Meditation has grown in popularity in the last ten years. Previously, it was almost viewed as something done by hippies and people who live and die by their horoscopes. Still, there is now growing scientific support for the health benefits of mindfulness and meditation. The benefits of traditional meditation include:
- Stress Reduction
- Controlling Anxiety
- Cognitive Function
- Fighting Addiction
- Increased Attention Span
As more and more people introduce meditation to their day-to-day routine, different disciplines have emerged. Growing in popularity is one type of meditation called “Bodysensing.”
What is Bodysensing
Anyone who has engaged in meditation will know that you experience physical sensations throughout. The sensations we’re referring to might also be familiar to you when explained as that butterfly feeling you get in your stomach when you’re excited or the flushed feeling you experience when embarrassed. Bodysensing encourages you to embrace actively and acknowledge these sensations and experience them and what your body is trying to say to you. By doing this, it allows you to control your own experience and be more aware of how situations impact on your nervous system. By being able to master control of these sensations, you can calm your mind when experiencing negative sensations.
How To Practice Bodysensing
To truly experience the benefits of Bodysensing, you should follow the general meditation principal; every day, little and often. You may wish to get a feel for Bodysensing by first perfecting the technique using just your hands:
- Think of your body as part of the environment in which it is in, sharing energy with everything around it.
- Close your eyes. Bring your focus to your left hand and become aware of any sensations you may feel there. Now let go of thinking about your left hand and instead embrace any sensations of warmth, heaviness, tingling, throbbing or whatever you may be experiencing in your left hand. Try to sense your left hands’ energy extending into its surroundings.
- Repeat with the right hand.
- Open and close your eyes slowly, still embracing the sensations you’re feeling in both hands. Let these feelings spread throughout your body.
Once you are confident in the Bodysensing experience, you may wish to repeat this process with the whole body. Start at the scalp and work through the below stages;
Scalp, Forehead, Eyes, Nose, Nostrils, Ears, Jaw, Mouth, Tongue, Neck, Shoulders, Arms, Hands, Fingers, Upper Chest & Back, Middle Chest & Back, Lower Chest & Back, Torso Front & Back, Abdomen, Pelvis, Hips, Buttocks, Thighs, Legs, Feet, Toes.
Always conclude your experience by feeling yourself as part of your surroundings and experiencing your energy as part of a field shared by everything within your surroundings.
Allergy Testing
Breathing is an essential part of the Bodysensing experience; it gives you something to focus on to become part of your surroundings. This is why allergy testing is vital to enjoy the experience genuinely. Allergy testing will help you identify substances causing nasal congestion which will prevent you from being able to create a rhythmic breathing pattern. We have a range of allergy testing to suit all budgets.
