FOLLANSBEE — During their January meeting of the Ohio Valley Business and Professional Women’s Club, members were treated to a breathwork experience on Main Street in Follansbee.

Facilitator Lisa Mort explained to those in attendance how breathwork is conducted and how she became involved in the process.

“Breathwork is all about nervous system regulation,” Mort explained, noting how just about everyone is in a “fight or flight” mode and trying to solve their problems with a nervous system that can not process them.

“So instead, we start shifting our actions,” Mort added. “But until we focus on the belief that is causing the action, the outcome will never change.”

Mort explained breathwork is a guided somatic practice known to reduce stress, anxiety and depression, while promoting well-being. She set up the experience for the group, focusing on the work-life balance with guided visualization.

BPW members wore surround-sound headphones and eye masks in order for the women not to hear each other.

Mort guided the experience though the headphones, playing bi-lateral stimulation music, which activates both hemispheres of the brain.

She informed members that if someone is holding a trauma or suppressing emotions, it usually sticks in one side of the brain. Bi-lateral stimulation allows one to start processing emotions the nervous system would not allow.

The facilitator then coached members through diaphragmatic breathing or breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth, spotlighting the breathing elements of earth, water, air and fire.

Following the breathwork experience, the club enjoyed a light snack and discussed their reactions to the breathing methods, along with how they felt.

Mort offers individual and group breathwork sessions in the Blue Wave Center on Main Street in Follansbee. Visit lisamort.com for information.

The club’s major fundraiser, the annual Wine and Shoe Extravaganza, will be held May 1 at the St. Francis Center in Follansbee. For information about the club, or tickets to the event, contact President Dee Kovach at deekovach@attnet.