Inside a 1.5-Hour Breathwork + West Coast Swing Session: What Actually Happens

You can know the steps and still feel stuck.

Maybe you've been dancing West Coast Swing for a while. You take classes. You practice. You watch videos. You know the patterns. You understand the technique.

And yet… something still feels like it's getting in the way.

Maybe you overthink everything.

Maybe you have a hard time trusting your partner.

Maybe you get tense when you're being watched.

Maybe you struggle to let go and actually feel your dancing.

Maybe you know what you're supposed to do, but your body doesn't seem to cooperate when the pressure is on.

Or maybe you've reached that frustrating place where you know enough about West Coast Swing to realize there is so much more you want to experience, but you aren't sure what the missing piece is.

I've found that sometimes that missing piece isn't another dance class.

It's awareness.

And sometimes, the roadblocks we experience in our dancing aren't actually created on the dance floor.

They're patterns that live in our bodies.

They can show up in how we protect ourselves, how we respond to uncertainty, how we connect with another person, how we handle mistakes, and how we move through life.

This is one of the reasons I love combining Breathwork, somatic experiencing, and West Coast Swing.

Because dance is already a somatic experience.

We're just learning how to listen to what our bodies are telling us.

What Is Somatic Dance?

Somatic dance is not about adding another complicated technique to your dancing.

It's about becoming more aware of what is happening inside your body while you move.

When you dance, your nervous system is involved.

Your breath is involved.

Your emotions are involved.

Your sense of safety, trust, connection, and confidence are involved.

And in West Coast Swing, this becomes especially apparent because we're not dancing alone.

We're communicating through movement.

We're listening.

We're responding.

We're leading.

We're following.

We're adapting.

We're trusting.

We're constantly making tiny decisions based on information we're receiving from another person.

That means the dance floor can become a beautiful place to notice patterns that may also exist in the rest of our lives.

The way you lead may reflect the way you try to control.

The way you follow may reflect the way you struggle to trust.

The way you react to a mistake may reflect the way you treat yourself when you don't feel perfect.

The way you hold your body may reflect how often you've learned to protect yourself.

Your body often knows these patterns before your mind does.

And that is where somatic work can become so powerful.

Why I Combine Breathwork With West Coast Swing

One of my favorite things to teach is my Breathwork + West Coast Swing somatic healing experience.

I love it because we don't just talk about what may be holding you back.

We experience them.

We notice them.

And then we get to move through them.

I believe dance itself can be a somatic form of healing because movement gives us an opportunity to experience something differently in our bodies.

But I have found that beginning with breathwork changes the experience.

Before we ask you to connect with another person, we first connect you with yourself.

We slow down.

We breathe.

We notice.

We begin to feel what is actually happening inside.

And sometimes, when we become quiet enough to notice, things start to come up.

A tension you didn't realize you were carrying.

A feeling you hadn't given yourself space to acknowledge.

A familiar reaction.

A protective pattern.

A place where you don't quite feel safe enough to let go.

We don't force any of it.

We simply become curious.

And then, when you're ready, we take that awareness onto the dance floor.

That's where the integration happens.

So What Actually Happens During a 1.5-Hour Session?

Every session is a little different because you are different.

I am very much a personalized coach.

I'm not interested in putting everyone through the exact same experience and hoping it works.

We begin by looking at where you are right now.

What are you experiencing in your dancing?

Where do you feel stuck?

What would you like to change?

What happens in your body when you feel challenged?

What are you noticing about your connection with yourself or your partner?

From there, we let your body and nervous system guide the session.

Generally, the experience has three parts:

Breathwork → Somatic Experiencing → Dance

And the beautiful thing is that each piece prepares you for the next.

1. We Begin With Breathwork

The first part of our work is about connecting with yourself.

I usually give you a simple breathwork practice to work with between sessions.

And I intentionally keep it simple.

We're not talking about spending an hour every morning doing a complicated practice.

We're talking about 3–5 minutes a day.

Because real change is built through consistency.

One powerful experience can be meaningful, but the little things we do repeatedly are what begin teaching our nervous system something new.

When we meet, we talk about your practice.

What did you notice?

How did your body respond?

Was it easy?

Was it uncomfortable?

Did anything surprise you?

Then we do the practice together.

This gives us an opportunity to slow down enough to actually notice what is happening in your body.

Because sometimes your body tells us something that your mind hasn't figured out yet.

2. We Explore What Your Body Is Holding

Once we've connected with the breath, sometimes something begins to surface.

Maybe you notice tension.

Maybe you feel emotion.

Maybe you become aware of a sensation you've been ignoring.

Maybe you realize you've been holding your breath every time you feel uncertain.

Or maybe nothing dramatic happens at all.

And that's okay.

Somatic work isn't about making something happen.

It's about creating enough awareness and safety to notice what is already happening.

When something needs more attention, we may move into a somatic experiencing exercise.

I guide you through this process based on what your nervous system is communicating.

We might slow down.

We might notice a sensation.

We might explore what happens when you stay with something rather than immediately pushing it away.

