The Evolution of Wellness: Where did we go wrong, and can Breathwork help us return to its forgotten meaning?

The importance of the breath: About 20,000 times a day, without a second thought, we breathe. The way we breathe and the way we carry ourselves is more closely linked than most people know. Understanding this connection impacts how the body feels, how it moves, and how we think and feel in the body. Our pattern of breathing impacts our embodied experience of life. “How you breathe is how you live life” – Karina Kalilah. Most healthy adults can survive 3 – 5 days without water, and 30 – 70 days without food, if water is available. However, the human brain typically lasts only 3 to 6 minutes without oxygen before irreversible damage begins, excluding trained free diving professionals. When unconsciousness occurs, without oxygen brain cells begin dying within a minute. The purpose of Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is maintaining oxygenated blood flow to the brain in a medical emergency. Without breath, there is no life.

The significance of nose breathing

To ‘inspire’ translates to ‘breathe spirit into’, or ‘breathe life into’. When I was ‘called’ to do breathwork, I was not aware of the different types. Later I learnt of the differences between nose and mouth breathing, and the medical significance of nose breathing. This was of particular interest to me as a health and wellness practitioner with a clinical dietetics degree. On a physiological level breathing through the nose is antibacterial and antiviral. It creates a build-up of Nitric Oxide which allows better athletic performance, a healthier body. It upregulates detoxification by stimulating the lymphatic system. Stimulating the lymphatic system enables the release of chemicals called neuropeptides (commonly known as emotions). Our breath is the bridge between the conscious and unconscious mind. Crossing the bridge enables us to find and ‘inspire’ (breathe life into) the parts of ourselves we have numbed as a protective mechanism.

Furthermore, nose breathing stimulates the Parasympathetic Nervous System, the branch of the Autonomic Nervous System responsible for rest and digest, calm and connect, tend and befriend. It governs our digestive system, immune system, reproductive system and metabolism (thyroid, endocrine system). Every major organ system is governed by nose breathing. Prior to studying breathwork, I discovered the key to healing was focusing on the Vagus nerve, and a regulated Parasympathetic state. I did not understand the ‘how to’ of what I was doing for people when I created a safe space for them to heal-thy-self. I did not have the terminology for what I was witnessing, people restoring health and achieving wellness.

The Bible depicts the creation of man in Genesis 2:7: “Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being”. This depicts the breath of God bestowing both physical vitality and spiritual awareness onto man. It is this act of God breathing into man’s nostrils that brought life to his form. This passage is significant to me personally given my religious background, and journey of Rebirthing Breathwork, Conscious Connected Breathing through the nose.

In his worldwide event ‘Unleash The Power Within’ Tony Robbins teaches that health is energy. Many attendees mistakenly believe energy comes from food. Robbins states energy comes from our cells, produced by mitochondria, directed by the mind. Breathwork practitioners know healing is an energetic experience, evidenced by the different physical responses one might have. If we cannot produce energy, we cannot heal. This is why burnout is such a vulnerable place for people. Their cells are unable to produce much energy, until they allow the body the time and space to rest and reboot. This does not mean there is nothing we can do. Being peace is ‘the doing’ when it comes to healing from burnout, and there is breathwork.

I attended UPW in 2023, only 4 months after my first breathwork experience with Karina Kalilah. I had not yet committed to completing the Embodied Breathwork Practitioner Training. Despite my then lack of knowledge, my personal notes in the workbook manual say ‘Breathwork = Energy (carries oxygen to your cells)’. My understanding had begun to expand beyond my dietetic training, curiosity peaked. I was reminded that cells are living organisms requiring oxygen to thrive. The most common killer of cells is a lack of oxygen, which can be caused by holding our breath in moments of shock, stress, trauma and shallow breathing.

