What is Body Presence?
Body Presence is a state of being attentive to the sensations in your body in the present moment. Having body presence means that you are paying attention to what your body is signaling to you real-time. An important aspect of body presence is to name the sensation you’re feeling in your body, rather than stating what you think the sensation means. For example, instead of saying, “I’m hungry,” I would first name what sensation I feel in my body: “My stomach feels like it has a hole in it and that there are bubbles forming and popping in the hole. I am a little dizzy and light-headed.”
What is the aim of developing Body Presence?
The aim is to train yourself to respond more gracefully in adverse and stressful situations, protecting yourself from absorbing the stress and being drained by it. The steps are to:
- Notice and acknowledge the sensation without judging it.
- Ground yourself by placing both feet firmly on the floor, then breathe into the sensation and accept it rather than resist it.
- Observe how the sensation changes when you place your attention on it.
- Ask yourself what thought or belief caused this sensation in your body.
- Respond to the cause of the sensation rather than react to the sensation itself.
For example, you notice an uncomfortable sensation in your stomach that’s rising into your sternum.When you name the sensation and attempt to describe it, you might say, “I feel an uncomfortable ticklish sensation in my stomach, which is reaching into my sternum, and my chest is feeling squeezed. As soon as you acknowledge this, the sensation shifts upward into your heart, which begins beating rapidly. You acknowledge the change and the new sensation with, “Now my heart is beating rapidly.” This makes you realize that your breathing is very shallow. You plant your feet firmly on the floor and breath deeply into your heart and sternum. In a way, you are breathing in to the uncomfortable feeling in your body as a way to accept that the sensation is there. As soon as you do this, the tension begins to subside and your heart rate slows. Now that the sensation has been attended to, your mind also clears and you can begin to identify what belief or thought triggered the original sensation.
How can I practice experiencing Body Presence?
It’s not true that practice makes perfect – but rather that perfect practice make perfect. The best way to use body presence to handle stress is to practice experiencing body presence when you’re not under stress. To practice cultivating body presence, try this exercise when you have a few quiet minutes to yourself, or try it with a friend so one person can read this while the other practices:
Cultivating Body Presence:
Sit in your chair, upright but comfortable, and with your back supported. Make sure your feet touch the ground. Let your body relax without slouching. Place both feet firmly on the floor. Rest your hands on your thighs with your palms facing down. If you are sitting at a table, you may choose to rest your hands with your palms down and opened flat on the table.
Close your eyes, or fix them on some point in front of you. Now let your whole attention focus on what you can feel in your body. Start at your feet and feel the floor beneath your feet. Feel it pushing your feet upward. Let your attention dwell on the sensation of your feet being pushed up by the floor. Now notice that the chair is also pushing up against your thighs and your bottom. Notice how the chair holds you, feel how it supports and lifts your body. Let your attention dwell on the sensation of being held, floating in the chair on the earth.
Now breathe in deeply. As you exhale, allow your body to sink further into the chair without slouching or changing your posture. Relax your muscles. As you inhale again, feel the breath circulate through your body and to the places where you still feel tension in your body. As you exhale this time, imagine that the breath is carrying the tension away.
Continue inhaling and exhaling while relaxing your body more and more. You may notice that your legs feel a bit ticklish or tingle slightly as the sensation of floating increases. When this happens, bring your attention to your feet again. Feel your feet in firm, constant contact with the floor.
If you’re having trouble with this exercise, remember that your attention is on what you are sensing in your body, not on thoughts about what you sense. If you are uncomfortable, or bombarded by thoughts, just acknowledge the discomfort or thought, assure yourself that it is all right and, without moving, continue to focus attention on what you can feel in the body.
Interesting in finding out more about body presence? Check these posts or contact Laura now.
