Our body is constantly giving us rich information (raw data) about what’s going on inside us; what we’re feeling. If we pay attention, we can use that information to guide our thinking and actions more effectively. Unfortunately most of the time we are unaware of all of this information because we simply aren’t paying attention. We haven’t trained ourselves to tune into the body and to our emotions in the body.
For me personally this has always been a challenge. I’m just not naturally very aware of feelings and emotions in my body. When I practice being aware, through this practice of the body scan, I find that I’m more in tune with what I’m feeling when things happen in my life. For example, I can notice myself getting nervous before a presentation. The more I practice this the more easily I notice feelings. When I’m aware of them, I can use that information. In the example above, if I notice that I’m feeling nervous, I can take a few deep breaths to calm myself down.
The ability to bring a kind awareness to our body, especially to emotions in the body, is an incredibly powerful skill. Like all skills it can be developed with practice. When we practice being aware of sensations and emotions in our body, we gain access to rich information that will allow us to navigate our emotions rather than being driven blindly by them.
In today’s practice I share a 15 minute guided body scan practice. We begin by settling the mind on the breath. Then we slowly scan our bodies with an attitude of openness, curiosity and kindness, feeling whatever sensations we feel, from the feet to the top of the head. I hope you find this practice helpful
I’d love to hear how it was for you and if you find it easy or hard to sense emotions in your body?
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