TRAUMA FOCUSED BREATHWORK CERTIFICATION & FACILITATOR TRAINING

FOR HEALERS, PRACTITIONERS, AND CLINICIANS

Let’s get certified!

Breathwork for Recovery offers a one-of-a-kind 800-hour Breathwork Clinician Certification (BCC) that is a hybrid of online coursework and in-person hands-on facilitation, to be completed in either 2 or 4 years with a time commitment of around 33 hours of work per month. All work until graduation is to be completed virtually.

The breath practice we teach is a two-part breath done through the mouth, not dissimilar to CCB. Its origins are currently unknown, but we are working with a pranayama scholar to uncover its roots. We studied for 12 years under David Elliott* until we left for ethical reasons, and no real lineage of this work was ever taught. It most likely is a modified Kriya technique, but we are on the journey to discover its genesis so we can give appropriate credit to this practice.

BfR’s BCC covers topics that no other breathwork training programs touch — including anti-racism and intersectionality, spiritual bypass, ethics of care, and how to build an equitable breathwork business. It is one of the most thorough programs available.

Over the course of our breathwork training, attendees will learn essential information about breathwork technique, trauma, counseling and communication skills, ethical practice, implicit bias, and group and couples work using an intersectional lens. Attendees will also develop new insight into their own healing — a common result of taking trainings of this kind. We say trauma focused instead of trauma-informed because at its core, breathwork is a trauma remediation technique, so calling it trauma-informed is more of a marketing ploy for SEO.

This Breathwork Clinician Certification (BCC) consists of:

• (11) 8-hour monthly trainings (88 hours)

• (11) 2 hour homework assignments (22 hours)

• (1) 8-hour presentation days (8 hours)

• (1) 4-hour prep for presentation (4 hours)

• (50) 1.5 weekly supervision meetings (75 hours)

• (12) 3-hour monthly breathwork group trainer led (36 hours)

• (50) 1 hour leading peer-to-peer sessions (50 hours)

• (50) 1 hour receiving peer-to-peer sessions (50 hours)

• (10) 2-hour peer led breathwork group (20 hours)

• (10) 1 hour sessions with outside clients (10 hours)

• (50) 15 minute oral or written session notes (12.5 hours)

• Specialized reading list and writing assignments (25 hours)

• 1 in-person hands-on clinic culminating in a graduation ceremony (West Coast, location TBD)

Breathwork for Recovery is approved by the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists to sponsor continuing education for LMFTs and LCSWs. Breathwork for Recovery maintains responsibility for this program/course and its content. The 800-hour Breathwork Clinician Certification qualifies for 800 CE hours. This can be broken up to eight hours per training, three per group facilitation, 1.5 per supervision)

One full and four partial scholarships are available per cohort to Black, Indigenous, Brown, Asian American Pacific Islander, and People of Color, with priority given to those who are queer or transgender. Any person of Indian descent who would like to attend will be allowed to attend at a “pay what you feel the course is worth” rate. To receive the scholarship, please apply here. After review, faculty will email the scholarship form for you to complete.

2023 Cohort:
Opening Ceremony: Saturday, Sept. 22 9 a.m.-noon PT
Day 1 (Online module 1 start date): Saturday, October 14 9 a.m.-6 p.m. PT
All following online modules take place on the 2nd Sunday of each month from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. PT (unless otherwise specified)

Monthly 3-hour Trainer led Breathwork occurs every 2nd Friday of the month

Monthly 2-hour Student led Breathwork occurs every 4th Sunday of the month

Weekly 90-minute supervision occurs TBD

Students are expected to lead roughly 1 session per week with other cohort members

Students are expected to receive roughly 1 session per week with other cohort members

Cost:
Standard rate: $8,000 per person ($1,000 nonrefundable deposit due at signup*)
Scholarship rate: $4,000 per person ($500 refundable deposit due at signup)

Location: Coursework will take place online via Zoom (no account required). You will need access to a reliable Internet connection and video chat capability. Links and materials will be provided via email 7 days prior to Training Day 1. The final clinic will take place in person at a TBD location on the west coast.

*Deposits are non-refundable unless stated otherwise.

This is a comprehensive training, but with any course of study, there is no way to “complete” an education in breathwork facilitation. This will not be the first or final breathwork training you will need to take to be an effective provider. Recommendations for continued education will be provided upon completion of this program.

Visit our FAQs to learn more about this program, including scholarship guidelines, no-interest payment plans, and CE hours.

*In the almost 12 years I spent studying under David Elliott as one of his main teachers, I’ve grown both spiritually and professionally and will always be grateful for the opportunities that working closely with him has afforded me. In Fall 2021, I made the heart-wrenching and difficult decision to leave David's breathwork community, as I could no longer ethically be associated with him or his teachers due to the legacy of harm outlined here by Breathwork for the People.

I was not involved in the letter-writing nor am I affiliated with Breathwork for the People, but what they did was an important step in healing the breathwork community and took a tremendous amount of courage. I remained in David's breathwork community for a year and a half hoping to be a part of the important changes urged by Breathwork for the People and several other community members throughout the years, and to make it a better program and safer, more affirming space for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color as well as folks from the LGBTQIA+ community. The issues outlined in the letter were not remedied, however, and the changes were not made. So I left the community in order to build one that represents the values and justice focus that I and so many others hold true.

BfR’s BCC covers a range of core competencies, including: