Katarina Polonska

I’m a relationship advisor to founders, executives and high performers, and the creator of the Successfully in Love® method. Breathwork, trained through the Global Professional Breathwork Alliance, is one of the central tools in my practice, because so much of what shapes a relationship lives in the body, not just the mind.

I use breathwork in three main ways.

– To release what the body is holding. Years of pressure, unspoken emotion and old relational patterns often show up as physical tension – a tight chest, a held breath, a body braced for impact. Conscious breathing helps soften and release that holding, so you’re no longer carrying the past into every new moment with your partner.

– To bring the body into a calm, regulated state. Many of my clients live in a constant state of alertness. From there, every relationship question feels urgent, and decisions get made from stress rather than clarity. Breathwork brings the nervous system back to calm, so you can see your relationship clearly and choose from a grounded place.

– To open the body to intimacy and love. Closeness is felt physically before it is understood. Breathwork helps you become more present in your body, more able to feel, and more able to let another person in. It is a fantastic tool for deeper intimacy.

– Alongside the relationship work, the breath becomes a practice you take home: something you use in the hard conversation, in the quiet moments, and, for couples, something you share together.

I work online and through private retreats.

Breathwork also helps you in love in these ways:

– Tolerating closeness. It widens your capacity to stay present when someone gets close, rather than pulling away, shutting down or getting busy.

– Recovering after conflict. It shortens the time it takes to come back to calm after an argument, so repair can happen sooner.

– Pausing before reacting. It creates a moment of space between feeling triggered and responding, which changes how conflict unfolds.

– Letting emotion move. It allows feelings such as grief, tenderness or longing to be felt and expressed rather than suppressed.

– Receiving care. For people who are used to giving, leading or being in control, it helps the body accept love and support without deflecting it.

– Breathing together. Shared breathwork helps partners attune to each other’s rhythm, building a felt sense of connection and safety.

– Telling the truth. A steadier breath makes for a steadier voice, making it easier to say what you want, need or feel in vulnerable conversations.

– Hearing your own knowing. When the body is calm, it becomes easier to tell the difference between anxiety and genuine intuition about a person or a relationship.

– Slowing down in physical intimacy. It brings attention into sensation and presence, rather than performance or distraction.

– Listening more deeply. A regulated body can actually hear a partner, rather than preparing a defence while they’re still speaking.