When high school teacher Benedict Beaumont found himself on the edge of burnout, he didn’t expect that a chance encounter with Breathwork in Ubud, Bali, would set him on a path of profound transformation. In that single, revelatory session, Beaumont discovered the clarity and insight he had been seeking—a clarity that surpassed years of meditation and yoga. This awakening sparked a realization that the most powerful tool for change was already within him: his breath. Driven by both personal need and a desire to share this newfound gift, Beaumont and his wife Jennifer founded Breathing Space. Their mission was simple yet profound: to provide affordable yoga and Breathwork retreats, creating a sanctuary for healing and growth. What began as a humble endeavor soon blossomed into a thriving community, with students eager to spread the transformative power of Breathwork. Today, Breathwork has not only reshaped Beaumont’s own life but has also allowed him to become a more compassionate partner, parent, and guide. His teaching approach is marked by inclusivity, self-compassion, and a touch of humor, welcoming all emotions and experiences. Beaumont emphasizes that enlightenment is not a prerequisite for growth, but rather, a journey where every breath counts. Join Mystic Mag and read more.
What inspired you to found Breathing Space and dedicate your life to the practice of breathwork?
I have been searching for meaning and purpose all of my life. I remember when I was young, I would see everyone in my class with aspirations or ambitions to become something—like a vet or an architect—and I was very jealous of them. I always wanted that certainty, that knowledge of what I was going to do with my life. I wanted to feel that I was doing something worthwhile, something meaningful that would serve the world and I spent most of my life looking for what that was.
Over the years I have had a lot of different jobs and tried a lot of different things. I had a career as a high school teacher and another one in hospitality. Alongside that, I went on an internal journey to try and make the best person I could be. I did a lot of yoga – stretching and sweating on the mat. I became a Buddhist and developed a very strong and disciplined meditation practice and a deep love of dharma. I went to therapy and read every self-help and personal development book on the shelf. Everything I tried offered tiny parts, tiny bricks, tiny guiding lights that inspired me, but none gave me the whole picture.
It was when I discovered breathwork, just about 10 years ago, that everything suddenly made sense. I was invited to a conscious breathwork session in Bali, and at that point, having been on a journey of discovery for many years, I thought I knew what breathwork was. I thought it would be a bit of alternate nostril breathing, perhaps some deep breaths into our belly and a talk about how breathing could lead to better health. I could not have been more wrong!
When I sat down in a room full of people, we were instructed to breathe in a particular fashion (called Conscious Connected Breathwork). Some music was played, and within five breaths, I reached that place I had always been searching for—that moment of transcendence, that connection to my highest self, to the universe, and to everyone around me. Suddenly, all those little pieces I had learned came together, calling me into my purpose.
Since that moment, when I discovered the power and potential within my own breath, I knew it would become my life’s work. Over the past 10 years, I have been called into service, to light myself up with my own breath, and to lead others to do the same.
Can you share a personal story of how breathwork transformed your life and led you to believe in its power?
Breathwork is a broad field with various techniques that support us at every level of our being—from our physical health and well-being to our emotional balance, our creativity and inspiration, and even the subtle realms of spiritual connection. I’m going to give you two examples of how breathwork has personally transformed my life from two different levels of my being.
I was a lifelong asthma sufferer and struggled to breathe well as a child. I have many memories of being unable to breathe, and my mom locking me in the bathroom to breathe over a steaming kettle, or rubbing camphor into my chest. When I was young, there weren’t many drugs available to help with asthma; they came a little later. Throughout my life, I suffered from chronic breathing conditions—ranging from asthma to shortness of breath when I exercised, to constant chest infections, and constriction in my breathing.
When I began training to become a breathwork facilitator and exploring dozens of different breathwork techniques, I also worked on a deeper level within myself. As I started releasing the weight of emotions, expectations, wounds, and trauma, and strengthened my lungs with exercises, the tightness, constriction, and pain began to shift. I stopped getting chest infections, stopped having trouble breathing, and stopped using my medication. Although I still carry an inhaler with me sometimes, I almost never use it anymore. My life has been physically transformed through breathwork, and that is just one way it has supported me.
But there is another, more subtle way that breathwork has helped me light up. I always felt unfulfilled, a feeling that I wasn’t reaching my potential, that I should have been doing something more, something deeper, more important with my life. I tried many different careers, in my early adult life IT and in Events, but nothing ever felt right. I then became a high school teacher for many years, trying to give back to Society. I wanted to become the kind of teacher that inspires students, fires them up to do something, and makes a difference in their lives – and to a large extent I succeeded – I know there were many who would have failed and dropped out if it was not for me. But still it wasnt enough for me.
