Breathing & Posture

In this day and age we are on our phones an average of 4-5 hours a day, spending endless hours on the couch watching tv, maybe you play sports, are at a desk 8 hours a day or perhaps you’re a trades person. What ever your job or lifestyle is, has anyone taught you about alignment, good posture and correct breathing?? In most cases, probably not: we are taught by society to be in survival mode, no one is going around tapping you on the shoulder and say “hey you’re breathing into your chest instead of your diaphragm” (belly), “your posture is out of alignment” , you’re not lifting this correctly” and so on. People worry about money, winning and success but not so much about their health as if we have forgotten that our health is our life…

I have found myself my whole life looking in the mirror and noticing when i was relaxed my shoulders were slouched and neck was tilted forward. I guess my Dad did always tell me to sit up straight but to honest that never really helped because I didn’t know the actual solution and neither did he.

It wasn’t until 6 months ago when I met a wonderful lady named Shoshana Leibner who I had the privilege of learning from. Since her training i have noticed a significant difference in my posture, I had already been doing breath work for a couple of years, had started my own business www.binauralbreathwork.au and I thought I knew how to breathe correctly and that I was aligned….but I wasn’t.

Human beings and animals take shallow breath’s when they are nervous, feel threatened, anxious or stressed. Shallow breathing is not what we want to be doing because it’s not optimal for our posture, nervous system or stress response system. We start to breath into our chest and take short breaths and this is why we can feel short of breath and people can feel like they are having a panic attack, this will activate the fight or flight response.

Just from being more conscious of how i breathe, how i stand, where am i breathing into I’ve seen my body transform in a short period of time. My digestion is better, i feel stronger, fitness has gone up. I’m not slouching over, i feel taller.

Try this: For example,

• Start by placing your hands on the front of your rib cage, breathe into where your hands are!

• Place a hand each side of the ribs, left and right and breathing into them feel your ribs expanding.

• If you can reach and place your hand on the back of your rib cage, or visualise breathing into the back of the lungs.

• This a simple exercise to get you breathing and activating you muscles that support your diaphragm, this will help stabilise and engage the core.

This is just one of many exercises that I have learn’t in my training with Shoshana Leibner.

Things to be aware of;

• Where are you breathing into?

• Breathing through the nose?

• Engaging the right muscles when breathing?

It seems simple to just breathe into your diaphragm or through the nose, its not it takes time. Be patiant, don’t be to hard on yourself.

This is just one facet to creating a good posture. I’m referencing the breathe, this is what has help me in the last few years to become my optimal self. If anyone has any further questions or is curious about learning how to breathe please contact me on:

Aurie Bourke |
Instagram: binaruralbreathwork
Website: www.binauralbreathwork.au
Facebook: Aurie Bourke

Shoshana Leibner |
Instagram: floatdreams
Facebook: shoshana leibner

Breathwork for Teens

Being a parent of teenagers can be tough; finding beneficial ways to support them through anxiety, stress and emotional changes is a feat in itself. The greatest challenge is arming them with the tools to manage all of life’s struggles and the things that make for an unhappy, distant, introverted and sometimes angry teenager as opposed to the fun natured, happy, playful and extroverted child you once knew.

Teens more than ever need our support and in ways that resonates for them so they can manage their issues in their own way, controlling themselves rather than us telling them what they should or shouldn't do, which more often than not provides a negative impact rather than the desired impact of the parent and does not feel like the support that was intended.

The old saying ‘it takes a village’ could not be more true than when it comes to teenagers! Learning from others such as mentors and facilitators can have a far greater influence than from their parents.

I have a story of my own to share which indeed resonates with the teenage generation: I was resentful, frustrated and angry like every other teenager. Not understanding my environment the world or myself led me to going down a path that was not healthy or helpful for my growth, well-being and maturity.

The age between 13-18 can be very difficult; we are heavily influenced by our friends, social media and TV, we can become someone that we are not simple because it’s what everyone else is doing and we want to fit in. On top of this our home environment, exams, tests and bullying these are all stressful circumstances that can impact how we are feeling and how we treat other people.

Breathwork has proven over and over again to have a strong positive impact on health and wellbeing, managing anxieties and stress and dealing with addictions and mental health. In turn dealing with all of the above aids us in sleeping better, learning to focus for longer, allowing emotions to visit and pass through healthily and understanding how handle life's little curveballs when they arrive.

Every kid has access to this powerful technique and I want to show you how we can use the breath as a tool to help with all of the stress, pressure and expectations of being a teenager.

Breath work is an ancient technique employed by many cultures, in more recent years the western culture has tapped into this with exceptional outcomes for many. What a fabulous skill to be able to breathe properly the way our body was designed to and what a wonderful technique for our teens to learn now and take with them as they become adults, parents and grandparents themselves.

