2026 Sep 25-28
Island Breathwork Retreat
You're stressed, disconnected or burnt out.
Can't put words to your negative feelings. Tried everything.
Come spend four days tranfroming with the breath.
Thank you — we'll reach out as soon as the next retreat is confirmed.
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Book a Retreat
The full reset
Multi-day immersive experiences built around group conscious connected breathwork sessions that compound and deepen over days, not hours. Alongside yoga, singing bowl sound healing, and dedicated integration time.
- Multiple group CCB sessions that build across days
- Yoga and movement
- Singing bowl sound healing
- Structured integration time
- Small group setting with full facilitation
Designed for people serious about change, not just stress relief. This is the deepest work we do.
Dates
2026/9/25-28 Liuqiu Island, Taiwan
{Breathwork for Stress Retreat}
Island Breath Retreat September 25-28
You're stressed, disconnected or burnt out. Can't put words to your negative feelings. Tried everything. Come spend four days tranfroming with the breath.
Xiaoliuqiu is a small coral island off Taiwan's southwest coast — a handful of square kilometers, one traffic light, and over 800 sea turtles living just off the coast. It's an easy place to slow down, mostly because nothing on the island is in a hurry.
Four days, two facilitators, a small group. The core practice is Conscious Connected Breathwork — not slow, gentle breathing. It's continuous, faster-paced, and it tends to bring things up: subconscious material that's often driving the stress, the hypervigilance, the tension you can feel but can't quite explain. The rest of the program — yoga, somatic work, sound, meditation — is built around supporting whatever that breath stirs loose.
WHO THIS IS FOR
- People who are technically fine but haven't actually felt relaxed in years.
- Anyone who feesl like something's off but can't name it — grumpy or tense for no clear reason, a sadness with no story attached, like everything on the surface is fine but something underneath isn't.
- Professionals coming out of (or still deep in) a high-stress career, who already know the stress lives in the body, not just the calendar.
- Anyone who's done the therapy, the apps, the gym, and still feels like something underneath hasn't moved.
- People working through grief, burnout, or a major life transition.
- Freedivers, athletes, and high performers curious about what non-ordinary states of consciousness can do for mental performance — without using a substance to get there
- One honest note: this work is intense by design. If you're pregnant, managing a cardiovascular condition or epilepsy, or currently in an acute mental health crisis, message us before applying and we'll talk it through.
WHAT THE FOUR DAYS INCLUDE
The Breath
Four full CCB sessions building in intensity — three rebirthing-style sessions and one holotropic-style session on Day 3. The first evening includes a calmer breathwork-for-stress session alongside the opening sound bath. You'll also work with breath holding for relaxation, and an attention deconcentration practice — a meditative state held with eyes open, awareness spread wide — done out on the water during the sunset SUP session.
The Body
Yoga most mornings, a nervous system regulation workshop, a somatic experiencing session, and a cloth massage workshop — a hands-on practice using traditional cloth to apply gentle flowing pressure, particularly effective for bringing the nervous system down after intensive breathwork.
The Sound
Nightly sharing circles, a sound bath, singing bowls — split between the two of us across the retreat — and a closing kirtan circle with Mukti. Sound is woven through the retreat not as background, but as its own modality: an invitation to experience what intentional vibration can do for the body and nervous system.
Island Breathwork Retreat
THE SCIENCE, BRIEFLY
Recent research has started describing what's actually happening in the body during CCB. Not a cure — but no longer just anecdotal.
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· A separate study found significant drops in cortisol and a rise in prolactin after a single session — the body actively shifting into a restorative state.
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· A 2025 brain imaging study found CCB produces "ego dissolution" comparable to medium-to-high doses of psilocybin — measurable via reduced blood flow in the regions that maintain your sense of a bounded, separate self.
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· A randomized controlled trial found CCB reduced anxiety scores with a Cohen's d of 1.44 — exceeding the effect size of most anxiety medications.
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· EEG research on experienced practitioners found CCB increases gamma waves — associated with peak cognitive focus and expanded awareness — while most participants move through theta and delta states during sessions, the same frequencies associated with deep meditation and restorative sleep.
Island Breathwork Retreat
THE SCHEDULE
You're stressed, disconnected or burnt out. Tried everything. Come spend four days healing with the breath.
