With ongoing fear and uncertainty, many people are finding that they have good days and not so good days.  The waves of different emotions hit them at various times.  In this week’s blog we will consider how powerful your thoughts and emotions are.  We will consider how they impact on your physical health and consider how you can manage your emotional, mental and physical health.

The power of your mind and body

If you are a regular reader of my blogs or a member within my online program, you will know I often refer to the term “soma.”  Within the field of Somatics, a “soma” is referred to a giant sensory organism (thats you!) that absorbs all thoughts, emotions, feelings, habits, beliefs, movements, past experiences, family traits, injuries and accidents, just to name a few.  Everything that you have encountered and experienced over the years as an individual, has created the unique person that you are today.  You are very special and not a carbon copy of someone else.  With this in mind, first of all, consider that it is unhealthy to compare yourself to others because you have a different and rich experience of life compared to someone else, whatever their age.

The soma describes the whole person.  That means within a system that senses, feels, interprets, perceives, imagines and executes a response, the mind, brain and body are heavily intertwined.  Within somatics, we will often say that when you look at a person’s posture, their movement patterns, the quality of their breath, the intent and manner of their words and their energy, it reveals how their subconscious mind is operating.  What do I mean by that?  

Over the years, sometimes from childhood experiences or other events in life, you can create limiting beliefs which cause you fear, guilt, anxiety and shame.  As we know from Neuroscience, thoughts have a huge impact on your entire soma, right down to your genes.  Thoughts are so powerful and create biochemical reactions within our brain, releasing chemical signals.  These chemical signals are amazing because they make your body feel exactly the same way as your thinking.  As a result of this, continuous thinking in a dis-empowering, fearful, negative, anxious or shameful manner will generate and deepen the thoughts and reinforce the negative feelings.  

For instance let us consider how you feel with a simple experiment.

*Think of something that you are fearful, anxious, overwhelmed or uncertain of.

*How does that make you feel?  What do you feel inside?  Do you notice specific feedback or information from your body, such as a tight chest, shallow breathing, tense neck muscles, abdominal discomfort, jaw tension or bracing and holding tension in your belly?

*How do those sensations make you feel?  Energised?  Full of optimism?  Inspired?  Relaxed?  

I am sure you have just said “No, no, no, no.”  

So notice, that your thoughts drive your feelings and your feelings drive your thoughts.  Can you see why your soma (entire mind, brain and body) cannot be separated, they are heavily linked.  So this constant cycle of dis-empowering thoughts and emotions can become deeply ingrained within your brain.  This creates a broken record effect within your soma, the communications are “stuck” and often repeating the same expressions which when you translate into your life, manifests in the actions, postures, movements, behaviours, thoughts, words and intentions, all of living in the past.  These emotions keep you “stuck” in the past and continue to generate the same physiological effects you felt then.  Why?  Your brain doesn’t know the difference between perceived and actual events.  You can recreate a fear response by thinking and pondering over it.  Within a short amount of time, your mind will think it is real, yet you have merely conjured it up in your mind.

Can you see how when you are no longer mindful of your thoughts, emotions, actions, intentions, internal dialogue and behaviour, you allow your subconscious actions or stress response to dictate your life?  So can you see how your body becomes or reflects your mind?  You can see how your thoughts control you and your feelings overwhelm you.  This is when you may refer to people as “living in their past.”  This can become a person’s identity and form part of an addiction to feeling these negative emotions.  However this is not a good thing because heightened emotions of fear, anxiety, uncertainty or depressive emotions of shame, guilt and overwhelm can exhaust your mind and body because you are constantly playing that broken record and the emotion is being relived every day.  Think of the short experiment we conducted a few moments ago.  Maybe you felt a “knot” in your stomach, short shallow breaths, muscular tension or trembling.  If you allowed your subconscious mind to keep playing this broken record, it would exhaust you.  This would not be supporting your soma.  When negative, dis-empowering, exhaustive thoughts and emotions drive you, it lowers your immune system, increases inflammation, alters hormonal levels, tightens muscles, affects the depth and quality of your breathing, disturbs your sleep patterns and lowers your emotional and physical resilience.

Is there a solution?

As a regular reader of my blogs or a member of my online program, you will know that your nervous system and genetic coding can adapt and change according to what you influence it with.  Within The Total Somatics Online Program, I guide you through a methodical process, combining techniques that incorporate your mind, brain and body.  Somatic movement is a huge component, however with wonderful advances in neuroscience and neuropsychology, The Total Somatics Online Program considers how other areas complement with Somatic Movement to create an internal environment that can change your networks/connections in your brain, influence your genes and change how your muscles operate on a daily basis.  

How would you like to feel?  Would you like to feel that you can manage your emotions and physiological responses?  Would you like to notice when your subconscious mind is taking over from your conscious or mindful behaviour and know how to take back control of the situation?  Allow me to guide you with The Total Somatics online program.  We have recently reshaped the online program so you can join the monthly membership scheme for $20 USD per month.  This includes the entire program that contains videos, podcasts, audio classes, downloadable support material, printables, ongoing support, free live online classes, free access to live webinars and other live video lessons (if you cannot attend, the link will be sent to you).  Within that membership, you also have the opportunity for a reduced price to see me online for a one on one session. The price is $40 USD for 60 minutes or $50 USD for 90 minutes.  We can tailor your Total Somatics approach, so you can gain a deeper understanding of how you “tick” with all the online material and live classes.

For all existing members, I have uploaded some more audio classes for you.  I have listened to your requests and provided what you’re after.  Check out the material by going to Part 2, click on “support,” you will find two new tabs, “support material” and “recalibrate.”  Please check them out.  Very soon I will be discussing in an upcoming live session the material within the “recalibrate” section.

If you would like to join The Total Somatics Online Program and learn how to fully harness your amazing mind, body and brain (whole person - the soma), you will be taking proactive steps towards changing the “wiring” in your brain and how that translates to your body, right down to your genes.  To learn more, go to www.TotalSomatics.com.

Take care,
Heidi Hadley xx
www.HeidiHadley.com
www.TotalSomatics.com
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