Hi,
This is Stacy of More Human LLC.
Today we're going to try an orienting practice together.
Orienting is a simple somatic tool that you might use when you feel that you have more stress activation than you need,
And it's a simple way to help communicate to your body,
Your brain,
And your nervous system that you are in a safe enough environment and that your stress activation is maybe not needed in this moment.
So we'll start by getting into a comfortable position.
You can also do this practice while walking.
If you're sitting down,
You'll want to make sure that your body posture is something that you can maintain for the next few minutes,
Of course knowing that you can change your position or your posture at any time as you need to.
And the practice of orienting is simply tuning in,
Bringing some attention and awareness to the space around us.
I will primarily focus on what we can see with our eyes.
You might also choose to focus on sounds or textures,
Smells,
Or even tastes.
And feel free to play around with this practice and see what appeals to you most.
So once you're in a comfortable position,
You can start to turn your head into either direction,
Either right or left.
It doesn't matter which one.
Gently.
And starting to let your gaze rest on whatever is in that direction.
If you are doing this outside,
You might be looking at nature around you.
You could also do this looking out a window or in any kind of interior space.
You'll want to just gently turn your neck.
Once you've turned it in one direction,
You're going to just slowly move your head and let your gaze follow.
And just notice what types of colors you see.
Maybe noticing how your body reacts to any of these colors.
As you continue to slowly turn your head,
You might notice the very gentle movement of your eyes and their eye sockets.
And we're making a point to move slowly and bring relaxed curiosity to the space around us.
This is in contrast to hypervigilance,
Which is a response that is often marked by speed,
Urgency,
And tension.
And instead,
With orienting,
We show our systems that we can move at our own pace.
And we can stop and let our gaze rest on anything that feels especially supportive.
If you notice a particular object,
Or you want to just let your eyes land and stay with that for a few moments,
Feel free to do that.
You might also pay attention,
In addition to color,
To light,
However it's showing up in your space.
Whether it is reflecting off of an object.
You might also just tune as you continue gently turning your head.
Maybe you're now moving your head in the opposite direction of where you started,
Depending on your range of motion.
Feel free to turn your body as well,
If that is comfortable for you.
And maybe tune in to your breath,
If that feels supportive,
Just noticing any effect on your breath as you engage in orienting.
There may or may not be a perceptible difference,
But you could notice deeper breaths or slower breaths,
Depending on what you are taking in during this practice.
Just continue letting your gaze slowly move around.
You can always turn your head back towards the direction where you started.
If you want to scan back over a part of your environment.
And notice if you can bring even deeper,
Maybe even more subtle attention to some areas or objects that you maybe just glossed over the first time.
And in addition to color or light,
You might notice if there's any gentle movement,
Plants or trees outside your window.
Or you might notice any particular textures that look soothing or inviting.
And if those are within reach,
You might even take a moment to touch any of those textures and see how that feels in your fingers and on your skin.
Know whether you are perceiving any shifts during this practice or not,
That you are sending some subtle and intuitive messages of safety to your nervous system.
Orienting is something that many animals do,
That early humans have always done as a way of connecting to their environment,
Deepening into safety,
And communicating to our systems that we are somewhere safe and comfortable enough to move into rest and digest mode.
Another body here with us in the space.
And as we start to move to a close,
You might just notice what has stood out to you during this practice today,
Whether it has been challenging,
Whether you have felt yourself pulled in other directions by your mind.
That's all very normal and all part of the process.
That simply means you are human.
And I encourage you to try orienting even for 30 seconds at a time as a break between tasks,
As a way of just resetting and reconnecting to yourself in the midst of different activities throughout your day.
