From Depression to Purpose: Elan Gepner-Dales on Bringing Breathwork Into Every School episode artwork

EPISODE · May 21, 2026 · 1H 6M

From Depression to Purpose: Elan Gepner-Dales on Bringing Breathwork Into Every School

from Beyond The Known · host Jitesh Vaswani

Elan Gepner-Dales was 11 years old when a classmate died of leukemia and his world fell apart. What followed were years of depression, nihilism, burnout, and a relentless search for something that could hold. What he found was breath. Now as Executive Director of SKY Schools USA, Elan has brought breathwork and social-emotional learning into 265 schools across 29 states, responding to a youth mental health epidemic where 30% of graduating seniors carry diagnosable anxiety disorders. This conversation is about what we owe our children, what ancient wisdom offers that no pill can, and why the most powerful tool for the next generation has been inside them all along.

Elan Gepner-Dales was 11 years old when a classmate died of leukemia and his world fell apart. What followed were years of depression, nihilism, burnout, and a relentless search for something that could hold. What he found was breath. Now as Executive Director of SKY Schools USA, Elan has brought breathwork and social-emotional learning into 265 schools across 29 states, responding to a youth mental health epidemic where 30% of graduating seniors carry diagnosable anxiety disorders. This conversation is about what we owe our children, what ancient wisdom offers that no pill can, and why the most powerful tool for the next generation has been inside them all along.

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From Depression to Purpose: Elan Gepner-Dales on Bringing Breathwork Into Every School

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This episode was published on May 21, 2026.

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Elan Gepner-Dales was 11 years old when a classmate died of leukemia and his world fell apart. What followed were years of depression, nihilism, burnout, and a relentless search for something that could hold. What he found was breath. Now as...

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