IMD Breathwork

What to Expect in Your IMD Breathwork Session

IMD Breathwork combines fast, patterned breathing with sound to help you move what the body is holding. It's direct, safe, and trauma-informed by design.

This page describes the IMD Signature session — two hours, two rounds of breathing. If you've booked IMD Lite, it's the shorter version: one hour, one round of breathing, then the same guided rest at the end. Everything else below — the eye mask, the sensations, the safety checks, the aftercare — applies to both.

Before you arrive

Wear comfortable clothes you can move in. Eat a light meal at least two hours before, and skip alcohol on the day. Bring a water bottle and a blanket if you have one. Use the bathroom before you start — you won't want to stop once the session begins.

How the session works

You'll lie down with an eye mask and headphones on. You won't see or hear the room. This is your own experience.

Signature runs in two rounds. In each round, you breathe with guided coaching for about 20 minutes, hold your breath for one minute, then let go with a loud release — a scream, together with the room. After both rounds, you rest and follow two short guided visualizations while your body settles.

Lite runs the same way for one round — breathe, hold, release — then moves straight into the same guided rest at the end. It's a shorter entry point into the work, without the second round.

Your facilitator may use touch during the session — a hand near your body, or a hand on your shoulder, belly, or back — to help guide your breathing. Tell your facilitator beforehand if you'd rather not be touched, and they'll check in with you a different way instead.

What you might feel

Fast, deep breathing changes your body chemistry quickly. Many people feel:

Lightheaded within the first few minutes
Tingling in the hands and feet
Muscle cramps, sometimes with the hands curling inward
Waves of feeling hot or cold

These sensations are a normal, temporary response to the breathing pattern. They pass.

You may also feel a strong emotional release; crying, shaking, laughing. Let it happen. If it gets too intense, your facilitator will teach you a reset breath before you start, so you can ease off at any point. You're in control the whole way through. You can slow down, take smaller breaths, or stop whenever you need to.

Check with us first if you

Have a heart condition, or high or low blood pressure
Have a lung condition or asthma
Are pregnant (this session isn't suitable during pregnancy)
Have epilepsy or a history of seizures
Had recent surgery
Take strong prescription medication
Have a diagnosed mental health condition

Let your facilitator know before the session starts. We'll adjust the breathing for you or suggest a gentler pace.

After your session

Give yourself an hour before you go back to normal life. Stay off your phone, and do something calm on your own if you can. More feelings or memories may come up over the next few hours or days; that's a normal part of the process.

You'll likely leave feeling lighter, calmer, and clearer.

IMD Breathwork