We completed both the Awakening Through Trauma Immersive Somatic Healing and Conscious Inquiry Retreat.
AND
Level Three of the TOSA More Than a Breathwork Training in May 2023.
As I was sitting in the Barcelona airport on my way to Italy as a guest teacher to support my friend Rita (a breathwork trainer at Your Breath Tree) and her students, I couldn’t have been more proud of so so many things.
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Firstly, the courageousness of everyone who attended. It’s easy to stay in our wounded, trauma story, and many are willing to support it because it supports theirs as well. We are used to projecting, numbing, distracting, blaming, or running from our pain, suffering or stuckness.
The willingness, courage and determination to show up and meet yourself in this profoundly healing way comes only from the choice to take conscious ownership of our life. And it isn’t a path many take and we can’t do it alone.
Sure, there are many on a spiritual path who post the trends, new labels and wowing teachings, yet still don’t actually do the deep inner work to set themselves free from struggle behind the scenes where it matters.
Equally, many people are happy to stay fully locked into the victim narrative and addicted to their pain.
Those that arrive at this retreat are those beautiful souls that are ready and willing to take radical, conscious ownership of their healing. They are determined to break the cycle because the cost of caring around their pain comes at a far greater cost than the past circumstances that happened.
They desire freedom, empowerment and a deep connection to their innateness and each other – even if they don’t know how to achieve that in the moment. And they know they need to be supported through the process.
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Secondly, the students!! We had nine students attend live. We had three and a bit days together immersed in training on safe trauma release and space-holding as a breathwork facilitator. We were blessed to have Kerry Dawson join us with her over 30 years of experience as an Osteopath. She also has many years as a Breathwork facilitator and Mentor and has attended many Breathwork trainings during her career.
The combination of hands-on practice and training was incredibly powerful.
Our students then became part of our support team (practicum hours) for our retreat participants. Not only did they support and hold space, but they were also held in their own processes with the participants by myself and Briony.
I have spent 35 years in this industry, and I have seen over and over the negative impact “wounded healers and practitioners” have on the world.
The foundations of the TOSA More Than Breathwork Training is about, first and foremost, being held to meet your own traumas, stuckness and pain so that you can safely hold another through integrative healing.
Why? Because we can only lead people as far as we have gone. And breathwork alone isn’t enough. There is SO much more needed to truly evolve beyond your story and suffering than just breathing – and that is what this facilitator training is all about – safe, conscious space-holding so that those you support truly heal and integrate their past instead of continually being trapped in the processing of it. Or be psychoanalyzed just enough to do damage. It’s about liberating ourselves from all that defines us.
I’ve been involved in MANY breathwork trainings and have never seen facilitators show up with this level of preparedness, presence, compassion and ability to meet those they were in service to. Even Kerry was blown away… and that says a lot!
So huge congrats to each of you for what it actually takes to meet yourself on this journey so you can consciously meet another. I look forward to watching you share your beautiful gifts with the world.
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I’m also proud and honoured to have Briony Gunson as my assistant trainer on this journey. I have pretty high standards-the level of integrity and ownership I hold myself to in this deep work; I also ask of those that work close to me. And Briony works close with me. She is a shining example of what can be achieved with this work (#TOSAMethod), and she continues to lean in and unravel her own limits and stuckness to be that hollow bone of healing. I feel blessed to have her beside me bringing her gifts to everyone we serve.
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When #TheTOSAMethod first came to me in 2016, it was a vision of awakening through the conscious meeting of pain. Obviously, it has grown and evolved over the years to what it is today, but the vision is the vision.
Additionally, in 2019 I suggested this structure of breathwork training to another breathwork school (I offered my vision). However, they lacked (in my opinion) the integrity and ability to take full conscious ownership and create safe space. As I also say, with great power comes great responsibility! The breath and the role of space-holders are powerful. These held without radical responsibility and ownership can be used in damaging and self-serving ways.
A vision isn’t a vision unless the person who sees it steps into it. I couldn’t offer my vision to another school because they couldn’t see what I saw. It was given to me, so it was mine to hold the unfolding of (with the support of my team).
I’m honoured and humbled to have witnessed this vision be born in front of me and impact many in a safe, conscious, integral, deeply profound way.
And I couldn’t have done it without the courageous souls who chose to meet themselves on all levels to experience their innate wholeness and be a living example in the world.
If you would like to attend a training or to learn to facilitate The TOSA Method (a radical approach to our conscious evolution and healing), please email me or learn more here.
