Somatic therapy and breathwork both treat the body as a source of information, not just the mind. Somatic therapy is a clinical practice, typically delivered by a trained mental health professional using approaches like Somatic Experiencing. Breathwork, as Jason teaches it through Galactic Breathing, is a facilitated ceremony built around active breath, not talk therapy. They share a starting premise, the body holds what the mind alone cannot process, but they are different disciplines with different training behind them.
What somatic therapy does
Somatic therapy is practiced by trained clinicians and focuses on tracking physical sensation, releasing stored tension, and working slowly with the nervous system, often alongside talk. It is a recognized clinical modality used for trauma, chronic stress and anxiety, and it requires a qualified, trained provider working from an established framework. If you have a trauma history that needs careful, clinically guided pacing, somatic therapy with a qualified provider is the right starting point, not breathwork alone.
Somatic therapy sessions tend to move slowly and deliberately, with the provider checking in constantly about what sensation is present and whether it's safe to keep going. There's no group setting, no ceremony, and the pacing is built entirely around your nervous system's current capacity, session by session, sometimes over months or years.
What Galactic Breathing does
Galactic Breathing is a 90 minute ceremony: light movement, usually Qigong, guided meditation, heart-centered energy work, then three rounds of active breath, each ending with an inhale, hold, release and rest. Jason has a background in psychology and group facilitation, and describes real awareness of trauma reactions from that training, but he is not delivering clinical somatic work. "This is about remembering rather than fixing," he says. The pace is gentle by design. No screaming, no forcing, and the first round alone is often enough.
Where the two overlap most is in the body-first approach. Both ask you to notice sensation rather than just think your way through an issue. Both can surface stored emotion quickly. The difference is training and scope: a somatic therapist is treating a clinical picture over time, while a breathwork session is a facilitated experience, often a single deep session rather than an ongoing treatment plan measured in months.
Choosing between them
If you're managing diagnosed trauma, PTSD, or a condition requiring careful clinical pacing, start with a qualified somatic practitioner working in a clinical setting. If you want a guided, ceremonial experience to move energy, reconnect with your body, and access altered states in a safe container, and you don't need clinical treatment, Galactic Breathing is built for that. Some people do both, in either order, and each supports the other. If you're still weighing your options, the Galactic Breathing page walks through the full session flow, and Sekhem energy healing is worth a look too if hands-on work appeals to you more than active breath.
Breathwork sessions with Jason complement, and do not replace, medical or mental health care. If you are in crisis, call or text 988 in the US.
What actually happens in a Galactic Breathing session
It helps to know the shape of the session before deciding. You start with meeting and settling in, then light movement, usually Qigong, to warm the body. From there it moves into guided meditation and intention setting, heart-centered energy work where you're invited to connect with guides and ancestors, and then the three rounds of breath themselves. Each round builds on the last, ending with an inhale, a hold, a release and a rest period. The third round tends to go deepest, and that's where altered states, when they happen, are most common. After the breathing, there's a longer pause, often with channeled messages coming through, followed by a grounded return to the room, integration time, and space to share what came up. Jason is present and guiding throughout, watching your body and adjusting pace as needed, which is the main structural difference from a solo somatic practice done at home.
Where Jason's training fits into the picture
Jason holds an MA in Marriage and Family Therapy and describes himself as a pre-licensed marriage and family therapist, which means his academic training does touch the same territory as somatic therapy: nervous system understanding, trauma awareness, and how to track a person's state during intense experience. What he offers through Galactic Breathing is not a clinical service built on that credential. It's a ceremonial practice that uses breath as the primary tool, informed by that background rather than delivered as treatment under it. That distinction matters if you're trying to decide whether a session counts as part of your clinical care plan. It doesn't, and shouldn't be billed or treated that way by you or anyone else involved in your care. If you're weighing where to start, a useful test is to ask yourself whether you need someone tracking a diagnosis over time, or if you're simply looking for a single, deep, facilitated experience. The first points toward clinical somatic work. The second points toward a Galactic Breathing session.
Frequently asked questions
Is Galactic Breathing a form of somatic therapy?
No. It draws on somatic awareness and nervous system understanding, but it is a ceremonial breathwork practice, not clinical somatic therapy delivered by a trained mental health provider.
Can breathwork bring up trauma the way somatic therapy does?
It can surface strong emotion, yes. Jason's training helps him hold space for that, but if you know you're working with significant trauma, a qualified somatic practitioner is the safer starting point for pacing that carefully.
Do I need a somatic therapy background to try breathwork?
No prior experience is needed. Sessions are gentle and build gradually, and Jason guides you through each stage in real time.
Can I do somatic therapy and breathwork together?
Yes, many people use both. Mention to your provider that you're also doing breathwork so they have the full picture of your care.
What if strong emotion comes up during a breathwork session?
Jason stays present the whole time, helping you stay in a calm, regulated space as things arise. If you have ongoing concerns afterward, that's a good signal to bring in a qualified clinician.
Ninety minutes, gentle pace, at your own speed.
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