hunger, frequent sighing, difficulty taking a satisfying breath, upper-chest or altered breathing patterns, anxiety or stress affecting your breathing, tension around your chest, ribs, neck or throat, breath holding during movement, or vocal fatigue and tension.
People living with asthma, COPD, Long COVID, ME/CFS or POTS/dysautonomia may also find gentle breathing support helpful alongside their existing healthcare.
Sessions can be carefully adapted for people experiencing fatigue, dizziness or exercise intolerance. The emphasis is on comfortable breathing and reducing unnecessary effort rather than pushing through symptoms.
Breathwork for anxiety and tension
Feeling breathless can be frightening, and anxiety itself can change the way we breathe. This can sometimes create a cycle of faster or shallower breathing, physical tension and increased awareness of breathing.
Gentle breath awareness and relaxation techniques can help you recognise these patterns and develop practical ways of feeling calmer and more in control.
Breathwork for voice and singing
Dawn’s professional background in classical singing makes these sessions particularly suitable for people who use their voice extensively, including singers, performers, teachers, lecturers, healthcare professionals and public speakers.
Sessions can explore breath support and control, vocal stamina, projection, posture and rib-cage movement, reducing unnecessary tension, coordinating breath with speech or musical phrasing, and developing confidence in your voice.
Sessions are suitable for complete beginners as well as experienced singers and performers.
What happens during a session?
Your first appointment begins with a conversation about what you are experiencing and what you would like to achieve.
Dawn will then introduce gentle breathing and body-awareness techniques tailored to you. Exercises are introduced gradually, and you may be given simple strategies to practise at home.
There isn’t one ‘perfect’ way to breathe. The aim is to help you better understand your own breathing and develop practical techniques that you can use in everyday life.
A joined-up approach
Breathing difficulties can sometimes occur alongside other health concerns.
At Wolds Holistic Health, guided breathwork can sit alongside support from our physiotherapy and wider multidisciplinary team where appropriate.
If you’re unsure which service would be most suitable, please contact us and we can help you decide where to start.
Important information
Breathlessness has many possible causes and should not automatically be assumed to be caused by breathing patterns, anxiety or tension. New, unexplained or worsening breathlessness should be medically assessed.
Urgent medical help should be sought for severe or sudden breathlessness, chest pain, fainting, blue or grey lips or skin, coughing up blood, or other severe symptoms.
Guided breathwork is not medical treatment, respiratory physiotherapy or pulmonary rehabilitation. It is intended to complement, rather than replace, appropriate healthcare.
Book an Individual Guided Breathwork Session
Whether you experience breathlessness, breathing-related tension, anxiety around breathing or vocal fatigue — or simply want to understand and improve your breathing for speaking or singing, you can arrange an individual session with Dawn.
Available online throughout the UK and in person at our South Cave clinic in East Yorkshire.