# Our Method — Breathwork, Presence & Psychology > How Tessa & Johannes work: breath practice, presence, and psychological frameworks (inspired by Presence Process, Tolle, Big Leap) + yin as support. Coaching and wellness — a complement to care, not therapy. 1:1 from €60 · /en/contact. - URL: - Language: en - Alternate: ## What is the Spiriators method in short? Our method is how we guide: breath as daily and session practice, presence as attention in the here-and-now, and insight into recurring patterns — with yin yoga as body support. A way of working and practising, not a one-off programme you tick off. ## At Spiriators Three pillars as **inspiration** (not dogma, not a medical protocol): 1. **Breath** — incl. connected breathing; frameworks such as Presence Process as inspiration. 2. **Presence** — here-and-now (e.g. Tolle as inspiration). 3. **Psychology / patterns** — e.g. Big Leap as inspiration. Yin supports body pace. This is **coaching and practice**, not psychotherapy. Concrete services: [breathwork coaching](https://spiriators.com/en/breathwork) and [yin 1:1](https://spiriators.com/en/yin-yoga) (€60), [co-travel](https://spiriators.com/en/travel). Intro: [contact](https://spiriators.com/en/contact). ## Our Method: Breath as Practice, Presence as Compass, Psychology as Insight ## How to start tomorrow You don't need to finish reading the three pillars first. Breath is the door — start there. Presence and insight follow once your body joins in. 1. **Today: 10 minutes of breathing** — Open the [free breathing timer](https://spiriators.com/en/tools/breathing-timer) and choose connected breathing. No setup, no account — just start. 2. **This week: build a rhythm** — Follow the [21-day breathwork schedule](https://spiriators.com/en/blog/breathwork-at-home-21-day-schedule) — small, incremental, at home. Consistency over intensity. 3. **If you want to go deeper: guidance** — Book a [free intro call](https://spiriators.com/en/contact?kennismaking=true&bron=Our-method-instap) or go directly to [breathwork coaching](https://spiriators.com/en/breathwork). No pressure. ## The Philosophy — Change is Lifework Lasting change rarely comes from one session, one weekend, or one resolution. Deep support asks for a way of practicing — no quick fixes, no "30 days to a new you". At Spiriators, we work with three pillars that you don't apply once, but that you live. Day in, day out. Not because you have to, but because it can deepen. We start from a simple but profound stance: you are already whole — that's how we see it. It's not about fixing, but about remembering what is already there: making space for what lies beneath the noise, the stress, and the old patterns. That's the foundation of how we work and live. Coaching and practice — not therapy, not treatment. Our coaching method builds on three pillars: breath as daily practice (Michael Brown's The Presence Process), presence as compass (Eckhart Tolle's The Power of Now), and psychology as insight (Gay Hendricks' The Big Leap). Three books, three teachers, one thread: depth comes from living it, not knowing it. Yin yoga plays a supporting role here. Sometimes you need silence to hear what the breath opens. Sometimes you need long holds to feel where tension sits that your mind can't name. Yin isn't a main pillar — it's the space where the other three can land. [Tessa's yin yoga classes](https://spiriators.com/en/yin-yoga) and our nomadic retreats use yin not as a "bonus", but as a vessel: the place where the work of the three pillars can settle. ### Breath Daily practice, not a crisis tool ### Presence Your compass in the now ### Psychology Insight into your patterns ### Yin Yoga Silence to land ## Breath as Lifestyle — The Presence Process Michael Brown's The Presence Process isn't a book you read and put away. For us it's a blueprint for a way of breathing that can support and deepen your life — not because it's magical, but because it's consistent. The 10-week process Brown describes is not a course you finish with a certificate. It's the beginning of a new way of life. Here's how it works: over 10 weeks, you practice daily with conscious connected breathing — a continuous rhythm of breathing in and out without pause. Each week has its own theme, its own layer that's addressed. What begins as a physical exercise slowly becomes a way of being. ### What is connected breathing? Connected breathing is a continuous breath without pause between inhale and exhale. Active inhale through the belly, passive exhale through relaxation. It activates the vagus nerve and opens access to emotional layers that conscious thinking cannot reach. At Spiriators, we use connected breathing as our core practice. Not because it's the only form, but because it's the most direct path to your nervous system. You can't direct your heartbeat. You can't control your digestion. You can direct your breath. And through that breath, you directly influence your heart rate, blood pressure, immune response, and emotional state. This isn't esoteric — it's psychophysiology. Connected breathing — also called rebirthing or circular breathing — invites the vagus nerve, can