Somatic Hakomi-Inspired Training for Breathwork Facilitators

This five-day Hakomi-inspired training for breathwork facilitators is a continuing education program in Zurich, Switzerland, for people who already guide others through breath. It brings somatic psychotherapy skills into breathwork ceremonies, individual sessions and integration conversations. It is led by Trevor Wyllthawk, founder of Nūma Breathwork in Canada, together with Erin Wyllthawk, and hosted by the Sacred Ways Institute.

The training draws on Ron Kurtz's Hakomi method, a mindfulness-based, body-centered approach rooted in loving presence, nonviolence and trust in each person's own organic wisdom. It is not offered as a new method to replace what you already know. It is a way of refining perception so you can meet your clients' complexity with more options.

What to Expect

The program centers on the moment after the breath has done its work, when something has surfaced and the quality of your presence matters more than technique. It has two linked focuses. The first is the breath journey itself: perceiving what is alive in the person you are with and speaking, in simple words, to someone in an extraordinary state of consciousness. The second is dialogue, applying the same principles without breathwork in the slower space of conversation.

Topics include:

- Loving presence as the foundation for every intervention
- Perception and tracking of body, breath, voice and facial expression
- Connective statements and in-depth questions
- Small mindfulness experiments
- Core beliefs and how early experience lives on in posture and breathing
- Strengthening resources so difficult memories can be processed and integrated
- A process map for a session, from first contact through deepening and transformation to integration

Days run from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. over five consecutive days, 40 hours in total. Learning, live demonstrations and guided practice alternate. You lead and take part in breathwork sessions, practice dialogue in pairs and small groups, and receive direct, supportive feedback. The pacing is trauma-informed, with sessions for building resilience and regulating the nervous system, and with grounding, rest and integration between periods of intensive practice. About two weeks after the training, a live online integration call is held.

About Trevor Wyllthawk

Trevor Wyllthawk is a breathwork facilitator, trainer and somatic psychotherapy practitioner based in Vancouver. He founded Nūma Breathwork, where he leads a training of more than 300 hours for breathwork facilitators, along with continuing education in transformational psychotherapy. He brings nearly 30 years of mind-body practice, including acupuncture, shamanic work, yoga, martial arts and meditation, and his breathwork is rooted in Leonard Orr's Rebirthing movement. His influences include Hakomi, Somatic Experiencing, Focusing, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Bodynamics and parts work. He teaches with precision, playfulness and respect for each person's inner wisdom.

About Erin Wyllthawk

Erin Wyllthawk is a certified clinical counselor, clinical hypnotherapist, energy practitioner and breathwork teacher. She specializes in couples therapy and developmental attachment work, helping individuals and couples change entrenched relationship patterns. She creates safe, supportive spaces where vulnerability can flourish.

The Setting

The training takes place at Sound Space on Klosbachstrasse in Zurich, and is hosted by the Sacred Ways Institute. Sacred Ways is the only institute outside North America offering this program in collaboration with Nūma Breathwork.

Before You Go

The training is for experienced practitioners: graduates of the Sacred Ways Transformational Guide & Breathwork Teacher Training, facilitators trained at other schools that advocate a trauma-sensitive approach, and transpersonal process facilitators or therapists with extensive trauma-sensitive breathwork experience. For Sacred Ways graduates, it complements the Naikando Method®.

Instruction is in English. Participants with basic English are welcome, and German translation is provided as needed. Included are the 40 hours of instruction, guided breathwork and paired dialogue practice, the online integration call, and a certificate from the Sacred Ways Institute, "Continuing Education in the Hakomi Method of Psychotherapy." Travel to Zurich, accommodation and meals are not covered.