Winner of the 1931 Nobel Prize for his studies in cell respiration, Dr Warburg believed that there is a direct correlation between a person’s health and the level of oxygen in his or her bloodstream(1). To test his theory, he experimented on rats. The cells of rats with 60% below normal oxygen levels either weakened, died or mutated. His research was expanded on by Dr Harry Goldblatt who reported rats with oxygenated cells survive, and those with under-oxygenated cells develop cancer. A two-time Nobel Prize winner Dr Carrel proved that ‘cells will live forever’ if given their basic needs, and are not poisoned by their own environment. His experiment kept chicken cells alive indefinitely in petri dishes. This builds evidence for Leonard Orr’s theory of eternal life.

Leonard Orr, the father of Rebirthing Breathwork(2) believed and taught we can live forever when we achieve super consciousness, the ability to cleanse our mind, physical, spiritual and emotional bodies from all limiting beliefs and wounds which are toxic to our cells, causing cellular atrophy. This, I believe is the basis of how we ‘look younger’ when we are more aligned with our purpose and passion. Alignment, I believe, nourishes our cells with pure sustenance from God – the original source of our spirit, 'and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being'(Genesis 2:7). These experiments were conducted in the 1920s and 1930s, over 30 years before conscious connected breathwork was founded by Leonard Orr and Stanislav Grof. At the same time conscious connected breathwork was founded in the 1960s, the concept of ‘High Level Wellness’ was coined by Physician Halbert L. Dunn(3).

Dunn's multidimensional view of health incorporated body, mind, emotions, and spirit, much like my own Embodiment Fractal Framework™. It seems we are all channeling from the same 'Source' - I was not familiar with Dunn's work when the fractal came about in May 2024, and took its final form in August 2024. High Level Wellness became the positive end of the Illness-Wellness Spectrum that was adopted as John Travis' framework(4), an expansion on Dunn's work. I only came across Halbert L. Dunn and John Travis a few months ago, when my curiosity peaked about the history of wellness.

So, where did we go wrong with wellness?

The Global Wellness Institute describes the origins and history of wellness(5). Below I outline the most pivotal happenings over the years, and where the breath fit in at that time:

3,000 BC: Ayurveda – Native to India, rooted in Verdic culture, a holistic system that strives to create harmony between body, mind and spirit. Yoga and meditation are critical to the tradition, both use the power of the breath. Kundalini energy is depicted by a coiling Serpent which coincides with the Rod of Asclepius logo of the medical system. The serpent symbolises rejuvenation and healing due to its ability to shed its skin. We too can shed layers of our ego, and body to achieve healing.

3,000 BC: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), influenced by Taoism and Buddhism, applies a holistic perspective to achieving wellbeing by cultivating harmony in one’s life. Tai Chi, originating from Taoism, uses breath and movement to balance Ying and Yang energies of the sprit.

500 BC: Ancient Greek physician Hippocrates is possibly the first physician to focus on preventing sickness instead of simply treating disease. In the Hippocratic Corpus, a collection of around 60 early ancient Greek medical works tied to Hippocrates and his school, breath was viewed as the single most important nourishment and the fundamental driver of life. The school taught that breathing is completely essential to existence, and that an abnormal quantity or quality of internal breath is the primary cause of all diseases(6).

Christ: Jesus walked the Earth and performed miraculous healings. I believe Jesus was an energetic healer, a direct channel to our Creator, Divine Spirit. In John 20:22, the risen Jesus appears to His disciples – And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit”.

1650s: According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word “wellness” appears in the English language – meaning the opposite of “illness”. The earliest published reference is from the 1654 diary entry of Sir Archibald Johnston: “I … blessed God … for my daughter’s wealnesse.”

I'm noticing wellness is following a theme of connection to God, Divine Spirit, and breath.

1890s: Daniel David Palmer develops Chiropractic, focusing on the body’s structure and functioning. Chiropractic care emphasises breathing in and out to release tension, and allow the adjustment of the body, and calm the nervous system. Prominent chiropractors today include Dr Joe Dispenza, Dr John Demartini, and Dr Espen Wold-Jensen who use the power of the breath to promote healing through a connection between body and Spirit. Each with their own personal and professional 'miracle' healing journeys.

