Breathing for Anxiety: Meet Karishma Donde, Founder of Breathwork Society

By Emily Merrell

A few years back I stumbled into my first breathwork class. I thought I was walking into a relaxing, light meditation session – but I left the session transformed. I was breathing with such intensity that my hands started clenching and I was brought to tears. It was truly a transformative experience, one that immediately helped me feel lighter and cleared my head and my heart. I was introduced to Karishma Donde, the founder of Breathwork Society. It’s an incredible community that curates self-care with amazing events, focusing on self-improvement using the tools of breathwork. If you’re ready to be transformed, keep reading. 

SDS: I first heard about breathwork in yoga. Can you tell us what breathwork is and what your role is as a breathwork facilitator?

KARISHMA DONDE: Breathwork is the #1 healing modality in the world, used by ancient civilizations to heal trauma and pent-up emotion in the body. If you are human, you have experienced some type of trauma in your lifetime. The body’s way of coping is through sending you signals of stress, anxiety and overwhelm. As a result, we do not feel safe to be in our bodies – so we look for other ways to cope: drinking, drugs, overworking, perfectionism etc. as a mechanism to self-soothe.

Our traumas are also stored in physical areas in our body. Many times, we feel bodily pain and can’t tell what it’s from. Trauma stored in our bodies for a long period of time can start to create physical ailments. Breathwork is a type of somatic healing which helps people to notice physical sensations stemming from their traumatic experiences, using that awareness to work through painful feelings and emotions. Breathwork helps to locate where the pain, grief, depression etc. is stored in the body and essentially helps to heal those feelings and feel safe instead of fearful. 

As a breathwork facilitator I help people to feel safe in their bodies, release the pain and dive deep into their subconscious to heal the trauma – making space to create new stories and beliefs that create joyful and happy lives. I use a combination of mantras, energy work, music and visualization techniques in all my sessions. Every session has an intention and the breathers all go on a journey centered around that intention for example: stress and anxiety relief or self love and worthiness.. 

While in COVID all events are held virtually, having an in-person breathwork experience is extremely transformational and allows the facilitator to provide the element of touch to the breathers. Touch is incredibly healing and allows the facilitator to help release physical pain and comfort those in emotional distress. 

SDS: Breathwork can be used to heal trauma, process emotions, increase confidence and so much more. How can those curious about breathwork start implementing it into their lives? 

KD: Every emotion that we experience has an associated breath pattern. Therefore, it’s when we are aware of the emotions we are experiencing that we can use the breath to transmute those emotions into something that enhances our experience. Breathwork is a term that defines conscious breathing. What that means is as long as you are paying attention to your inhales and exhales intentionally, it is considered breathwork. 

There are two types of breathwork: integrative and meditative. Integrative is short (less than 10 minutes) breathing exercises that help us to come back into the present moment. Meditative breathwork which is the longer, more transformational breathwork allows us to process those deeper trauma related feelings.  

You’ve probably noticed that with any modern day exercise, the breath plays a big role in performance. After any exercise you probably feel better too! That’s because we gave our breath the chance to clear out all stagnant energy in our bodies.

SDS: My very first breathwork experience was super transformational and I love that the Breathwork Society hosts classes for everyone. Can you tell us more about getting started with breathwork?

KD: Absolutely. I would highly recommend coming to a live class (use code breatheguest for your first event free) or a 1:1 session (use code SDSGUEST for 30% off) to try it out for yourself, while being moderated by a facilitator. 

You can also subscribe to my breathwork library for access to over 45+ pre-recorded tracks that you can try out on your own time. 

SDS: Before you were a breathwork facilitator you were in the corporate tech world— tell us how breathwork became a bigger part of your world and ultimately your full-time passion.

KD: I worked in corporate for over a decade and I was constantly stressed, anxious, overworked, sleep deprived, people pleasing and a perfectionist. You name it, I probably had it. 

I always knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur but I didn’t know what. So I kept chasing different dreams from the music industry to a fashion line to a startup tech, but they all failed. I was looking for a purposeful, happy life but I tried to outsource my happiness with food, weed, alcohol and overworking. 

Because I had big dreams, I felt that I could never achieve them without having the perfect model body. I was constantly on a diet/binge cycle. Overworking, outsourcing my happiness and having an eating disorder were a terrible combination because it was a toxic cycle. It wasn’t until I heard one of my former teachers talking about what self-love actually is did I realize that I had an eating disorder and in fact going on diets, excessive drinking and smoking weed everyday was body abuse not body love. 

I immediately invested in a program that really believed in somatic healing and taught breathwork as a healing modality. Breathwork was extremely healing to me and brought awareness to my own anxiety and stresses, which I was able to heal. It became my medicine and I couldn’t stop talking about it because it really was the secret to life, to healing, to unlocking so much more love and LIFE. 

I think everyone deserves the right to know how to heal themselves and create a life that they have always wanted. It’s amazing what can happen when we CHOOSE to focus on ourselves and shift the blocks that are holding us back. 

Living a life of service is the most fulfilling thing I can ask for and it actually gave me the confidence not just to quit my job and do this full-time but also to start telling people at work about what I do. This opened up a lot of doors for me and seeing people’s transformations in a short amount of time never fails to excite me. 

SDS: As we all know entrepreneurship is hard and lonely, what do you recommend to entrepreneurs just starting out? 

KD: Get a business coach that will help you along the way and is already successful in doing what you aim to do. Find a network where you can meet other people like you and also talk about your services. Say YES to all collaborations to get your name out 

Keep pivoting until something you’re doing feels really easy and it doesn’t feel awkward to leverage your own network. If you’re hustling and white-knuckling your way through something, then it’s not in alignment for you right now.

Ask for help. DO NOT put your mental health and self-care last, it’s actually the most important thing. For those who worked in corporate before, deconditioning is the most challenging part but allow the process to take place and be ultra compassionate with yourself. Document your journey.

SDS: How can people learn more about your offerings and dig deeper on breathwork? 

KD: I host a myriad of events in my membership community, Breathwork Society. Come to the first event free using code: breatheguest, you can find the events here: Breathwork Society Events. If you want a more personalized option schedule a 1:1 Try Me Session Here: TRY-ME SESSION Use code: SDSGUEST for 30% off.

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