Day 1 (Sep 25)
Arrival
2:00 PM — Check-in and welcome
3:00–5:00 PM — Re-birthing breathwork (CCB)
8:00 PM — Sharing circle · Breathwork for stress · Sound bath
Day 2 (Sep 26)
Full Immersion
8:00–9:00 AM — Yoga
9:00–10:00 AM — Breakfast (on your own)
10:00 AM–12:30 PM — Re-birthing breathwork (CCB)
12:30–2:30 PM — Lunch
2:30–4:00 PM — Nervous system regulation workshop
4:00–4:30 PM — Break
4:30–5:30 PM — Somatic experiencing
8:00–8:30 PM — Sharing circle
8:30–9:00 PM — Restorative yoga
Day 3 (Sep 27)
Deepening
7:30–8:30 AM — Morning yoga
8:30–9:30 AM — Break / breakfast (on your own)
9:30 AM–12:30 PM — Holotropic-style breathwork (CCB)
12:30–2:30 PM — Lunch
2:30–3:30 PM — Breath holding for relaxation
3:30–4:30 PM — Cloth massage workshop
4:30–6:30 PM — Sunset SUP · Attention deconcentration
8:00 PM — Sharing circle · Sound bowl
Day 4 (Sep 28)
Integration
8:00–9:00 AM — Dynamic meditation
9:00–10:00 AM — Breakfast (on your own)
10:00 AM–12:30 PM — Final re-birthing breathwork (CCB)
Closing — Kirtan circle with Mukti
Schedule is indicative and subject to change.
Island Breathwork Retreat
YOUR FACILITATORS
This retreat exists because of something that happened to us. In 2015, Ray was diagnosed with fibromyalgia after twenty years on trading floors. We left our careers in 2019 — Sheila from marketing, Ray from finance— and went looking for something, though we wouldn't have called it a healing journey at the time.
What followed was years of practice across Asia: Thai bodywork in Northern Thailand, yoga, freediving, meditation, and a wholesale change in how we lived. Recovery wasn't one thing. It was the accumulation of all of them — and a slow, small-island pace of life we first discovered on Gili Air, Indonesia, and eventually found again on Xiaoliuqiu, where we've stayed ever since.
The fibromyalgia didn't disappear overnight. It was gradual — so gradual that there was no dramatic moment of recovery, just an ordinary day, a few years in, when Ray realized he wasn't in pain anymore. Wasn't exhausted. It had quietly left without announcing itself.
Breathwork came after that, not to fix something still broken, but to go deeper into a healing journey already underway. Between the two of us, we ended up with a robust, holistic toolkit for what stress does to a body, and what actually helps it.
Ray
Lead Breathwork Facilitator
- Molchanovs Wave 3 Master Freediving Instructor
- Trauma-Informed Freediving Instructor
- Oxygen Advantage® Functional Breathing Instructor
- Breathwork for Stress Instructor (Yogabody)
- CCB Facilitator in training (Atma Breath)
- 200hr YTT
- Certified Sound Healing Therapist
- Thai Massage Therapist
- Reiki I & II
Sheila (Chui Kan)
Assistant Breathwork Facilitator & Somatic Experience Facilitator
- Trauma-informed Thai Massage Therapist
- Cloth Massage Therapist
- Certified Thai Massage Instructor & Practitioner
- Certified Stretch Massage Instructor & Practitioner
- Certified Table Stretch Massage Instructor & Practitioner
- Certified Thai Aromatherapy Oil Massage Instructor & Practitioner
- Certified Bamboo Oil Massage Instructor & Practitioner
- YTT200 (Soshanti Yoga, Dharamshala, India)
- Master Level Sound Healing Therapy (Aranya Yoga, Dharamshala, India)
- Thippaya Massage under Tui Sukanya Le Bras and Waen Chanakarn Komorida
Mukti (Ciao)
Guest Facilitator
- Closing Kirtan
- Bhakti yogi and chant leader
- Indian harmonium and call-and-response
- Magnified Healing® practitioner and qigong healer
- After four days of breath and movement, kirtan is a gentler way back into ordinary awareness — as a group, together, before everyone heads home.
Mukti (Ciao)
Guest Facilitator
- Closing Kirtan
- Bhakti yogi and chant leader
- Indian harmonium and call-and-response chanting Level 3
- Magnified Healing® practitioner and qigong healer
- After four days of breath and movement, kirtan is a gentler way back into ordinary awareness — as a group, together, before everyone heads home.
