28 Sep Importance of body wisdom
Why is it important to listen to our bodies? Does the body hold wisdom? The body does have intelligence, just think about how Michael Jordan is able to educate his body and repeat masterful moves to make him the best at his game.
Ever feel a push~pull between your mind and body? If balancing these two brains wasn’t enough, enter your third brain, your gut.
What does it mean to finding the gut~brain~heart connection. First we need to know which brain does what. These three brains are connected and intersect in these three fields of science: psychology, neuroscience, and somatics.
Gut=what you feel (somatics)
Brain=what you know (neuroscience)
Heart=what you want (psychology)
We use a Body-Mind method of coaching as the intricate relationship between our physical and emotional experiences can offer valuable insights into our well-being for lasting changes. [Book your complimentary discovery call here.]
Psychology shows that our thoughts and emotions can significantly affect our physical health. Stress, for instance, can manifest in physical symptoms, which reflect how our emotional state impacts our body. The gut is often referred to as the “second brain” because it produces neurotransmitters that affect mood and cognition. The communication between the gut and the brain has been documented mostly through understanding the role of the vagus nerve and illustrates how bodily sensations can influence emotional states. connecting mental and physical experiences. Body-Mind awareness allows for individuals to tune into their bodies, fostering a greater awareness of what they really want (emotions), feel (sensations) and know (thoughts).
What do I feel in my body right now?…where in my body do I feel this? Because getting very present with yourself is one of the most effective ways to get out of your head and in your body.
Jillian Turecki
PROPIOCEPTIVE TOUCH
Putting your hands on the area WHERE you feel the stress. An example of proprioceptive touch is to place your hand on your abdomen and breathe into your hand. Awareness goes to that place and can send your breathing there. Both massage and a weighed blanket are examples of proprioceptive touch (both of which we have at Tao!) Receiving a deep tissue massage not only relieves muscle tension but also enhances body awareness by stimulating proprioceptive receptors.
WHAT WE FOCUS ON EXPANDS
The two previous blog post about controlling your cortisol response and Hurry Up, Take your Time talked about how what we focus on EXPANDS. Can you relate to a time when you have focused on something painful or negative and you increased your painful and negative experiences?
Now think of a time when you focused on your self-care, feeling better, increasing your community connections, helping others…what happened?
What will you give more death today in order to generate more life?
WHEN DO YOU NOTICE YOU ARE EXPERIENCING MORE PAIN?
Without adding the unhelpful thoughts and feelings to pain we can still notice when you may be experiencing more pain. We are reminded of and to paraphrase Eckhart Tolle about why we experience stress and anxiety and similarly to pain, that stress is being HERE and wanting to be THERE.
Stress is caused by narrowly focusing on the future versus experiencing the present moment. This is why is it so hard to calm the body and relax in the body and turn off the brain, because we have wired ourselves to be in the future versions of ourselves versus to “be here now”. Continuing the unhelpful thoughts and feelings around pain is wiring our brain to stay that groove. Think about playing a song over and over again on a record player, by repeating that same song, the groove gets deeper and deeper and deeper, embedding itself. Similarly this happens in our brain. If we stay wired and attached to the unhelpful thoughts and feelings we keep ourselves in the groove.
Need some direction on how to work on rewiring your brain to make a lasting changes toward more useful thoughts and feelings? Body~Mind coaching might be for you. Call/text Tao 732-775-1550 or email us directly at [email protected] to see if working with a ICF Trained Body-Mind Coach is right for you