This month as nature blossoms all around us, it invites us to shrug off our winter skin and melt into the beauty of life itself.  To ease our path in this, the topic I have chosen to explore this month is “Embodiment”.  Embodiment has become a popular term in the field of Somatic Psychology.  So, what is embodiment?

“Embodiment is the practice of attending to your sensations. Awareness of your body serves as a guiding compass to help you feel more in charge of the course of your life. Somatic awareness provides a foundation for empathy, helps you make healthy decisions, and gives important feedback about your relationships with others. Embodiment in somatic psychology applies mindfulness and movement practices to awaken body awareness as a tool for healing.”
-Dr. Arielle Schwartz

The shadow aspect of embodiment is a feeling of being dissociated or disconnected.  Mild dissociation can occur when we have been watching tv or on the computer for lengthy periods of time.  In simple terms dissociation is a sense of not being connected to the here and now.

Dissociation occurs most often as a result of difficult traumatic life experiences such as physical and/or sexual abuse.   Dissociation can also occur at the time of an accident e.g. car, bike, ski.  However, we can also dissociate in any circumstances that might feel threatening to us; such as parents fighting or yelling at us when we are very small.   In many situations, dissociation is considered an adaptive mechanism to prevent us from having to feel the full force of the pain or overwhelming emotions at the time of a trauma.

However, what is less adaptive is the fact that we remained dissociated long after the event occurs and so can feel numb or spaced out. We can also find ourselves triggered later in life by similar life events causing us to flee or freeze making it harder to deal with our relationships and our lives.  For example, if as a child you were sensitive to other people’s angry or rejecting behaviour, later in life if someone gets angry it can take you back to that disconnected state.  Instead of speaking up or engaging in solutions that might ease the situation we might have a tendency to withdraw and shy away from confrontation even though the current situation may be workable.  Coming back into the here and now, feeling safe in our bodies and our lives is the work and process of integrating traumatic memories.

For many years the body was left out of psychological conversations.  The emphasis was on mental and emotional processes.  However, from a holistic perspective everything we experience is imprinted on a physical and cellular level which is why it is important that in integrating life’s experiences we include our whole selves in the process.

So how can we gently bring ourselves back into our bodies and into the here and now.

1. Any grounding techniques such as walking barefoot on the grass or earth.
   Just being aware of our feet and wiggling our toes brings our energy down towards the earth.  A great visual cue is to imagine yourself as a tree.  A tree stands tall reaching up towards the sky and also is deeply rooted down towards the earth.

2. Breathe into the core of the body gently softening into any sensations that may be arising.
3.   Try shaking each part of your body gently starting with the legs and working up until you get to a whole-body shake. Helps release tension and rigidity.
4. Put on some music and allow your body to move in any way it is wanting to move.
5. Listen to your body. What might it be communicating to you?  Express whatever you sense might be preventing you from being at home in the here and now.  For example, it could be worry, overthinking or trying too hard to fix something.   Journal, shout it out, use tapping, whatever is calling you to feel more connected to yourself and the flow of life

The emphasis in embodiment practices is on following feelings and sensations rather than following thoughts.  No judgement though; this is not a right or wrong practice.   This is about feeling good in our skin.  The result is that we live our lives experiencing everything from a richer and more sensual and expansive place.  Try noticing when you eat your food.   Consider the difference when you might be distracted and thinking about something or when you are enjoying and savoring the food.    Same thing could be for other things we enjoy like being with our loved ones or making love.  If we are in our heads rather than in our bodies we may be missing out on the full richness of our lives.

As always if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me.

Meanwhile have a great month everyone.

Much love,

Vivianne