GETTING HERE
Fly into Kaohsiung International Airport (KHH) — direct flights from Hong Kong, Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, and other Asian hubs.
From further away: Taipei Taoyuan → High Speed Rail to Zuoying station (1.5–2 hours).
From the airport: taxi to Donggang Fishing Port (45–60 min), then ferry to Xiaoliuqiu (20–25 min). Ferries run frequently — no advance booking needed. Bring your passport for ferry tickets.
On the island: scooter rental is the standard way around. Accommodation and meals not included — we're happy to point you to where we'd stay. Just ask.
Island Breathwork Retreat
WHAT'S INCLUDED
Everything in the four-day program — every breathwork session, movement class, somatic session, cloth massage workshop (cloth not included), sound sessions, and closing kirtan with Mukti.
Not included: flights, accommodation, meals, island transport.
Retreat investment: NT$15,000 per person (Early bird [only first 6 people] before 2026/7/31 NT$2,000 Discount). Full payment required to confirm. Cancellation policy: more than one month before — 100% refund. One week to one month — 50% refund. Within one week — no refund.
Payment details sent after your application is reviewed and accepted.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Questions worth asking
What's the difference between an online session, a group session, and a retreat?
Each format serves a different depth of work. Online 1:1 sessions are private, personal, and bookable from anywhere in the world — a 3-hour guided journey combining a breathwork for stress workshop with a full conscious connected breathwork session. Group sessions in Taipei, Kaohsiung, and Xiaoliuqiu bring the added dimension of collective energy — something genuinely shifts when a room of people breathe together. Retreats are the full immersion — multi-day experiences built around group CCB sessions that compound and deepen with each day, alongside yoga, sound healing with singing bowls, and structured integration time. If you're not sure where to start, the online session is the lowest barrier. Most people find their own answer after the first one.
What actually happens during a session?
You breathe. And then something interesting happens. As the session continues, the thinking mind tends to get quieter. The mental chatter that usually filters everything you feel starts to fade, and things that have been sitting beneath the surface — emotions, physical sensations, old memories — can begin to rise. That's why this practice is used as a tool for emotional processing and stress release. It's not magic. It's just that your body finally has some space to move things through. What people actually feel varies. Tingling in the hands or face is common. So are temperature shifts, waves of emotion, unexpected laughter, or tears. Some people feel a profound release and walk out feeling calm and grounded in a way that's hard to describe. Sessions are structured and guided — so even if things get intense, you're not navigating it alone.
What happens afterward?
Most people describe feeling lighter, clearer, and more settled — sometimes for hours, sometimes for days. There's often a quality of mental quiet that regular life doesn't tend to offer. Over time, the practice builds something more lasting: a more conscious relationship with your breath, your stress response, and the connection between your body and your emotions.
Do I need any experience to try it?
None at all. If you can breathe — and you can — you can do this. Most people who come to their first session have never done any formal breathwork before. The only thing you need to bring is a willingness to follow the guidance and see what comes up. The session is structured so that even if things get intense, you have full support throughout.
How many sessions before I notice a difference?
Many people notice something in their very first session — a sense of release, unusual calm, or a mental clarity that's hard to describe. That said, like most things that work deeply, the effects compound over time. A single session can shift your state. Regular practice tends to shift your baseline — how you respond to stress day to day, how quickly you recover, how much noise your mind runs at. There's no fixed number. Start with one and see where it takes you.
Is it safe? Are there any contraindications?
For most healthy adults, yes — CCB is safe when practised in a guided setting. That said, it's not suitable for everyone. We'd recommend checking with your doctor first if you have a history of cardiovascular issues, epilepsy, severe psychiatric conditions, or if you are pregnant. During a session, some people experience tingling in the hands or face and waves of intense emotion — these are normal physiological responses, not signs that something is wrong. Sessions are always facilitated, so you're never navigating it alone.
I struggled with meditation. Will this work for me?
Probably better than meditation will. The most common reason people struggle with meditation is that they're trying to use the mind to quiet the mind — and for people who are wired for high performance, that's like trying to put out a fire with petrol. CCB works differently. The continuous breathing rhythm gives your nervous system something physical to follow, and the thinking mind tends to get quieter on its own as a result. Many of the people who show up to their first session describe themselves as 'bad at meditating.' Most of them leave wondering why nobody told them about this sooner.
Still have questions? We're happy to answer them before you book.
