We love this article by yoga and Somatic movement teacher Laura Sarah Dowdall, where she talks about the mind-body connection, and how tapping into this connection can facilitate our healing process. Check out her website to learn all about her work!
Body First
How pain gives access to healing
We express our need for head-space, but how often do we feel the need for body-space? Doing a somatic meditation practice this morning, many body sensations arose. As I breathed into them and gave them space and attention, their expression began to flow and a
series of memories arose.
Seemingly random to begin, as I sat with them they revealed an underlying emotion. They related to times when I felt I wasn’t good enough, where my self-esteem was so fragile, and I questioned myself so deeply, that I worried I was ‘faking it’. Like an emotional wrench. these thoughts affected my self-confidence and ability at the time, and now I was feeling their physical resonance.
As the dots connected between pain, memory and emotion, it reaffirmed my belief that our
physical body stores all our experiences. As we become adults, we get better at brushing our
emotions under the carpet, suppressing anger, fear and worry, to name a few.
Our body speaks through its physical experience. When an emotional or mental pain is not
processed and released, it stays with you, and with time, can create a physical experience of pain or disease as it begins to scream louder and louder for attention.
Let’s be humble and empower our body by stepping down from the cockpit of the mind and
giving more presence to our body – not through exertion or activity (distraction) but by giving it our full undivided attention (through meditation, somatic movement, energy healing, conscious rest and relaxation).
This might seem a challenge to include in daily life, but if it is not a priority, then we can’t expect our body to have the chance to heal itself. When the body experience is continuously ignored, we become numb and disconnect from the warning signs it emits when our health is at risk.
Like a young child ignored, our body in its entire being (body-mind-spirit) needs our attention and love. Our natural state is ease and softness, when we move away from this we store tension that manifests as pain/dis-ease. The good news is we also have the ability to let go and release distortion from our body in order to restore balance and peace. We simply need to give our self the time and space to listen to the body and allow it speak.
Somatic movement and meditation reminds you of your innate ability to listen to your body, to understand its language of sensation and vibration. From here we can give space and healing to our body through focused attention, breath and stillness. As we become less constricted in our body, our perspective of who we are also expands beyond roles and titles and we feel a greater fullness and vitality as we reconnect with our natural state of being.
Feeling more space and less constriction in my body now, I feel excited for this beautiful day as my body reminds me of our infinite true potential.
Laura Sarah Dowdall facilitates:
Somatic movement sessions every Friday 7-8:30pm @ The Calm Rooms, 101 Monkstown
Village.
Monthly wellbeing workshops on Sundays – Sept 29th, Oct 27th, Nov 24th.
Individual coaching sessions integrating Reiki Energy Healing, Somatic Movement and Healing Yoga.
More info: healingyoga.ie or email laura@healingyoga.ie.
