SCHOOL OF BREATHING SCIENCES
309 Trauma, Phenomenology, & Breathing
Breathing, as a learned behavior (conscious or unconscious), drives neurophysiology in ways that may profoundly, immediately, and chronically alter consciousness and experience (phenomenology), including emotions, cognitions, and personality. This course will provide a highly interactive, in depth exploration into the phenomenology of psychological trauma. Participants will discuss their experiences and difficulties in working with people suffering from traumatic experiences. The course will integrate the unconscious effects on trauma, its manifestations on character development, effects on adaptive capacity, masochism and suffering with its physiological consequences ranging from epigenesis and brain development to endocrine function and dysfunctional physiological habits, especially breathing. The course will address the importance of working through a traumatized person’s resistances against emotional closeness so that intimacy, resiliency and new physiological and interpersonal habits can be acquired. Various interventions for addressing the need to perpetuate victimization will be reviewed.