"Most people only become aware of their body when something hurts..."
I saw this quote the other day and it really reminded me of why embodied awareness is such a central aspect to how I approach my work and my own health.
How often are we aware of our bodies when we're not feeling discomfort, pain, or illness?
Typically, there's very little focus on intentionally being with our bodies until there is a perceived problem. Before that, we're often just living our lives, taking for granted the incredible, sacred relationship we have with our physical selves...but what were to happen if we became more present with our bodies separate from the very specific signals of pain?
How might this alter our attention? How might our health be impacted?
As someone who lives in her head a lot, I get why this can be so hard. Shifting focus to the body, grounding and centering our energy in its physical manifestations can be such an integral part of healing, but it's not always a skill that's as cultivated as others.
(And, the mind is the body, so this conversation can get a touch complex.)
When we engage a more embodied way of being with ourselves, this doesn't mean to turn away from our thoughts, or to silence them, or to lessen their value.
It does mean that we are not only our thoughts. We live in bodies that house our every experience, that nourish and sustain us, that learn and respond and hold memories.
Plus, our physical bodies impact so much of our emotional lives.
We do ourselves a great disservice when we neglect the sacred relationship we get to have with our bodies.
This means that we need to attend to our relationship with our bodies not only when they alert us to a problem.
It's like how we cultivate relationships with loved ones—we don't only invest time and attention when things go wrong, while ignoring them when things are good. We commit to lovingly, consistently, and openly attending to the relationships we wish to foster on a daily basis.
As one of my favorite embodiment coaches and authors,Jamie Lee Finch, says:"Your body is a person."
So, how might you more fully shift your awareness to that relationship? And how might this allow you to more intuitively approach your everyday health?
And how might this embodied awareness impact your role in the world around you?