This Sacred Breath Academy review compares their 400-hour facilitator training with ours. The real question: a year of self-paced ceremonial study with an overseas intensive, or live training you finish in weeks?
Sacred Breath Academy is a trademark of its owner. Liquid Breathwork is not affiliated with or endorsed by Sacred Breath Academy or Kaya Leigh, and we don't teach or certify their method.
Next training
Online: next cohort March 9, 2027
In person: Phoenix, Oct 23-25
Sacred Breath Academy is a trademark of its owner. Liquid Breathwork is not affiliated with it. Updated October 25, 2026.
Quick answer: Sacred Breath Academy sells a 400-hour training (a 350-hour self-paced digital course plus a 50-hour in-person intensive) for $4,444 USD. Liquid Breathwork teaches live, over 3 days in person or 12 weeks online.
| Compared | Liquid Breathwork | Sacred Breath Academy |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs it | Ryan McBurney and Shelby Von Oepen, RN, teach every cohort together | Founder Kaya LeighShe lists early training in a Shamanic Breathwork lineage. |
| Format | Live training, in person or on online group calls | Self-paced digital course, then an in-person intensivePlus live Zoom journeys. A virtual intensive costs more. |
| In person in the US | Yes. Phoenix area, plus seven more US cities in 2027. | No US date listedNext listed: Bali, November 9 to 17, 2026. |
| Duration | 3 days in person, or 12 weeks online | 400 hoursThey say most students take 6 to 12 months. |
| Price | $1,497Online.$1,997In person, 2027 early bird, then $2,497. | $4,444 USDIntensive travel, food and lodging extra. |
| Focus | Conscious connected Breathwork and surrender, with physiology, technique range and business training | The Sacred Breath Method, a ceremonial, nose-inhale style |
Sacred Breath Academy figures from sacredbreathacademy.life, checked October 25, 2026. Prices change, so confirm on their site.
Their page is unusually thorough. It publishes the full price and every certification step, and it gives real weight to integration after a session. That's rare.
What to weigh: you train within their lineage, and certification needs the intensive, a final quiz and three private sessions each with ten people. Plan for up to a year, and a flight unless you pay more for the virtual intensive. Our Breathwork certification is built for people who want to learn live and start guiding sooner. Want to try a session first? Join our Breathwork classes.
These lessons cover safety, integration and running a practice.
What we don't teach: We don't teach or certify the Sacred Breath Method, and we don't train its ceremonial elements like essential oils and smudging herbs. If you need those, train with them.
Three days in person or twelve weeks online. The same surrender-based method and mentorship from Ryan and Shelby either way.
October 2026
Three days in person in Phoenix, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. Phoenix is home base for Liquid Breathwork.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add.
See the full in-person details →Phoenix, AZ
October 23-25
$1,997
November 2026
Three days in person in Phoenix, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. The next Phoenix-area weekend after October.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add.
See the full in-person details →Phoenix, AZ
November 6-8
$1,997
February 2027
Three days in person in Scottsdale, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. The next Phoenix-area weekend after November.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add.
See the full in-person details →Scottsdale, AZ
February 5-7
$2,497 $1,997
1 early-bird spot left
12 Weeks, Live
Twelve weeks of live small group calls from home, with the same surrender-based method and mentorship.
Live weekly group calls, the complete course materials and business curriculum, and the same private graduate community as our in-person students.
See the full online cohort details →12-Week Online
Starts March 9
$1,797 $1,497
5 early-bird spots left
March 2027
Three days in person in Atlanta, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. Our only Southeast training in 2027.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add. The address goes out by email before the training.
Your deposit transfers to another training date. Refunds are handled case by case.
See the full in-person details →Atlanta, GA
March 19-21
$2,497 $1,997
4 early-bird spots left
April 2027
Three days in person in Salt Lake City, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. Our only Mountain West training in 2027.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add. The address goes out by email before the training.
Your deposit transfers to another training date. Refunds are handled case by case.
See the full in-person details →Salt Lake City, UT
April 30 - May 2
$2,497 $1,997
5 early-bird spots left
May 2027
Three days in person in Washington, D.C., with Ryan and Shelby in the room. Our only Mid-Atlantic training in 2027.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add. The address goes out by email before the training.
Your deposit transfers to another training date. Refunds are handled case by case.
See the full in-person details →Washington, D.C.
May 21-23
$2,497 $1,997
5 early-bird spots left
July 2027
Three days in person in South Lake Tahoe, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. Our only California training in 2027.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add. The address goes out by email before the training.
Your deposit transfers to another training date. Refunds are handled case by case.
See the full in-person details →South Lake Tahoe, CA
July 23-25
$2,497 $1,997
5 early-bird spots left
August 2027
Three days in person in Seattle, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. Our only Pacific Northwest training in 2027.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add. The address goes out by email before the training.
Your deposit transfers to another training date. Refunds are handled case by case.
See the full in-person details →Seattle, WA
August 27-29
$2,497 $1,997
5 early-bird spots left
September 2027
Three days in person in Milwaukee, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. Our only Midwest training in 2027.
Live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add. The address goes out by email before the training.
Your deposit transfers to another training date. Refunds are handled case by case.
See the full in-person details →Milwaukee, WI
September 17-19
$2,497 $1,997
5 early-bird spots left
November 2027
Three days in person in Phoenix, with Ryan and Shelby in the room. The next Phoenix-area weekend after February.
Three days of live, hands-on facilitation practice, plus the same private graduate community as our other students. The 12-week online cohort is a separate training you can add. Dates are being settled now; the address goes out by email before the training.
Your deposit transfers to another training date. Refunds are handled case by case.
See the full in-person details →Phoenix area (Mesa or Scottsdale), AZ
November 2027
$2,497 $1,997
5 early-bird spots left
Not sure yet? Share your info and we will reach out or Book a Clarity Call.
It's an established school founded by Kaya Leigh, who says she has worked with breath for over a decade. They publish their price, curriculum and certification steps in full.
In October 2026 their site listed the full 400-hour certification at $4,444 USD, or in stages: $3,333 for the immersion and digital course, then $1,111 for the intensive. Food and lodging at the intensive are extra.
They list an organizational membership in the International Breathwork Foundation (IBF). They say they don't follow the Global Professional Breathwork Alliance timeline.
Yes. They don't conflict. Sacred Breath Academy certifies you in its method and lineage, and we certify you in ours.
Still comparing? Read our roundup of the best Breathwork certifications, or the Holotropic Breathwork alternative comparison.