We like guarantees. They are reliable, effectively predictable. Here is one. If we are alive, our body is somewhere. Yeah, so what? Big deal! Well, it is a big deal because it isn’t how our mind perceives our predicament. We don’t sense that we are always somewhere because we mentally live inside our head, spinning amidst our thought processes, longing for some grounding. Ironically, we are grounded all the while, right on the floor, piece of furniture or earth our body is situated on.
Why is this useful? Much of our emotional trauma, grave or small, rides on a feeling of dissociation, the sense that we aren’t here, attached to our own body, our person. The fact that we are only a whole physical body, always placed on some surface because of gravity, means we are never detached or fragmented. This is our actual landing, whether in the forefront or background of our awareness. It is a guarantee of reality and no matter how unleashed we may feel, our body is never unleashed; that isn’t physically possible.
Dissociation is normal, as we all experience it to some degree, most of the time. We naturally focus on our thought stories rather than our physical relationship to our physical surroundings. It is generally through exercise, movement practices, dancing, meditation, gardening, bodywork, sports, sexual contact, etc., that we accurately identify ourself as a physical being, which is why we get great relief from these activities. It is possible, however, to gain such benefits from everyday tasks if we tune into our physical reality, i.e., our whole physical body interacting with other entities of matter. Everything is of matter, even our thoughts (neurons composed of molecules and atoms).
Our physical existence, as well as our constant contact with our surroundings, can be reassuring and supportive if we remember to tune into it. It may not indicate what we wish to be happening, but it can at least remove the sensation that we are nowhere, floating in space disconnected from everything. Let your weight drop (head/face included) into itself, sense whatever you are in direct contact with through your skin (your touch receptor) and soften your muscles so you can maximize your sensory ability. There is no need to resist or brace against your immediate environment. It is there to hold you up, remind you of your connection to the planet and your own life. Being somewhere, doing something is a guarantee of existence. We get it for free, 100% of the time.
Jill Eng 