Embodied Mindfulness Practice

In our busy lives, why set aside precious time to cultivate a mindfulness practice – particularly one focused on our body?

Most of us are familiar with the benefits of mindfulness or meditation practice. Dr. Dan Siegel, a psychiatrist at UCLA who researches the topic, says:

“Recent studies of mindfulness practices reveal that they can result in profound improvements in a range of physiological, mental, and interpersonal domains in our lives.

Cardiac, endocrine, and immune functions are improved with mindfulness practices. Empathy, compassion, and interpersonal sensitivity seem to be improved.

People who come to develop the capacity to pay attention in the present moment without grasping on to their inevitable judgments also develop a deeper sense of well-being and what can be considered a form of mental coherence.”

Many types of mindfulness practices invite us to focus on the breath. While this is powerful, in my experience, there’s particular potency when our practice is grounded in the felt sense of the body.

For example, you may spend one session focused on your breath, but another day you may spend 10 minutes exploring the sensations in the soles of your feet, or around the base of your spine.

Benefits of Embodied Mindfulness

This practice can generate the results that Dr. Siegel describes, while also shifting us towards a more embodied orientation to life outside of our mindfulness sessions.

Dr. Richard Strozzi Heckler, a renowned somatic coach, says that, “The greatest cost of the specialization of technological life - and out of which all other damages are birthed - is arguably our separation from the practical and enriching sense of ourselves as embodied beings.

When we’re alienated from the wisdom of the body, our lives become theoretical and abstract, and we are distanced from the direct, felt sense of living.”

Embodied mindfulness practices connect us to the wisdom in our bodies and our “direct, felt sense of living.”

For many, this way of connecting with the body can also provide access to a more spiritual sense of ourselves.

“We sit because this is when we discover how things really are, who we really are. Meditation is a source of vitality for our essence; it gives us ground and source, and opens us to the light.” - Hugh Milne

We may feel energy, glistening sensations, a light that radiates through the body. These sensations can become a portal to deeper dimensions of ourselves and the mysteries held within our bodies.

How to: 10 Minute Embodied Mindfulness Practice

If you’re new to this type of practice, you can start with a simple experiment 10 minutes a day. Find a comfortable position sitting or lying down.

Start with a body scan and notice if there’s a sensation that feels strongest. Spend the next few minutes exploring that area of your body, staying curious to what may unfold.

Notice if the sensations change in intensity, quality, tone, or if they move to another part of your body. Is there an emotional tone connected to the sensations you’re feeling?

As you do this practice, you might notice that some sensations or emotions get stronger. If you start to feel uncomfortable staying with them, you can shift your awareness to another part of your body that feels more neutral.

For example, if you start to feel heaviness in your chest and a difficult emotion, can you stay with that felt experience. Let those sensations pass through you. If it starts to feel overwhelming though, you can shift your awareness to the felt sensations elsewhere in your body that feel more comfortable.

You can ask yourself, “where in my body can I feel that in this moment, I’m okay?” See what part of your body lights up in response to that question and rest your awareness there. This place can be an inner resource for you, a safe haven in your body.

When you feel ready, you can then shift your attention back to the sensations in your chest and at any time, return to that inner safe haven.

My recommendation is to have low expectations for each session, while trusting that the abundance from this practice becomes apparent over time.

Reach out if you’d like support with awakening to the sensations and wisdom in your body. It’s a marvelous journey!