Making Connection

A client told me this week, "You seem to know exactly what my body needs.  How is that possible?"

 

I told her, "Massage is very much like a dance.  I make connection and your body opens to receive.  If I am paying attention to your body's response, I will adjust pressure, pace, and focus in sync with you.  So we dance, we move, we breathe together." 

 

Sometimes, massage is an introduction to the body-mind feedback loop, one in which the therapist plays the part of compassionate facilitator.  Through touch, we become aware of our body in a new way, maybe for the first time.  We are in our body. 

 

So what does that mean, to be in your body?

 

Being in your body means being present in this moment, aware of the space you fill, aware of yourself in relation to your surroundings and to others in your vicinity, and engaged in the current situation.  So in the case of my massage client, she was in her body.  And she felt the connection.

 

Once you feel this connection in your body, it is difficult to forget.  And, like anything else, maintaining the feeling of connectedness takes practice.  Some activities to help you maintain connection are:

• Breath Awareness
• Walking barefoot 
• Yoga
• Massage
• Dance

Really any activity that is performed with your full presence activates the connection in your body.  You engage the body-mind feedback loop.  And in doing so, you open yourself to personal wisdom, internal guidance, and the opportunity to heal.