Returning to the Refuge of the Body

The body is full of wisdom. Not only is it wise enough to burn off bacteria and viruses with hot fevers and grow new skin over old scrapes but it operates a complex system of organs that allows us to move, to run, to talk, to eat, to breathe. The body can also heal emotional wounds, trauma and other issues. It carries with it the cellular memories of physical experience and with that comes the wisdom to heal those emotional wounds. But most of us find the prospect of taking care of our emotional wounds as not important. But if we were able to see a visible wound for our emotional pain, we might be willing to spend a bit more time caring for it. 

When confronting emotional pain, it is natural to seek escape from it. We distract with social media, streaming services, overeating, excessive shopping, and so much more. There is a plethora of options for jumping out of our lives and our misery. Distraction isn’t all bad. Sometimes we need some space around our struggles, we need to forget about them long enough to gain a new perspective. But it doesn’t work long term, we have to return to the problem.

We turn from distraction to correction. If it doesn’t go away on its own, then we try to fix it. We can become hyper focused on analyzing the problem, solving the puzzle, fixing what is broken but this too often leads us nowhere. And just like distractions, the fix-it approach has its usefulness.

Analyzing can bring insight. Trying to fix something puts us in really close proximity to the problem and we may discover and see things that we had missed before. But again, analyzing brings short lived relief and can be as ineffective in the long term as distraction.

So what is left to do?

Return to the body. Observe the body. The body will tell you everything. To quote George Washington Carver, “Anything will give up its secrets if you love it enough.” The easiest path to returning to the refuge of the body is through the breath. The breath is the vehicle of life itself. It is the focus of meditations and yoga for a reason. Learning to breathe with awareness is one tool I used to manage PTSD. I am regularly surprised by the wisdom of my body when I actually tune into it.

For example I might ask myself:  

1.What did it feel like when I ________ fill in the blank? (Doing my taxes, arguing with my spouse, running into a former colleague etc.) 
2. Physically, where in my body did I experience this feeling?
3. How would I describe the feeling to someone else?
4. How do I feel physically in my body right now, talking about the incident.

Continuing to stay in the body has at least two advantages.

1. It keeps you present and out of your head, more or less.
2. It allows you o see the way problems and situations are really impacting you.

It is so easy to brush things off, repress uncomfortable emotions that show up as irrational fears and behaviors. When I use this approach, I find answers that seem to appear out of nowhere, I gain an understanding of the situation and myself more clearly, I know exactly how to proceed. I can stop trying to fix myself and instead focus on doing what feels necessary in the present moment. The body can provide all of this. Sanctuary, Rest, Connection, Insight, Wisdom and Forward Motion. It has taken me many years to appreciate the power of the physical body in the healing process. 

The body is your refuge, it will never, ever leave you, it will always tell you the truth about yourself and it has the wisdom to guide you forward.