Drop your shoulders. Breathe deeply. This is where we begin.
Locate yourself.
Look around. Turn your head gently to the left, then to the right. Look behind you if you can. Notice the objects around you—the shapes and colors and textures in your environment. Breathe. Touch your arms and shoulders. Arrive in your body. Notice where you are.
You are here.
Be in your body.
What does it mean to arrive or be in your body? Arriving in the body is about attention. It’s about being present and noticing the sensations in your body right now—noticing where you are and what you’re experiencing.
Being in your body is a doorway to a more deeply engaged life. When we practice embodiment, we awaken the observer, the witnesser, the noticer in ourselves. This allows us to engage with the people around us (and with our own lives) in a completely different way.
01
Notice your body.
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Where do you clench, grip, or brace?
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Where can you let go?
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Now, relax your shoulders.
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Relax the muscles in your face.
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Breathe.
Intentional release
Why relax your shoulders? There is beauty and complexity in this simple practice.
Many of us hold tension in our bodies: we clench, grip, and brace, even as we sleep. We hold this clenched posture, this way of being, without even realizing it.
Sometimes, we brace against a thought, task, or interaction. We can even brace against the future, as we consider the possibility of loss or change. It’s not conscious. It happens without our knowledge.
Intentional release—finding the places in your body where you can let go a little—is a brilliant counterbalance to the constant bracing and clenching in the body. Over time, we change our “default setting” with tension, both in the body and mind.
I talk about, teach, and share this practice. No—we don’t need someone to “teach us” to drop our shoulders. However, it is helpful to be granted permission to pause for a moment or two. Programs, workshops, and exercises give us that much-needed permission.
If you are interested in finding out more about this practice, listen to Episode 15 of my podcast, Thriving in Plain Sight. Watch my videos, “You’re a Person (Embodiment Practice)” and “Relax into Constriction.” Check out my Events page for opportunities to do this practice with me virtually and in person.