Hi ,

This week, I'm just here to introduce you to Libby Smith, our Integration Lead over at Buffalo Collective. Libby is a real money-where-their-mouth-is kinda person, and I'm so grateful for their leadership and facilitation over in our inaugural Herd.

Libby is, among other things, a breathwork facilitator. If you're not familiar, breathwork is a type of somatic practice FOR integration. This is an excerpt from a recent article she wrote about it, over on Buffalo Collective.co

The Trip You Can Drive: Autonomy, Intuition, and Non-Ordinary States through Breathwork

If you had told me ten years ago that I could experience a profound shift in reality—complete with emotional catharsis, vivid mental imagery, and a tangible connection to my own intuition—simply by lying on my office floor and breathing, I would have been skeptical.

Like most people, I always associated "altered states" primarily with psychedelics, plant medicines, or perhaps years of solitary, monk-like meditation.

Then, I found breathwork.

Now if I’m completely honest, my first breathwork session was weird and incomplete. I was certain I was doing it wrong. And it took me months to come back to it and give it another try.

But I’m so glad I did, more than any other practice it has quite simply changed my life.

The breathwork I practice and lead has a lineage that’s murky at best, but at the end of the day humans have been using the power of their own breath for physical and spiritual healing for more millenia than we can count.

The sessions I ended up having with a coach weren’t "relaxing" per se. I often say, they call it breathwork for a reason. But what I ultimately experienced was a drug-free journey into what psychologists call a non-ordinary state of consciousness (NOSC). For 30 minutes or so, the mundane chatter of my critical brain—the imposter syndrome, the perfectionism—was completely quieted. In its place, I was left with pure feeling, profound insights, and a clearing that I hadn't found anywhere else.

It changed how I view self-care, and gave me a pathway to help others find healing.

In a world where we are often overwhelmed by external noise, I want to talk about how the most potent tool for reconnection is actually right under our nose.

The Science of the "Natural High"

How does simple breathing facilitate a "trip"? It isn’t magic; it’s physiology.

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AND, of course, there I leave you with a cliffhanger and an invitation to read the rest over on Buffalo Collective, where you can also subscribe to updates. We'll keep you in the loop about upcoming retreats, philosophical explorations of the simple questions about existence and thriving, connection, and abundance.

See you there!

Lindsay

P.S. If you haven't already, consider joining me in sending a strong message to the oligarchs that are enabling fascist activity in Minnesota and beyond. I strongly believe that full participation in the Resist and Unsubscribe effort is the single most effective thing a person in the United States can do to effect change. As much as you can participate without sacrificing your livelihood, I urge you to join me.