Embodiment and therapy
What does embodiment mean?
The term embodiment describes the presence of our bodies in our experience. How embodied we are refers to our ability to notice feelings and sensations in the body. It relates to how well integrated these are into our overall experience.
Embodiment has an important relationship to health. When we are more in tune with our own bodies we can make better and more timely choices about how to look after ourselves. For example, rather than simply thinking that we should be doing certain things to look after ourselves, we more naturally feel the impulse to do them—for instance to eat well, get good sleep and exercise. Taking care of ourselves becomes easier when we are more embodied.
Embodiment also refers to our feeling experiences, including emotional experiences that have a strong physiological aspect. The more embodied we are, the more we can observe our feelings without being overtaken by them. This gives us more choice as to how to respond in any given situation. For example, observing anger before we express it allows us to respond more evenly rather than exploding or shutting down. Noticing anxiety before we react to it gives us time to use strategies to calm down before our anxiety snowballs.
The more embodied we are, the more present we become. As we become more embodied, we can experience more joy and ease. Our capacity to tolerate difficulties and discomfort increases.
What are embodiment practices?
An embodiment practice is any practice in which we deliberately pay attention to feelings and sensations in the body, as part of our ongoing experience. This could be as straightforward as noticing the sensations on the soles of the feet during a walk in nature. Or as simple as using long, slow exhalations to bring our heart rate down when we feel stressed.
Dance and movement can be embodiment practices. During dance we might notice how the body wants to move in its own way. If we are able to listen to the body and follow this, we might bring forward particular emotions or new physical experiences. Or perhaps during a yoga practice, we might notice how uncomfortable physical sensations relate to certain thoughts and feelings. Sometimes the act of noticing is enough to let them go or watch them change. Embodiment involves noticing our feelings and sensations without getting lost in them.
Body scan meditations are also embodiment practices. When we deliberatly move attention through the body, noticing without judgement, we can access many layers of subconscious memories and patterns. Over time, we can allow them to emerge and resolve.
Biodynamic craniosacral therapy is an embodiment therapy
I find it useful to think of bcst as an embodiment therapy. I think of it as an embodiment practice in a therapeutic environment.
During bcst, the touch and attention of a therapist amplifies the body’s natural ability to heal itself. Healing can certainly occur during bcst without the client directly observing their own body. But I find that it is always helpful if clients also pay attention to the body. Paying attention often deepens the therapy as well as providing skills and feedback that can be used in everyday life.
People often seek therapy because they experience either feeling too much or feeling too little. For clients who feel detached or shut down, an important aspect of this therapy is learning to feel more. They learn to come out of dissociation. This means learning to be present to their own body, gradually and safely over time. Dissociation is a useful strategy in times of difficulty and trauma but is less useful when the difficulty is in the past. The supportive presence of a therapist can help the body and mind to allow these feelings into conscious awareness in increments that feel safe and manageable.
On the other hand, clients who are more sensitive and tend to be vigilant or become overwhelmed learn how to notice the body with a more spacious attention. Rather than focusing too strongly on stuck feelings or painful sensations, clients learn to notice pleasant feelings and sensations, such as vitality, aliveness and ease. They notice that using their own attention can bring about shifts in their more difficult feelings and sensations.
Please visit my sessions in biodynamic craniosacral therapy page for more information about my embodiment program.
Embodiment is an important theme in contemporary philosophy
Embodiment is a fascinating subject with many facets. It is an increasingly accepted part of psychology and psychotherapy, as well as bodywork modalities such as bcst.
Embodiment is also an important contemporary theme in philosophy and cognitive science. It is the subject of deep considerations about the meaning of human life, as well as scientific research about interoception, emotion and consciousness.
I have been researching embodiment for more than twenty years. I have published a unique theory on the topics of consciousness, feeling and the body, in my book Taking Heart and Making Sense: A new view of nature, feeling and the body.
For more infomation, you can view my book or please feel welcome to visit my embodiment philosophy website, devoted to the exploration of embodiment.
