The Rat and Letting It Flow, Babe!
The Rat and Letting It Flow, Babe!
Mindbody Clarity & Wellness Tips
Dear Awesome Woman,
Before I got trained in somatic/mindbody healing, emotions just kind of got stuck in my system. I didn’t quite know what to do with them considering that the topic of emotions was not taught in school. Growing up, I either suppressed them in light of society telling me that good girls didn’t get angry or my mind telling me that an enlightened person turns negative emotions into gratitude.
As many of us figure out as we get older, none of these ways are helpful and can even be quite damaging to our body and spirit. We don’t need to suppress our emotions, and we don’t need to ignore them to be an enlightened person. We also don’t need to explode or sob all over others and ruin important relationships or careers.
There is a better way. And that way is the somatic way.
The somatic way is to allow emotional energy to flow by putting your attention on the physical sensations in your body. Emotions are “energy in motion” and they shift and change when we notice them.
And as much as we can practice and know this, we may forget at times.
Like the time I came across a rat.
One evening, I was walking home from visiting a friend. The sky was dark, just a few sparkling stars above. The sidewalk was dimly lit by sporadic street lamps. I was lost in my thoughts when suddenly I heard a squeak and rustle in the bushes next to me. I turned my head and lo and behold it was a rat. I squealed, jumped and hurried away.
My mind raced and ruminated with the image of the rat. I couldn’t stop cringing and thinking, “ooh, ugh, ooh, ugh, how creepy.”
And then I remembered my body. Oh, yeah—my body—I’ve got to get in my body. I even heard my intuition whisper, “let it flow, Babe!”
So, as I continued to walk, I put my awareness on my body—on the physical sensations that were going on in there.
I noticed all kinds of swirling in my chest and abdomen and a felt sense of shock and alarm. I continued to walk, put my hand on my chest, and kept my attention on these physical sensations.
“Wow,” I thought to myself, “such an intense commotion happening in my body.” I reminded myself that I was safe in feeling this intensity.
And that was it.
By the time I got to my house, a few moments later, my mind was on other things. I totally had forgotten about the rat. My mind was free, my body relaxed.
This is such a huge lesson in the importance of processing emotions in a somatic way. You see, when I dropped into my body, I was able to use my mind, not as a thinking tool to figure out what I was feeling when I saw the rat—disgust, heebie-jeebies, etc.—but as an instrument to turn inwards and notice the physical sensations that were coming up for me.
With my attention on the swirling, the emotional energy dissipated and so did the sense of shock and alarm. The energy didn’t get stuck in my body. By the time I stepped into my house, my body felt calm and my mind, ready to engage in interacting with my family.
You may have the tendency to stay in your head with your emotions. Many of us do. We’re used to dissociating from uncomfortable feelings in our bodies and we were never taught what to do with our emotions. We were also taught to ruminate on problems and try to work them out through our mind. But this habit does not give us the healing or insight that we need in our lives.
In order to change this pattern, we need to consciously ask ourselves, “What am I feeling? Where am I feeling it? What is the sensation? Warm, hot, clammy, tense, expansive, uplifting?”
In other words, tell yourself, “Let it flow, Babe!”
Need a helping hand? As a Somatic Healer, Clarity Coach, and Relationship Expert, I help empower women to trust themselves through the wisdom of their bodies and intuition. Stress and pain relief, trauma processing, marriage magic, dating help, Narcissist/Borderline-relationship detoxing, career shifts and goal setting can all be accomplished through Mindbody Soul sessions (by phone).
Each session creates quantum energetic shifts for insight, healing and transformation. Your spirit is free to make miracles! Schedule your 20-minute complimentary Clarity Call today. Looking forward!
Download your free gift eguide: “3 Secrets to Solve Burnout and Get Energized the Mindbody Wellness Way” (also gives access to your free download of “Escape from the Borderline/Narcissist’s Web”).
“It’s been several weeks now since beginning to work with Miriam, and I’m so happy that I decided to take a chance on somatic healing. Miriam’s grounded, intuitive approach has been most helpful in recognizing and overcoming old patterns of self-sabotage. I can gladly say that the work has had a positive effect both personally and professionally. Thank you, Miriam, for your insightful support and clarity!” – E., New York