My home office features two chiropractic charts as a tribute to the origins of wellness. One – the Autonomic Nervous System depicting the Parasympathetic and Sympathetic Nervous System branches, governed by the Vagus nerve and Spinal Cord respectively. The other – a ‘Chakra Spinal Nerve Chart’ depicting the vertebrae connections to areas of the body, and possible symptoms one may experience when energy blockages occur. These charts help me understand a person’s physical symptoms in terms of limiting beliefs, emotions, and self-image, and guide them toward self-healing.

Breathwork gains traction as wellness goes mainstream

Wellness went mainstream in the 1980s, with exponential growth from 2010 onward. Our experience of COVID19 continued to evolve what society believes ‘wellness’ to be, and moved it further away from its ancient breathwork roots into optmisation through technology, trackers, supplements, cryotherapy chambers, IV infusions. Simultaneously, Wim Hof took over with his breathwork methodology advocating for the combination of cold exposure therapy and breathing. Holotropic breathwork gained traction for cathartic releases.

As a breathwork practitioner, it is important to understand the different types and functions of breathwork methodologies in order to guide with best care. Rebirthing breathwork is based on the notion that healing can be gentle. Despite being gentle and relatively safe compared to other breathwork types, conscious connected breathing is not for everyone. However, proper – diaphragmatic breathing, is.

When we take a full, relaxed breath, the diaphragm (the dome-shaped muscle sitting just below our lungs) contracts downward, creating space for the lungs to expand. The ribcage moves gently outward, and the shoulders stay relatively still. This is called diaphragmatic breathing, and it’s what the body is designed to do.

The richest blood flow is in the lower lungs. When this area fails to be adequately ventilated with air, we end up under-oxygenated. Proper breathing requires the use of the diaphragm. The problem is that many people shift away from this proper and natural pattern without realising it. Stress, long hours at a desk, or simply a habit formed over time can push breathing upward into the chest and shoulders. In chest breathing, the diaphragm does less work, the neck and shoulder muscles pick up the slack. Over time, those muscles become overworked and tight, directly affecting the position of the head, neck, and upper spine, creating energy blockages along the way, manifesting as physical symptoms – as depicted by the chakra spinal nerve chart. This is further exacerbated by emotional buildup in the Nervous System, and destructive thought patterns.

Emotions are chemical feedback in the body called neuropeptides, amongst other biochemical feedback. Eastern Medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine teaches certain emotions are associated with certain organs of the body. For example, anger and the liver, sadness and grief the lungs and heart, fear the kidneys and legs. When we hold onto and buildup low frequency, unpleasant emotions in the body, they weigh us down, leading to physical weight gain and/or other disease symptoms.

Some of that built up emotional residue is not even our own. It got passed down in our DNA. Maybe from a grandmother who has been through 2 wars, so now you fear every alarm that goes off. Maybe a great-grandmother experienced a domestically violent relationship, so you normalised abusive relationships. Maybe grandad had a drinking problem, that is now your gambling addiction, and so on. Research has shown the emotional weight goes back generations and generations. The limit does not exist. It stops when someone in the lineage is brave enough to do the work, cleanse, let go, release, forgive, set boundaries, remember health and wellness, breathe.

Furthermore, cases of organ transplant receivers having reoccurring dreams, food cravings, and emotional experiences of their donors have been recorded. What about removing the organ from the body? The kidney is gone, surely the fear goes with it? The gallbladder, the appendix removed, won't that take the anger too? No, it does not. If unresolved, the emotional residue migrates to the next weakest link in your body. It was never 'in the organ', it resides in the etheric field and shows itself in the physical(7). This is the knowledge gap of practitioners who know about Eastern and TCM, but can't explain the connections when it is not 'according to the book'.

