How To Work With Emotional Pain Stored In The Body
There are days when my body is just feeling really out of sorts.
Mostly due to physical pain.
How many of you all can relate?
Teaching classes in The Messy Movement Lab throughout the week is great on my spirit but proves to be more challenging for my body to recover from some weeks.
Step #1 Acknowledge pain
I have to be extra intentional about dropping into a nourishment practice so I’m not walking bent over for days at a time. My dancers here know what I’m talking about lol.
But there are other days when emotional pain stops me in my tracks.
Stops me from wanting to move.
Hinders my engagement and on those days I know I need to move the most.
Step #2 Witness Your Body without Judgement or Critique
What stories do you see when you look at your body in the mirror?
The other day I was looking in the mirror - naked and I saw something different about my body.
My breasts look different. My hips look different. My stomach looks different. Not bad or wrong or not desirable.
Those aren’t the first thoughts that came to mind. Just different. I can see my body aging in a way that we don’t consider or talk about much in our 20s. And let me say this I’ve only been in my 30s for 2.5 seconds lol but I think there’s a definite shift. I can’t say I hate it or anything of the sort, again it’s just different.
Step #3 : Re-Nurture Your Self-Perception
We have the choice of whether to move through it or release it but nevertheless it shows up in our muscle memory.
I often recall some of the painful things that my abuser said to me about my body.
Step #4: Sift through your thoughts. Identify what isn’t yours.
I’ve never been able to put together a logical understanding of their behavior.
I think about the woman I was at that time who stood there in total shock and disbelief hearing someone she once loved dismember their respect and attraction to me for sport.
It’s taken years to unlearn and release those experiences. Some days there’s big waves of remembrance that pull me into full-body active grieving and then there are days like this day standing in the mirror - where I can just notice that there is something different.
No blame. No anger. No critiquing just gentleness and embrace. This body has survived. That’s not a story I dare to erase. I bring all of me into the space and onto the dance floor to give my heart an opportunity to express what my words cannot always say.
Step #6: Get into a movement and self-care practice consistently.
So many times I hear people talking about wanting to indulge in our classes but not having the flexibility, the courage, the emotional strength etc. And All I can do is shake my fist in the air saying in my best theatrical voice "That's why you come to class my love" lol.
But I get it. The stories that we hold, the stories that we've lived through don't always give us the flexibility to be spontaneous or risky especially when exploring sensitive topics. I respect this level of knowingness about YOUR body and what you know you need to feel safe.
I also want to remind each of you that you can come into the practice
undone
stiff
tired
confused
grieving
not feeling sexy
and the practice will take care of you, nurture you and call you back into your power.
There is no perfect picture needed in order to make the most out of this class experience. No matter where you are on the emotional spectrum, no matter what stories you body is holding or streaming that day there is space for you in the practice.
Come dance with us…
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