If you are finding it hard to support your Teenager, perhaps Breathwork class is something you can introduce to them, send them the link binauralbreathwork.com.au.

Breathwork sessions available with Aurie Bourke
Bookings for Group Classes
Bookings for Private Session Please E-mail | binauralbreathwork@gmail.com

Tranquility through Floating & Breathwork

Floating | What is floating?

Floatation therapy is a wonderful way of achieving deep relaxation by spending an hour or more weightlessly floating in darkness emersed in warm epsom salt filled water (34-35 degrees). Floatation Tanks are also know as Sensory Deprivation Tanks and Isolation Tanks.

Free from sensory input, the floatation theory is that 90% of a brains workload is caused by routine environment stimulation (touch, gravity, light, sound) we are living in a world where we are strongly affected by the external, whether it be work related, relational or even things as simple traffic. We don’t realise how much our minds are processing from what happens in our day and it all catches up on us if we don’t decompress!

Floating is an optimal activity for quietening the mind; to be in a space of zero gravity, no sound, no light and no touch is an experience that you can not access anywhere else other than in your dreams: regular floaters often describe the experience as entering a dream/like state is. And learning breathwork techniques to use in the tank is a exceptional tool to amplify the experience.

Breathing in the Tank

For us homo-sapiens breathing is our life force. When we get in the tank it can be hard for us to shut everything thing down; thoughts race through our mind, emotions start surfacing and it can be hard for us to be in our bodies.

Try these techniques once you get in the tank:

•Start by focusing on the breath in the tank, breathing through the nose and feeling the air entering the nasal cavity down into the lungs, noticing where do you feel the breath, trying to imagine your rib cage is expanding a little more with every breath.

•Relaxing your shoulders, arms, legs, tapping into your body breathing slowing everything down. Just consciously breathing after a period of time your body will be in a state of relaxation..

• Your para-sympathetic nervous system will have been activated through the nasal breathing, this will have an huge effect on the body including:

• Reduced stress & anxiety

• Lowered blood pressure

• Improved Heart rate

• Relaxed muscles

• Purifying the energy system

• Helping with inflammation

• A couple techniques to try in the tank.

• Boxed breathing

• Alternate nasal breathing

• 1-1 ratio breathing

These basic techniques are covered in videos that you can find on my website and on my reels on Instagram @binauralbreathwork

For information and bookings at Water Temple, Armadale
VISIT | https://www.watertemple.com.au/

Addiction and the Healing Power of Breathwork - Aurie’s Story

Aurie Bourke, Founder, Binaural Breathwork talks about his journey and how Breathwork helped him overcome addiction.

For anyone that doesn't know me, my name is Aurie. I am a former addict that went through 6-7 years of consistently smoking methamphetamine.

I was in a horrible place, my mental health was in a mud puddle, and I couldn't think straight or concentrate. I was frustrated, angry, sad, and lonely.

One night roughly five years ago, I randomly stumbled across Breathwork. Feeling helpless and running out of options, I decided it was worth a try. I couldn't believe how peaceful I felt. For a moment, I wasn't inside my head. It was nothing short of a miracle. This single experience kicked off my journey that led me to where I am today. I continued experimenting with Breathwork, and upon realizing my first cathartic session wasn't a fluke, I incorporated regular sessions into my daily routine.

I soon began seeing a healer to expand my knowledge of this newly discovered habit. I wanted to experience other potentially life-altering alternative healing modalities that I may have overlooked my entire life.

Sitting with myself regularly practicing Breathwork, I realized how unhappy I had been and how incredible I could and should feel.

Let me tell you; it's not just Breathwork that helps you: it's a good routine, a healthy body, exercise, yoga, and affirmations. All of these contribute to the different aspects of practicing mindfulness and healing!

Breathwork was the one for me that stuck.

All addicts are trying to numb themselves to escape from something. It took me years of battling addiction, hitting rock bottom, and finally discovering Breathwork to determine that I was running from childhood trauma.

When we are young, if we don't feel stable in our environment, we don't feel safe. I always thought that I had a normal childhood. However, it doesn't take much for a child to suffer from long-lasting trauma. Broken households and failed parental relationships affect children the most, leaving deep emotional scars that often remain unprocessed.

Addiction is a complicated disease, and many factors cause people to become addicts. It may not be a result of your childhood; however, I know that whatever it may be, Breathwork can be the necessary tool to dig deep and start the healing process.

Bouncing back from addiction is a long and challenging journey. Like most journeys, you can travel much further with quality people who can help and support you along the way.

If you're reading this blog post, you have already taken a huge first step.

I know you can do it.

If you're not ready for a personalized Breathwork session, go on YouTube, experiment with some different instructors, and see how you feel.

When you feel ready, you can book a session with me, and I will be ready to help you.

Follow me on socials as we go through this introspective journey together.

BOOK ONLINE | binauralbreathwork.au
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