help release held tension, and research links it among other things to lower stress and mood symptoms — supportive, not a treatment claim for depression or PTSD [Little (2025)](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40792649/). ## Presence as Compass — The Power of Now Eckhart Tolle's The Power of Now and A New Earth aren't spiritual self-help books. They're manuals for waking up. Presence — being in the now — isn't a concept to discuss. It's a way of life you choose anew every day. Not as achievement, but as reminder: am I here, or am I in my head? Tolle's core message is radically simple: you are not your mind. The voice in your head that judges, compares, postpones, and fears — that's not you. That's your ego. And the ego isn't an enemy to fight, but a pattern to see through. The moment you see it, it loses its grip. The moment you're no longer it, space opens. That space, that's presence. ### What is the pain-body? The pain-body is the accumulation of old emotional pain that surfaces whenever it's triggered. It's not who you are — it's an energy field that moves through you when it's fed. Recognizing it is the beginning of breaking through. Mindfulness-based training — the scientific backbone of presence — often shows reduction of stress and burnout-related symptoms in meta-analyses [Fend et al. (2025)](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40359444/). Presence isn't a destination. It's a compass. It doesn't point to "someday when I've achieved this" — it points to here, to now, to this breath. And the compass only works when you consult it. Daily. Moment by moment. ## Psychology as Insight — The Big Leap Gay Hendricks' The Big Leap introduces a term we actively use in our coaching: the upper limit problem. It's perhaps the most uncomfortable insight there is: you don't sabotage yourself when you fail, you sabotage yourself when things are going well. Here's how it works: we all have an internal thermostat that determines how much success, love, happiness, and connection we allow ourselves. The moment we rise above that threshold, we feel discomfort. Not because something is wrong, but because it's unfamiliar. And so we unconsciously find ways to sink back to what's familiar — picking a fight, getting sick, doubting, procrastinating. That's the upper limit problem. Research confirms what Hendricks describes: self-sabotage occurs precisely at the approach or attainment of success, not at failure [Kim et al. (2019)](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30667256/). ### What is the upper limit problem? The upper limit problem is the internal thermostat that determines how much success, love, and happiness you allow yourself. The moment you rise above that threshold, you feel discomfort and unconsciously sabotage yourself to sink back to what's familiar. Hendricks also introduces the concept of the Zone of Genius — the place where your unique talent and your deepest contribution meet. Most people live in their Zone of Competence or Zone of Excellence, but avoid their Zone of Genius. Why? Because that zone lies beyond the upper limit. To get there, you have to move through the discomfort. ## How the Three Pillars Come Together — as Lifestyle Breath opens the door. Presence points the way. Psychology explains the blockage. Three pillars, one movement: depth. This isn't a linear process — it's a spiral. Breath makes presence possible. Presence reveals that you are not your ego. That insight makes it possible to recognize your upper limit. And as you breathe through your upper limit, your presence deepens. They reinforce each other. Yin yoga is the facilitator. Sometimes you need silence to hear what the breath opens. Sometimes you need long holds to feel where tension sits that your mind can't name. Yin isn't a main pillar — it's the space where the other three can land. This isn't a program you complete. It's a way of life that deepens. Not "10 weeks and done" — but 10 weeks as the beginning of a lifestyle that carries you when things get hard. ## The people behind this method - **Johannes Huijbregts** — Breathwork Coach & Transformation Coach. [Author page →](https://spiriators.com/en/author/johannes-huijbregts) - **Tessa Frunt** — Yin Yoga Teacher, Breath Coach & Coach. [Author page →](https://spiriators.com/en/author/tessa-frunt) ## Sources & scientific authority We only reference sources we have personally studied and that are relevant to the practice we teach. - Michael Brown — The Presence Process (Namaste Publishing, 2009) - Eckhart Tolle — The Power of Now (New World Library, 1997) - Eckhart Tolle — A New Earth (Penguin, 2005) - Gay Hendricks — The Big Leap (HarperOne, 2009) - Little et al. (2025) — [PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40792649/) - Fend et al. (2025) — [PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40359444/) - Kim et al. (2019) — [PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30667256/) ## Start today — no appointment needed Free tools to start with breathwork and recovery right away. No account, no email needed. [See all free tools →](https://spiriators.com/en/free-tools)