About Us
Open Minds offers structured breathwork experiences designed to support nervous system regulation, mental clarity, and sustained focus. Our mission is to create environments where individuals can pause, reset, and strengthen their capacity for attention and resilience.
When people take intentional time to regulate their breath and observe their internal patterns, measurable shifts in clarity, composure, and emotional steadiness begin to occur. Breathwork becomes both a performance tool and a pathway inward. Grounded in physiology, accessible to everyone, and valuable to anyone with an open mind.
Meet our Founder
Alexa Medellin
I came to this work through a deep curiosity about the mind, the nervous system, and the way our internal state shapes how we experience life. With a background in systems engineering and a passion for personal growth, I was drawn to breathwork as a bridge between science and self-awareness. Through formal training in SOMA Breath® and nervous system-based practices, I now hold sessions that feel structured yet expansive, where people can regulate, focus, and explore inward in a grounded, accessible way.
Understanding the Practice
A closer look at the science, structure, and lived experience behind each session.
The Method
Each session follows a deliberate progression designed to prepare, activate, and integrate. We begin with a brief grounding warm-up to bring awareness into the body and regulate the nervous system. From there we move into an overview of the breathing techniques for the session. Education is woven into the practice so you understand what each rhythm, depth, or retention is doing physiologically and why it matters.
The core of the session consists of guided rhythmic breathing sequences paired with intentional breath holds. These retentions draw inspiration from traditional pranayama practices as well as modern breath science. Throughout the session, carefully curated music and tonal rhythms will support the process, helping create cohesion and guide the nervous system through different phases of activation and integration.
In some sessions there will also be an element of visualization and structured self-reflection. When paired with breath-induced shifts in state, these reflective elements can surface insights, memories, or new perspectives that may otherwise remain buried beneath habitual thought patterns. The practice trains presence and awareness to strengthen attention like a muscle so that you can direct it inward with clarity and intention. Lastly, integration allows the experience to settle and translate into daily life.
Over time, breathwork becomes less of an event and more of a skill, something you do rather than something you practice.
The Science
Breathwork works because breathing directly influences the nervous system and blood chemistry in real time. The way we breathe affects heart rate variability, carbon dioxide levels, oxygen delivery, and the balance between stress and recovery responses. By intentionally guiding rhythm, depth, and pauses in the breath, we can gently shift the body out of chronic low-grade stress and into a more regulated, adaptable state.
Rhythmic breathing at steady cadences helps synchronize breath and heart rhythms, supporting nervous system coherence and improving nervous system flexibility. This means the body becomes better at activating when needed and returning to calm efficiently. Over time, this builds resilience rather than simply inducing temporary relaxation.
Intentional breath holds introduce brief, controlled shifts in oxygen and carbon dioxide levels. This form of mild, intermittent hypoxic exposure has been studied for its role in improving oxygen efficiency, supporting mitochondrial function, and strengthening the body’s tolerance to stress. When practiced safely and progressively, it trains the system to remain steady in moments that would normally trigger reactivity.
Music and tonal rhythm are also purposeful. Repetitive tonal patterns and steady beats can help synchronize breathing cadence and support state shifts in the brain, encouraging coherence and focus. Sound becomes a regulating tool, helping the body move through phases of activation and rest with greater ease.
While the experience can feel introspective or expansive, beneath it is a structured interaction with the nervous system that is rooted in both traditional breath practices and modern physiological research.
The Experience
While the science explains what is happening in the body, the lived experience is often what surprises people most. Sessions can feel grounding, expansive, energizing, or deeply releasing depending on the technique used. Some patterns bring a wave of clarity; others may surface emotion, insight, or physical sensations such as warmth or tingling as circulation changes. Breath has a way of bypassing overthinking and moving directly into the body, which allows stored tension or mental loops to soften without force. Many participants describe a feeling of coming back to themselves — a heightened awareness paired with deep steadiness. The experience is not about chasing intensity; it is about learning to safely explore different internal states and building familiarity with your own nervous system.
Get in touch
Sign up for a FREE 15-minute consultation to learn more about what breathwork can do for you.
Please feel free to ask any questions you may have, any feedback or suggestions are always welcome as well