We might notice where you're holding tension or where you're beginning to soften.

The goal isn't to force a release.

It's to help your body experience something different.

Sometimes the shift is subtle.

A deeper breath.

A relaxed shoulder.

More space in your chest.

A feeling of being grounded.

A moment where you realize:

“I don't have to brace right now.”

Those moments matter.

3. Then We Dance

This is the part I absolutely love.

Because we don't just talk about what you've discovered.

We move it.

We take the awareness you've created through breathwork and somatic work and bring it onto the dance floor.

This is where West Coast Swing becomes such a beautiful tool.

Maybe you've noticed that you tend to anticipate.

So we practice listening.

Maybe you tend to control.

So we explore what happens when you create space for your partner to respond.

Maybe you tense up when you don't know what's coming.

So we practice staying grounded in uncertainty.

Maybe you disconnect from your body when you're concentrating.

So we bring your attention back into your feet, your breath, your center, and your connection.

Maybe you make a mistake and immediately judge yourself.

So we practice something completely different:

Notice. Breathe. Stay present. Keep dancing.

These aren't just dance skills.

They're life skills.

And when we practice them repeatedly, something begins to change.

You're not simply learning how to dance better.

You're learning how to be inside your dance differently.

Why 1.5 Hours Is the Sweet Spot

I've found that 90 minutes is a beautiful amount of time for this type of work.

We need enough time to slow down.

We need enough time to connect with the body.

We need enough time to explore what comes up.

And then we need enough time to integrate that awareness through movement.

If we only had an hour, we could easily spend most of the session getting settled and connected before it was time to wrap up.

But we also don't need to spend several hours doing deep somatic work.

The goal isn't exhaustion.

The goal is integration.

Typically, the Breathwork and somatic portion will take about 30–45 minutes, followed by approximately 45–55 minutes of dancing.

But I don't watch the clock and force you into a formula.

Some days your body may need more time to settle.

Other days you'll be ready to move quickly.

That's part of the work.

We're listening to what your system needs rather than forcing it to fit into a predetermined box.

What Might You Feel After Your First Session?

This is one of my favorite questions because there isn't one right answer.

You might feel lighter.

You might feel grounded.

You might feel energized.

You might feel tired in a really good way.

You might feel emotional.

You might feel peaceful.

Or you might simply walk away thinking:

“Something feels different.”

And sometimes that is the beginning.

The changes aren't always dramatic.

You may start noticing yourself breathing during your dancing.

You may catch yourself before you react.

You may recognize when you're beginning to brace.

You may become more comfortable being seen.

You may recover from mistakes more quickly.

You may begin to trust your partner without trying so hard to control the outcome.

And eventually, you may notice those changes outside of dance too.

The awareness you build in your body comes with you.

Your Dance Is a Place to Practice Life

This is really what makes this work so meaningful to me.

I don't believe we can completely separate the dancer from the person.

You bring your whole self onto the dance floor.

Your history.

Your experiences.

Your habits.

Your nervous system.

Your fears.

Your confidence.

Your joy.

Your desire for connection.

All of it comes with you.

And that means dance can become more than a place where we learn patterns.

It can become a place where we practice.

Practice trusting.

Practice listening.

Practice communicating.

Practice taking up space.

Practice letting go.

Practice recovering.

Practice being present.

Practice staying connected when something doesn't go according to plan.

And maybe most importantly, practice being kind to yourself while you're learning.

That is why I don't want you to simply become a better dancer.

I want you to become more aware of yourself while you're dancing.

Because when you change the way you experience yourself in your body, it has the potential to change so much more than your dancing.

You Don't Have to Know Exactly What's Holding You Back

You don't have to come into a somatic dance session knowing what your “problem” is.

You don't need to know anything about nervous system regulation.

You don't need to have a perfect meditation practice.

You don't need to be an advanced West Coast Swing dancer.

And you don't have to have some huge breakthrough.

You simply need to be curious.

Curious about your body.

Curious about your patterns.

Curious about your connection.

Curious about what might become possible if you stopped trying to force your dancing and started listening to it.

Whether you've been dancing for six months or twenty years, there is always another layer of awareness available.

And sometimes the next level of your dancing isn't another move.

It's you.

Ready to Experience Your Dance Differently?

My Breathwork + West Coast Swing Somatic Dance Sessions are designed for dancers who want to go deeper than technique.

Together, we work with breath, nervous system awareness, somatic practices, and West Coast Swing to help you develop greater presence, connection, confidence, and embodiment.

Every session is personalized.

Because your body is unique.

Your dance is unique.

And your journey is unique.

You don't have to come in knowing exactly where we're going.

We'll discover that together.

And then we'll take what you discover and dance it.

Because this is what I believe:

Dance isn't just something we do.

It's a way we experience ourselves.

And when we learn to listen to our bodies, regulate our nervous systems, and move from a place of greater awareness, we don't just become better dancers.

We become more connected humans.

Live in Love. Move with Meaning. Play Passionately.

Shalay