Breathwork as an ancient healing method, and the foundation to wellness

Through the work I now do, both conscious connected breathwork and teaching people how to breathe properly from the diaphragm – I've seen people drop 2- 5kg in a week by working on processing emotions, no changes in diet or exercise. There's only so much you can change on your plate. I’ve witnessed women with endometriosis told they would never be mothers, become naturally pregnant, carry to term, and give birth to a healthy baby. Hypothyrodism remission, mental health restored, ADHD and IDB a ‘misdiagnosis’, ASD clients with Sensory Processing Difficulties achieving a state of calm, stroke survivors having dreams for the first time in years, and my own personal story of healing from burnout.

Breathwork has helped me fully appreciate the origins of wellness. It is the tool that brings life to our cells through oxygenation for metabolic processes, producing ATP (energy). Now, as a way of life breathwork helps me prevent burnout, ‘Breathe and keep going’. Furthermore, being the element of air, it ‘gets everywhere’ and was the final puzzle piece to The Embodiment Fractal Framework™ by Kathy O, which underpins the Burnout To Blessing Method how to heal from and prevent burnout through The 7 Pillars To Wellness. It is no coincidence there are 7 Pillars. This is a tribute to the origins of wellness, the Chakra System, which uses the breath to connect us to Spirit, and reignite our lifeforce.

For more about The Breathwork Journey, download your complimentary Breathwork eguide here. Subscribe to the NuFit Wellness Newsletter to be the first to know when spots are available.

EXTRA – PRACTICE:

Take 10 power breaths as taught by Tony Robbins: 3x daily in the ratio of 1:4:2 (inhale:hold:exhale) example: inhale for 2 seconds, hold for 8 seconds, exhale for 4 seconds.

REFERENCES:

1. Tony Robbins (2022), Unleash The Power Within Event Manual, Robbins Research International Inc.

2. Leonard Orr and Fanny Van Laere (2011), Manual For Rebirthers: How to deepen your Rebirthing process, Masterfully guide other people’s process and be a successful Rebirthing Professional, Vision Libros.

3. Dunn, L. Halbert (1961), High Level Wellness: A collection of twenty-nine short talks on different aspects of the theme "High-Level Wellness for Man and Society, R.W. Beatty Ltd, Arlington, Virginia, United States of America.

4. Travel JW and Callander MG (2013), Beyond Ordinary Wellness: Full-Spectrum Wellness, A work in progress, thewellspring.com.

5. Global Wellness Institute, History Of Wellness, 2025, view here: https://globalwellnessinstitute.org/what-is-wellness/history-of-wellness/ (accessed 24th July 2026).

6. Arieti, James A. 2022, Ancient Greek Medicine, view here: https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/ancient-greek-medicine (accessed 25th July 2026).

7. Inna Segal (2005), Awaken You Intuitive Body 8 Week Challenge with Inna Segal, Inner Life Awakening Pty Ltd.

8. Karina Kalilah (2026), Embodied Breathwork Practitioner Training Manual, Embodied Breath Academy.

Breathwork is part of Optimising The Stress Resposne: At NuFit Wellness we show people how to live well through The 7 Pillars To Wellness: Nutrition, Movement, Sleep, Optimising The Stress Response, Light Therapy, Mindset, and Spirituality. All Pillars are intertwined and impact health outcomes. Through practicing the principles that govern desirable outcomes, striving for continuous improvement rather than perfection, and recalibrating as necessary, we are able to heal and maintain health in any given circumstance.

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KEYWORDS: Breathwork, Breath, Breathe, Breathing, Nose Breathing, Nose, Conscious Connected, Circular, Diaphragmatic, Diaphragm, Wellness, Healing, Health, Healthy, Oxygen, Cells, Mitochondria, Metabolism, Stress, Trauma, Burnout, Prevention, Cure, ATP, Eastern Medicine, TCM, Alternative Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Lifeforce, Spirit, God, Soul, Vitality.