029: Breathwork for Emotional Release: Stop Fighting What You Feel | Zach Rehder

What is breathwork for emotional release, and what might change if you stopped trying to fix yourself?

Breathwork is the intentional practice of bringing awareness to your breathing. In this episode of Live Your Jam, Ellen McGinnis sits down with breathwork practitioner Zach Rehder to explore how conscious breathing can become a way to notice emotional resistance, reconnect with your body, and make room for uncomfortable feelings.

After nearly 30 years of exploring personal growth and spiritual practices, Zach shares why understanding more did not necessarily help him feel better. His approach invites a different question: what if the feelings you keep pushing away deserve your attention rather than another attempt to control them?

Ellen and Zach discuss the difference between everyday breath awareness and a deeper facilitated breathwork session, including the circular connected breathing lineage Zach works with. He introduces his “lower, slower, deeper, softer” practice and a body-awareness exercise that begins by noticing the part of your body you feel least connected to.

If you’re navigating a life transition, caught in overthinking, or tired of treating yourself like a project that needs fixing, this conversation offers an invitation to pause, get curious, and listen to what you feel.

You will learn:

  • What breathwork means and how everyday breath awareness differs from facilitated sessions
  • How Zach connects emotional resistance with held breath and physical tension
  • Why more self-help knowledge does not always change how you feel
  • How to approach emotional triggers with curiosity rather than immediate reaction
  • What Zach means by breathing “lower, slower, deeper, softer”
  • How a simple body-awareness practice can help you notice overlooked sensations
  • Why unfamiliar or uncomfortable experiences are not always signs of danger
  • How slowing down can create room for change, creativity, and a new direction

👉 Watch the full conversation and subscribe for more stories about intuition, purpose, and living your jam.

We talk about:

00:00 Welcome to Live Your Jam

00:48 Why self-help knowledge wasn’t enough for Zach

03:53 Why breathwork became his central practice

05:00 Emotional resistance, held breath, and everyday triggers

09:31 What if you don’t need to be fixed?

11:06 What happens in a breathwork session?

16:52 Conscious breathing: lower, slower, deeper, softer

19:48 Discomfort, danger, and the stories we tell ourselves

26:26 A simple breath and body-awareness practice

29:09 Working with Zach and creating space for what’s next

Connect with Zach

Connect with Ellen

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