Betika

Guide Through the Wisdom of Breath & Cold

Beti Kotovchevska, known as Betika – the Ice Queen from Macedonia – is a guide through breath, cold, presence and the deeper layers of the human experience.

Her journey began through a profound relationship with nature, the body and the power of conscious breathing. Over the years, she has transformed her own experiences with cold, fear, silence and endurance into spaces where others can safely meet themselves.

Beti is the Wim Hof Method Ambassador in Macedonia and has facilitated numerous workshops, retreats and transformational experiences both in Macedonia and internationally, guiding people through breathwork, cold exposure, meditation, embodiment and conscious connection.

She has worked with people from different cultures and backgrounds, creating spaces where the breath becomes an anchor, the cold becomes a mirror, and stillness becomes a doorway inward.

Her path has also taken her to extraordinary physical challenges. She became the first Macedonian woman to climb the French Alps wearing only shorts and a T-shirt, and in Finnish Lapland she immersed herself in freezing conditions of -35°C, achieving a Balkan record in cold-water endurance.

But behind the records and the extremes lies something much deeper. Beti’s work is not about becoming stronger than the cold. It is about becoming intimate with yourself within it.

She believes that the body carries wisdom, the breath can bring us home, and that when we learn to stay present in moments of discomfort, we begin to discover parts of ourselves we have forgotten. Her invitation is simple: breathe, feel, surrender, and remember who you are beneath the noise.

At ADA, Beti will hold a space for exploration through breath and cold, where the physical experience becomes a gateway to inner awareness, presence and transformation.

Explore more about Betika via Instagram.

BETIKA'S OFFERINGS

Workshops

Awaken Through Breath & Ice

Workshop description

Awaken Through Breath & Ice is a guided journey into presence, conscious breathing and the transformative encounter with cold.

Rather than beginning with intensity, the experience unfolds gradually, allowing time for the body to settle, awareness to deepen, and trust to develop within the group. The journey begins with something we carry with us every moment of our lives, yet so often forget to notice – the breath.

Through simple awareness practices, reflection, and an introduction to conscious breathing, participants will first explore their relationship with the breath and how it responds to different states of the body and mind. Each person will also be invited to connect with an intention for the experience – creating an inner point of reference to return to throughout the journey.

From there, Betika guides the group into a meditative breathwork process that begins gently with nasal and diaphragmatic breathing, then gradually moves into a more active practice inspired by the Wim Hof Method, including conscious breathing and breath retention.

Her intuitive guidance and meditation accompany the process throughout, allowing the experience to become more than a breathing technique and opening space for deeper presence, sensation and inner awareness.

After the breathwork, there is time to remain in stillness and integrate before approaching the cold.

For Betika, the ice bath is not a challenge, competition or test of endurance – it is a continuation of the meditation.

Participants who choose to enter the ice will be guided to meet the body’s natural response to cold with awareness, gradually returning attention to the breath and exploring whether intensity can coexist with softness, presence and inner steadiness.

The cold becomes an opportunity to notice resistance without fighting it, to listen closely to the body, and to discover what happens when we remain connected to ourselves within an unfamiliar experience.

After leaving the water, participants will learn simple warming, breathing, and movement practices they can carry into everyday life as tools for reconnecting with the body and returning to a greater sense of grounded presence.

The journey closes together in a circle of reflection and gratitude, allowing space to acknowledge both the individual and collective experience.

For Betika, the breath is not the destination – the breath is the path. And the deeper invitation of the cold lies not in conquering it, but in discovering how we choose to meet ourselves while moving through something that once seemed impossible.

Please note: Participation in this workshop is required for anyone wishing to join the ice bath immersions offered throughout ADA. Ice bath sessions will be booked separately and will include a small additional contribution.

What you will receive

You will be guided into a deeper relationship with your breath, body and inner awareness, experiencing conscious breathing not simply as a technique but as a practical pathway back into presence.

Through the gradual progression from breathwork into cold exposure, you will have the opportunity to observe your relationship with discomfort, resistance and fear, while exploring how breath and attention can support greater steadiness within intensity.

The experience may strengthen your trust in your capacity to listen to and respond to your body, while offering a different relationship with the cold – one based on presence and curiosity rather than force or endurance.

You will also leave with accessible breathing, movement, and warming practices that you can integrate into everyday life whenever you wish to pause, reconnect with yourself, and consciously meet moments of stress or intensity.

Above all, this workshop invites you to remember that one of your most immediate resources is always with you: your breath and your ability to return to yourself through it.

Duration: 120 minutes

Intensity: Level 1 – Gentle / Accessible

Touch explored: Yes