What We Are Not Taught About The Relationship With The Body. Workshop - Self-development

From childhood, we are told to perceive the body in a certain way. It needs to be judged, disciplined, or barely noticed. The result is our tense and mechanistic bodies that have lost their sensitivity and freedom of movement. We suggest you re-open your body, learn to live in it in a new way.

Letting go of the dictates of prescriptions

"Sit up straight", "don't turn around", "you have an ugly nose", "you have too much weight / small height / crooked legs", "a real woman should look / move like that" and "a real man is like that" … Invisible judge constantly dictates what we should be and what not to be, and the beauty industry makes a lot of money from such prescriptions. Ask yourself the question: "How do these voices affect us, what becomes impossible in such a coordinate system?" We can learn to choose what works for us and give up the rest.

Leaning on the ground

We rarely walk barefoot on the ground, but we often wear uncomfortable shoes or sit on furniture that is not suitable for this. Bodies learn to grip, twist, hold on to the railing - we lose the support of the earth and the ability to balance in the truest sense of the word.

Simple and pleasant actions help to restore them. Notice right now how the body is leaning against the floor or a chair. Find a position that is more comfortable to do this. During your daily walking, notice your feet, their surface, softness. Pay attention to how the weight passes through the elastic system of the joints and flows from one foot to the other. In this way, the body gradually learns to be more stable and at the same time relaxed and free.

We breathe correctly

We are not used to paying attention to breathing either, and the polluted air of big cities only contributes to this.

Observe how the air fills the body on inhalation and leaves on exhalation, which parts of it are more involved in this - the movements of the abdomen and diaphragm, the front and back surfaces of the body, etc.

Breathing helps us to return to ourselves when the body freezes from stress, to take a break to consider our response. Try this experiment: Every time, pay attention to support and breathing before you do or say anything. Analyze if this simple exercise will change your reactions to others.

Interacting with others

On the one hand, many restrictions are imposed on bodily contact between people in modern society: often we feel constrained to touch another, or it simply does not occur to us. On the other hand, in an urban environment, we experience all sorts of intrusions and strangers' touch - be it public transport or unexpected familiarity. We have neither a culture of respect for personal space, nor a culture of bodily interaction.

But sometimes it is much more important to feel the embrace of a loved one, a warm and attentive look, a caring touch, than to hear all the words and advice in the world. Explore what happens if there is more bodily contact with other people in your life. At the same time, remember that it is important to respect the right to personal space: the ability to maintain a comfortable distance, reject or accept someone else's touch, have personal belongings and territory.

Developing bodily sensitivity

Tastes, smells, colors, sounds, touches, streams of information - if we live in big cities, then there are too many such stimuli around us and the sensitivity to them decreases. But to take and close the channel is a bad way out, because along with this, the taste for your favorite food, body contact, and the beauty of nature is lost.

Instead, the channel needs to be tuned: remove, if possible, unnecessary "noises" of various kinds and notice your feelings. Ask yourself a few questions to help you develop bodily sensibility:

• Do I like the taste and smell of what I eat?
• Do I enjoy the touch of another person?
• How do I understand that I am hungry or full, tense or relaxed?
• How do I know my clothes feel good to the touch?
• How do I touch my loved ones, my own body?

Establishing life rhythms

In modern culture, the state of activity is more supported - efficiency, activity, mobilization, including at night and on weekends; contemplation and calmness faded into the background. At the same time, there is a promise of pleasure and rest from the consumption of various things and entertainment - but it often does not bring true satisfaction.

From the body, we can learn to cycle: inhalation and exhalation, wakefulness and sleep, tension and relaxation. Let's follow this principle: give yourself the right to really work and really relax, alternate mental and physical, active and contemplative, everyday and festive. This approach can improve the quality of both the first and the second.

Moving for pleasure

And then you can do what you like. Do you like swimming? Swim. Do you like dancing? Dance. Run, yawn, stretch, breathe, hum, make love, play, walk … There are a myriad of activities and practices, simple and difficult. Being sensitive to our sensations, we find among them something of our own - something that helps to feel closer to life in our bodies.