When I discovered breathwork, everything started to change. I moved into alignment as I discovered my purpose and path in life. Then, I began to do incredible things. This might sound like boasting, but here are a few of the things I’ve done, which I never thought I could achieve. I was just a humble high school teacher in the South of England, but suddenly, I found myself capable of extraordinary things: leading retreats in some of the most beautiful places all over the world. Holding others’ hands as they went through transformational experiences. I started my own breathwork school. Imagine starting your own school with facilitators and trainees all around the world. I still don’t really know how it happened, but I do know that it was fun, easy, and joyful every single moment that I walked on this path of purpose and passion.
I started a breathwork festival where I interviewed leading practitioners and teachers from all over the world.
I have been fortunate to have done some incredible things with breathwork, but the most satisfying aspect is seeing the people I breathe with or train start to light up in their own right, becoming even greater lights than me. They become better teachers and facilitators than I am, and I see them making a difference in the world, bringing breathwork to all communities, all people, all languages. The joy that brings me—knowing that we are making a difference in the world—is truly inspirational.
What type of services do you offer?
My school, Breathing Space, is designed to meet people wherever they are on their breathwork journey. For those who have never practiced conscious breathwork before—like myself when I first started— or whether they are suffering from physical or well-being challenges, we can support you on that journey. We offer five free online workshops every single week – on different days and in different time zones, so everyone can have the opportunity to connect with their breath. We also have a number of free Breathwork courses where you can start to explore your breath and learn different techniques and exercises.
For those who have some experience and are craving something deeper, we offer courses that can deepen your understanding and experience of breathwork, taking you on a journey of emotional and physical healing and transformation.
For many people, when they first discover their breath and the light switches on, they feel, as I did, that breathwork will become a significant part of their lives. For those who feel called to go even further, we offer facilitator training. We train people to lead others in this transformative, life-changing practice of breathwork.
So, we meet people wherever they are —whether just beginning, looking to go deeper, or wanting to dedicate their lives to serving the universe and lighting up the world through breathwork.
How do you guide individuals in moving beyond doubts about their path through breathwork?
Breath is with us every single moment of our lives. It is our best friend and our wisest counselor. One of my teachers once said, “The most important relationship we have in our lives is with our breath.” So, what do we teach, and how do we do this? It’s actually very simple: we create a space, provide people with the tools, and then step aside.
The spaces we create and the tools we share are all centered around the breath. As teachers and facilitators, we believe in getting out of the way. I truly believe that every single person is their own best teacher and their own best healer. It isn’t my role to dictate what your experience should be or what you need to do. That approach might help some people, but it won’t work for everyone, and it will only take you so far.
What I’m really interested in is awakening the teacher, healer, and light within every single person. If I can empower people in this way, then everyone can help themselves, find their own medicine, and transform themselves. Breathwork is available to everyone, regardless of language, experience, or circumstance—whether you’re bedridden, an athlete, an IT technician, a cook, a parent, or anything else. You have your breath, and it is the key to unlocking so much within you.
All I wish to give people is the ability, knowledge, experience, and tools to heal and transform themselves.
What are some specific techniques or exercises within breathwork that you find most effective for promoting clarity and confidence?
Breathwork is essentially very simple. There’s no breathwork technique that you can’t learn in under five minutes. Whether you watch a video on YouTube or read a book, you can easily learn to inhale, exhale, hold your breath, and count. Breathwork is really straightforward, but like many of the most profound and powerful things, it can be life-changing.
My favorite technique, which I practice multiple times a day whenever I’m feeling stressed, anxious, or overwhelmed—whenever I need some calm and space to gather myself—is called Coherence Breathing. In Coherence Breathing, we simply match the length of the exhale to the length of the inhale, so our breath becomes balanced. As our breath comes into balance, everything else in our body comes into balance, and with our body balanced, our emotional energy also comes into balance.
Let’s try a couple of breaths together right now. It’s very simple. I’ll count to four on the inhale, and then we’ll count to four on the exhale. Let’s give it a go:
Inhale, 2, 3, 4.
Exhale, 2, 3, 4.
Inhale, 2, 3, 4.
Exhale, 2, 3, 4.
One last time: Inhale, 2, 3, 4.
Exhale, 2, 3, 4.
There are no contraindications with this breathwork technique—you can do it all day long. One of my favorite aspects of it is that it’s secret; no one knows you’re doing it. You can practice it while you’re catching the bus, standing in a checkout line at the supermarket, or even while you’re at work. This technique can only bring you benefits.
Thankyou for reading a little about me and Breathwork. I genuinely hope that it leads to some breaths together.
Benedict Beaumont
Founder of Breathing Space
