Somatic Tracking For Chronic Pain

Hello.

Today we will be doing somatic tracking in which we'll be looking at a less comfortable sensation in the body with a mindset of safety and curiosity rather than judgment and fear.

Because often these sensations are fueled and intensified when we are not feeling safe and when we are trying to get rid of them or fearing them.

So instead today we're going to look at these sensations with a mindset of safety and curiosity.

So go ahead and take a comfortable seat,

Lie down or any position that is going to be the most comfortable to you.

As long as your back is straight.

And we're going to begin by taking a few conscious breaths.

As we breathe in we can think deep and as we exhale think slow.

Deep and slow.

Breathing deep into the belly and breathing slowly out.

Take a few more cycles on your own as we slow down the breath and slow down the mind.

And as we continue to breathe we can think I am safe.

Maybe even bringing your hands to your heart center on your chest.

Feeling the warmth of your chest as you tell yourself you are safe in this moment.

You are safe.

And we can work with whatever we are feeling and don't have to hide away.

And finally let's see if we can melt away any other tension that we are feeling.

So if you are nervous or feeling tension in the forehead or eyes just breathe into those areas and on your exhale just soften.

So that we can concentrate on that area that is giving you the most uncomfortable of sensations.

So as we begin somatic tracking or getting in touch with the sensations in our body we must remember to come to that area and develop and train our brains to know that we are safe.

We are not in danger.

We are simply here to explore not to get rid of the sensation but simply to change our mindset by thinking around that sensation.

So taking it slow go to where you have that less comfortable sensation in your body.

And rather than tensing up right away just breathe.

Imagine breathing into that area of sensation.

And if that sensation is just too strong to have that mindset of safety and curiosity go to the outside of that pain or the borders.

So if you are feeling the sensation in your head maybe going to your neck or shoulders or a point where you can feel it but not be overwhelmed by it.

And breathe into that space as well.

And going a little deeper now notice the sensation and notice how it feels.

So giving it a label of throbbing or burning,

Tingly and not tensing when you are giving them these labels just acknowledging that this is how it feels right now.

And thinking of maybe a burning sensation rather than thinking burning just think heat.

Like the sensation of dipping your feet into a nice hot tub or a bubble bath and give heat a pleasant connotation.

Or maybe instead of a throbbing sensation think of it as a massaging sensation.

Like you are at a massage and it's gently being pressed in a needed and relaxing way.

And again know that you are safe.

You are simply exploring the sensation and being curious without trying to fix anything.

And continue to breathe noticing if your sensation has a particular color.

Notice if it has a shape is it round or jagged,

Smooth edges or jagged.

Just notice that too.

When you are noticing just notice with that sense of safety that no matter how it feels or what it looks like that you are safe.

I am safe.

Going back once more to how it feels.

And really try and pinpoint where it is in your body.

Sometimes the sensation is hard to identify an exact spot and sometimes it moves around.

Sometimes it may feel tingly and hard to identify where it is.

And this is a good sign because this means that nothing is wrong with you.

It's simply a message from your body per se.

And so notice where the sensation is right now.

Look deep can you pinpoint one spot you feel that sensation.

And notice the color and notice the shape.

And maybe the size is changing as you bring awareness to the sensation maybe it's shrinking,

Maybe it's moving.

If it's getting larger that's okay too.

But the main point is that reminder to our bodies,

Our brain,

The message of safety.

You're okay though you might not feel okay knowing that you are safe.

We're in this together,

This shared humanity of the human experience.

And the final part of our somatic training is going to an area in our body that does feel comfortable.

Maybe going to your hands,

Feeling the gentle tingling or heat in the hands or feet anywhere that you're feeling comfortable,

Safe.

And we're just going to hang out there,

Breathe and just notice the sensations,

The good sensations.

And then bringing our awareness back and noticing if there's been any changes with our less comfortable sensations.

Has there been a slight movement,

A slight change of color or shape?

Reminding yourself you're safe.

We are training our brains as we become aware of these sensations without judgment,

Easing the fear which is such an important step in somatic tracking.

Let's come back to our whole body and our whole body breathing.

So breathing deep and slow,

Back to the sensations of your breath.

Breathing three slow breaths.

Slowly coming back to consciousness.

And just remember that this meditation is training our brains to feel safe with whatever is.

So don't be hard on yourself if you're experiencing the same amount of sensations or even if it increased.

You're bringing awareness in a loving way with compassion.

And that's the most important thing right now that we can tell our brain.

So please do this practice regularly as we are training our brain to feel safe.

Thank you for joining me.

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