Hello,
Thank you for being here today.
My name is Karola and I will be guiding you through a somatic inquiry.
A somatic inquiry is a very good way to check in.
Very often we talk about self-care but how do we really check in with how we're doing?
I found this technique very useful to really check in how I'm doing at all the different layers of my being.
My students and clients have also found it very effective,
Very healing and profound.
It's completely up to you if you want to also have a notepad and note things down,
Write or sketch.
I like to do it at the end.
I really like to be in the experience but you know we're all different so really listening to what you need right now.
You want to find a comfortable place wherever you are where nobody will disturb you.
I like to be on my back on the floor with a cushion behind my head,
Knees bent and feet on the floor.
If your lower back feels a little bit uncomfortable you might want to bring your knees together and have your feet a little bit wider apart.
Of course if you prefer to have your legs straight of course you can.
So wherever you are really getting comfortable and we really want to start by doing absolutely nothing.
And the reason why we want to do absolutely nothing is that when we do nothing we can really allow to observe what is going on inside of us.
Our brains are this incredible structure,
Incredible organ yet despite being so intelligent they can only do one or two things at the same time.
When you're busy,
When you're doing things,
When you're working,
Taking care of people,
When you're on the go,
There is just no brain space to really check in with how you're feeling.
So this is the time to really come back to your center,
To your core,
Really observe how you're feeling.
Perhaps you're already starting to notice tensions that you were not aware of a few moments ago.
Noticing different areas of the body that you were not aware of.
Maybe noticing differences between the right and the left side of your body.
Maybe noticing differences between the back and the front of your body.
And notice if your awareness is to one body area or a few.
Does your mind scan the whole body?
Bring your awareness to the sole of the right foot.
How is the sole of your right foot?
Anything you notice.
And bringing your awareness to the tip of your nose.
What's happening at the tip of your nose?
And bringing your awareness to the right hip.
How is your right hip?
Bringing your awareness to your right thumb.
How is your right thumb?
And bring your awareness to your breath.
How is your breath?
What do you notice?
Long,
Short,
Deep,
Shallow.
Maybe something else.
Those are just examples.
Infinite possibilities.
And do you notice any differences between your inhales and exhales?
And where is your breath flowing?
Belly,
Chest,
Ribcage.
One,
Two,
Three.
Or a combination of all of them.
And how does it feel for your breath to flow where it's going?
Because the breath is a very special part of us because it mirrors how we're feeling and our emotions.
So what can you extrapolate?
What can you perceive from your breath?
What is the breath telling you about how you feel?
And is your awareness of the breath one-dimensional,
Two-dimensional,
Or three-dimensional?
So for most of us,
The awareness is two-dimensional.
The breath is three-dimensional.
The lungs are three-dimensional.
As they inhale,
They expand.
Front,
Sides,
And back.
And as we exhale,
They recoil.
Back,
Sides,
And front.
Can you feel the three-dimensionality of your breath?
Now shift your awareness to your mind and observe what kind of thoughts are in your mind.
Lots of thoughts,
Not so many thoughts.
And what is the quality of the thoughts?
Are your thoughts about creating something,
Worrying about something,
Planning something,
Digesting something,
Or maybe something else?
The content of your thoughts can really inform,
Can really tell you about what is going on in your life.
Visualize yourself lying on the floor in your room.
Can you see the clothes you're wearing?
Can you see the walls in your room?
The one in front of you,
Behind you,
On your right hand side,
And left hand side?
Can you feel the ceiling in your room?
Can you visualize the floor?
Can you visualize the door of your house?
Now coming back to your body.
How is your body feeling?
How is your breath feeling?
How is your mind feeling?
How are you feeling?
It's completely up to you if you want to stay where you are for a little bit longer or if you want to slowly make your way back.
You decide and perhaps starting to move your knees sideways or bringing your knees to chest.
And I would invite you to move very slowly and really moving from within.
What I mean by that is to find a way of moving that allows you to bring more room or space in your body.
Perhaps letting go of tension,
Maybe realigning some of the bones of your spine,
Or your hips,
And really feeling that your body's finding again center.
Maybe taking a deep stretch and finding a sense of length of room and spaciousness creating in your body.
Maybe you want to note down a few things,
Words,
Phrases,
Maybe sketch something.
And thank yourself for having found time to reconnect with yourself.
And thank you for having allowed me to guide you for this Somatic Inquiry.
Be well.
