Let’s get one thing straight:

Telling someone to “calm down” doesn’t work.

Especially not if they’re anxious, overwhelmed, or stuck in a dysregulated nervous system.

That’s one of the big takeaways from my recent appearance on The Wellness Amazon podcast — and I wanted to expand on it here, because it matters.

The Problem with Most Breathwork

Most yoga classes teach breathwork like it’s a switch you can flip.

“Inhale peace. Exhale stress.”
“Just take a deep breath.”
“Let go.”

Sounds nice …
But for a lot of people — especially those who are sensitive, in pain, or burned out — it backfires.

Why?

Because their nervous system doesn’t feel safe.

And when the body doesn’t feel safe, no amount of deep breathing will fix it.

What Actually Helps?

In the episode, we walk through a much better approach:

• First, you orient to your environment

• Then, you ground through posture

• Only then does breath become a reliable tool for change

When you combine those three — orienting, grounding, and breathing — the nervous system finally gets the signal:
You’re safe.

That’s when people start to feel relief.

Why I Teach It This Way

Functional Yoga Instruction wasn’t something I made up overnight.
It was born from frustration.

I was in pain.
I tried everything.
And I got tired of yoga that made things worse — not better.

So I went back to what the body was designed to do.

Not stretch for the sake of stretching …
Not move for performance …
But re-learn how to feel safe and strong again.

That’s what I teach now. And that’s what we talked about in the podcast.

You Can Watch or Listen Here:

• 🎧 YouTube: Watch the episode

• 🎧 Spotify: Listen on Spotify

If any of this resonates … especially if you're over 50 and tired of being told to “just relax” …

You’re not broken.
You’re just not being taught the way your body actually works.

Let’s fix that.