Next we're going to lay the foundations for the powerful somatic surfing practice that comes next.
So let's explore what practicing unkinking our emotional hosepipe is like in practice.
But before we go on here,
I'd like to mention that it's almost always possible to go deeper and access more with the support of a one-on-one somatic practitioner or a trauma-informed therapist.
And that said,
Part of the reason that I created this course in the first place is that many people have geographical or financial constraints,
And accessing quality support is not always available.
And it's also important that we develop the capacity to guide and titrate ourselves into and through working skillfully with our emotions.
Okay.
So pretty much all humans tend to feel resistance to feeling emotions on the so-called negative valence end of the scale.
These are experiences or affects like sadness,
Anger,
Grief.
But less intuitively,
It can also be just as scary to fully feel our joy or happiness or lean into celebration.
And this is because of the fear that it might disappear.
So with this in mind,
Let's move on to a foundational protocol for working with emotions skillfully as they arise.
And I'll begin by saying that there are various approaches and models that I'm drawing from here,
From focusing,
Somatic experiencing,
Hikomi,
And several others.
And the practice that follows is more of a distillation of many of these practices combined with my own lived experience guiding clients to complete emotional releases and reflexes over the years.
And I call this practice somatic surfing,
Because as you'll discover,
The skill required is sort of like learning to surf the waves of our emotions.
And as the surfer of your emotions,
The art and the skill lies in being in conversation with the wave as it breaks,
Paying exquisite attention in each moment and responding accordingly.
And it's helpful to start on a small beach break when we learn to surf.
We learn the fundamentals and.
Crucially,
Realise that no matter how much we fear wiping out,
We always pop out on the other side.
And as with surfing.
.
.
It's always vulnerable and slightly scary every time we drop into a wave.
And yet,
I've never regretted doing so,
Either in the ocean or riding the sensation of an emotional wave.
And I also wish to restate that just as any experienced surfer will check for rip currents,
It's helpful to create the conditions for emotional safety before diving in.
And practically speaking,
This means ensuring you won't be interrupted and feel grounded using any practices beforehand if necessary.
And if you can find a quiet and dimulated space,
That's ideal.
Gentle music in the background can also be supportive for accessing these states.
Although I definitely recommend choosing a song with fewer lyrics and even one that matches the emotional tone that you're experiencing.
Now,
If you're listening and you don't have access to a quiet space,
Then feel free to come back to this somatic surfing practice later once you've found time and space when you won't be interrupted for 10 to 15 minutes or so.
And if you are in a suitable space,
Then the next lesson will be the guided somatic surfing lesson.
And I'll leave you with one of my favorite lines from the poet Rainer Maria Rilke.
Let everything happen to you.
Beauty and terror.
Just keep going.
No feeling is final.
