A Somatic Coaching session will always start and end with talking and in-between there may be times to use posture, shape, pattern, flow, space, rhythm, movement, stillness and breath. It also involves following our sensations, emotions and imagination. There may be a hands-on session to release tension and holding patterns that have built up in the body over the years.
Our neurology, psychology and biology are intertwined like the weave of a fabric. This is defined by the ancient Greek word σώμα (soma), meaning the ‘body’ in its truly awakened state. This does not mean that the coaching will focus on the body to the exclusion of your thoughts, emotions and psychology. It means having respect for what is trying to emerge, underpinned by a belief in the authority of the body as a route to achieving inner alignment.
Due to the pressures of modern life, many of us spend so much time in our heads that we lose touch with the processes of the body. Being aware of the body – our breathing, posture, movements, moods and speech patterns – helps us become more aware of how we are interacting with the world around us.
Somatic Coaching will help you become more aware of your inner sensations, emotions, and the stories you tell yourself about who you are. These stories are not always positive. Over time they can become so ingrained that the conscious mind is no longer aware of them. Instead, they manifest as frozen beliefs and stuck patterns of behaviour as well as in physical indicators like a slumped posture, muscle contractions, irregular breathing or a short concentration span.
Somatic Coaching will help you recognise the unconscious patterns that you have been holding as limiting beliefs, as well as in physical form. You will learn to bring the experience of the whole self to the surface allowing a more fulfilled and healthy future. Working in this way helps us wake up to the untapped resources our bodies hold for living more fulfilling, wise and compassionate lives.
It is my belief that we need to ‘Awaken the Wisdom Within’ by re-learning and remembering how to access the wisdom of our body. When this is combined with the cognitive power of our brain, we will have a much better chance to prosper in a world that is driven by technology, both at work and at home, resulting in stress and anxiety.
Simply put, when we spend too much time in our heads, we lose touch with our bodies. What follows is an unregulated nervous system and a decline of mental and physical health, diminishing our true selves in the process.
“And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
Anais Nin
Somatic Coaching, Awaken the Wisdom Within
Comments