Hi,
This is Orit Krug,
Board certified dance movement therapist and trauma and relationship expert.
If you're currently feeling trapped in a relationship with a partner who you know is loving and supportive and deserves your full commitment,
Yet your body urges and almost yells to leave,
To run away to escape your relationship,
Then this is a sign of unresolved trauma stuck in your body.
This is your flight response constantly going off,
Telling you to run away to save your life.
And it often stems from past trauma because when you experienced your trauma,
You were stuck in a situation you couldn't control.
You were stuck in a situation where you couldn't get out.
And now even though you're in this healthy relationship,
That alarm system that's telling you to leave is still going off even though it doesn't have to anymore.
So in this movement meditation today,
I'm going to guide you through a body led experience to help you understand what exactly needs to happen next in order for you to feel more calm and happy and enjoying your relationship instead of constantly thinking about leaving.
To begin,
You can position your body in any way that feels comfortable for you right now,
Either lying down,
Sitting up,
Or maybe standing up with your whole body leaning against a wall for support.
Whatever you choose is totally fine and just know that you can change your position at any point during this meditation.
We're going to now take three deep breaths together,
Breathing in and breathing out.
Breathing in again and breathing out.
And one last time,
Breathing in and breathing out.
I'm going to invite you now to close your eyes or lower your gaze and imagine,
Visualize,
Or just tune in with your body into this feeling of being trapped or even the fear of being trapped in your relationship.
Notice the first sensation that comes up and stick with that one.
You may have noticed an immediate constriction in your chest or desire to make your entire body smaller,
Or you may have felt this strong force of energy running through your legs to get ready to literally run away.
There is no right or wrong sensation.
These are just examples of what might have come up,
But whatever sensation came up for you is perfect in this moment,
So don't change it.
And whatever that sensation is,
Tune into it a little bit stronger right now and sense if there's any certain color or temperature or texture or certain way that it's moving in your body or through your body.
Just take a look at it without judgment and if any thoughts or judgments come up about it,
Just try to acknowledge those and put the attention back to just what's happening in your body without analyzing or trying to make meaning of it right now.
And now I'm going to invite you to invite movement into this sensation.
What does your body instinctually want to do to respond to the way that you're feeling in your body right now?
So if you felt this constriction in your chest,
You might feel an urge to curl your entire body over like you're hugging your knees,
Or you might have felt an urge to open up your arms and take a deep breath to almost do the opposite of this constriction feeling.
Again,
There is no right or wrong and everybody is going to have a completely different experience.
So whatever your body is instinctually wanting to do,
Follow that.
You don't have to get rid of the feeling that you have.
You don't have to make it better.
You don't have to have any results.
Just be with the sensation and move with it.
If you felt this energy running through your legs,
Like you wanted to run away,
You might feel this urge to shake them or kick them in front of you,
Or maybe press them into the ground and really feel your feet against the floor or wherever you are right now.
For the next several minutes,
I'm going to leave this space here for you to continue moving with this sensation.
You might continue to do the same exact repeated movement over and over again,
Or your movement might become something else.
You might start with pressing your feet into the earth and then you notice now you're moving your waist and your arms and other parts of your body.
Whether your movement stays exactly the same throughout this meditation or becomes something completely different that you maybe didn't even expect,
It is all valid.
It is all an expression of your experience that is unique to you.
Continue to be curious,
Continue to sense how you want to move with the sensation,
How you want to move your body in response to maybe new movements coming up.
Just keep moving with the sensation because this is exactly what needs to happen when you feel this fear of being trapped or this feeling of being trapped in your relationship.
It feels like it takes over you and you're stuck and you have no control and there's nothing you can do just like you experienced in your past trauma.
But yet you can experience right here in this meditation that even though you feel that feeling in your body,
You can move with it,
You can move through it and you're actually in command of your body and the way that you respond to it.
So in fact you aren't trapped in your relationship.
You aren't trapped in any feeling or circumstance.
You are always in command of your body and the way that you want to move and express and interact and be in your world,
Including your relationships.
Whatever you're doing right now,
However you're moving,
I'm now going to ask you to slowly gradually bring your movements to a close.
Taking your time,
Not abruptly stopping,
But really slowly finding an ending position that feels good for you right now.
Even if this exploration feels unfinished,
Just find a pause.
You may end with your hand on your heart or giving yourself a hug or coming to lying down and feeling the earth support you fully.
Now we'll take a deep breath in together and breathe out.
You may come back to this meditation as many times as you need and remember that you are capable and worthy of healthy,
Lasting love.
