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Body and Mind are Interconnected
What goes on in the mind affects the body, and vice versa. This means that the more attuned you are to your body, the more connected you will be to your thoughts and emotions. Sadly, most of us are detached from our bodies, and as a result have become stiff, weak, and tired. On this page, I'll cover several, simple and playful techniques that you can use at home to help you fully engage with your body: rope flow, hacky sack, balloon juggling, stretching, balancing, dexterity, and kinesthetic awareness.
Body and Mind in Psychology
The father of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud believed that when unconscious conflicts were made conscious psychological problems would disappear. One of his students, Wilhelm Reich, who after studying hundreds of patients treated according to Freud's method, found that this was not always true. Some of the most thoroughly analyzed cases remained uncured.
When searching for a reason why, he discovered that the one factor that differentiated the cured from the uncured was a satisfying love life - cured patients were able to regularly achieve a pleasurable orgasm with total involvement of the body. This led him to realize that emotional wellbeing is intimately connected to the capacity for surrender. To let go!
The armored (rigid) body
When we are able to let our energy flow we are happy and content, but when we dam it up our emotions become rigid, and our muscles become stiff. Reich referred to this as body armor. There are several signs of body armor or rigidity.
One of Reich’s student’s, Alexander Lowen, built on his work; developing a system of therapy he called Bioenergetics. The fundamental thesis of bioenergetics is that the body and mind are interconnected: that is, what goes on in the mind affects the body, and vice versa.
Dr. Lowen wrote of the purely verbal therapies, “They may help a person become conscious of his tendencies to deny, project, blame, or rationalize, [but] this conscious awareness rarely affects the muscular tensions or releases the suppressed feelings. At the same time though, a purely physical treatment … such as massage and yoga has a positive value, but is not specifically therapeutic in itself."
Bioenergetics exercises
you can do at home
“On the unconscious level, both thinking and feeling are conditioned by energy factors. For example, it is almost impossible for a depressed person to lift himself out of his depression by thinking positive thoughts. This is because his energy level is depressed. When is the energy level is raised through deep breathing … the release of feeling, the person comes out of the depressed state.”
Now, I love Alexander Lowen, and have read most of his books, but the best book on bioenergetics exercises was written by Dr. Jack Willis. Jack Willis is not famous and there is not much known about him other than that he graduated with degrees in biochemistry, psychology, and chiropractic medicine. He practiced as a psychotherapist for over 35 years and was a passionate individualist and limited government libertarian. I think you would like him if you met him. His book, Reichian Therapy: A Practical Guide for Home Use is available on Amazon but being the great person he was, he made it free for anyone to read. Click here.
A stranger’s face in the mirror
Stand just far enough away from a mirror so that you can see your whole face. Imagine that it is not your face, but someone else’s.
Willis stresses that the key to this exercise is to do it without judgment: that is if at any time you find yourself thinking something like your nose is too big to you have too many freckles, then you have made a judgment. The purpose of this exercise is to come to a deeper understanding of yourself, and if you insert judgment into the process you are defeating the purpose.
Describe the stranger’s face in detail
According to Willis it’s vital that your description be as detailed as possible. “That person looks kind” won’t cut it. To help you add detail, ask yourself questions such as the following:
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Is the person childish or mature?
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Is the person open or secretive.
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Is he or she approachable or standoffish?
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Would you describe them as tense or relaxed?
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Is the person having a good or bad day?
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Is this person rich or poor?
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What is the person’s job?
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Does he or she have any hobbies?
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What pets does the person have?
Next, Willis suggests add a feeling word to the face in the mirror. Again, don’t judge! If the feeling in the face is sadness don’t think it should be happy instead. Be honest. It is, after all, a stranger’s face and whatever emotion is there, it is there.
Each time you do this exercise come up with a different description of the stranger in the mirror. This is a self-exploration so using the same words each day is not to explore but to evade.
Emotions in the eyes
Next, Willis asks you to come closer to the mirror and focus on your eyes. Try to express, one by one, the following feelings: anger, fear, happiness, sadness, disgust, longing, contentment, empathy, disinterest, love, and hate.
The actual changes in your eyes will be very tiny and it does not matter whether you can see them or not. The goal of this exercise is to make the eyes alive. People with expressive eyes are more attractive, more interesting.
To do this exercise properly you have to create the feeling in yourself and express it in your eyes. This is the kind of exercise that actors do in acting workshops that allows a great actor or actress to say so much with a close-up shot of his or her face or eyes. Willis stresses that you don’t overextend yourself. If any given feeling is too hard on you, let it go, and come back to it days, weeks, or months later.
More ways to reconnect
with your body
The flow arts are a variety of movement-based disciplines, such as poi spinning, hooping, and juggling, that combine artistry, dexterity, and rhythmic motion. These practices promote mindfulness because they engage the body and mind in a harmonious flow, fostering focus, presence, and a sense of interconnectedness.
When you do stretching exercises, you become more attuned to your body and develop a heightened awareness of physical sensations, such as muscle tension, flexibility, and range of motion. This increased body awareness can help you connect with your physical self on a deeper level.
Balance can significantly improve your body-mind connection through enhanced stability, coordination, proprioception, improved posture, and body awareness. When you do a balance exercise you activate your stabilizing muscles, and these muscles work together with the nervous system to keep your body aligned and steady.
Breathing is such a basic physiological process but unlike babies and animals, most adults can’t breathe in a natural way because of chronic muscular tensions. Conscious breathing can help adults gain healthy breathing patterns.
Dr. Jack Willis, building on the work of Wilhelm Reich, developed a series of practical exercises you can do at home. Looking in the mirror and imagining seeing a stranger's face looking back at you is one Of Jack Willis' most effective exercises.
Smelling Flowers by Vlada-Kapovich at Pexels
Mindfulness Through Your Senses
Mindfulness is all about immersing yourself in your surroundings using your five senses - sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. In this article, we explore ways to involve the senses and train them so that you can participate much more intensely in the world around you.
How many senses are there?
The ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle is credited with first numbering the senses in his work De Anima. He suggested there were five: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. However, today most neurologists agree that there are more.
The definition of a sense for a neurologist is a specific type of sensory cell that responds to a specific physical phenomenon, and sends a signal to a particular region of the brain where it is received and interpreted. The problem is that there is some overlap between different senses, so different methods of neurological classification yield 5, 9, 21, or 53 senses.
I decided to go with Rudolf Steiner's proposal that there are twelve senses. His classification makes the most sense and is overall well structured and whole. Steiner grouped the senses into three categories.
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your body: touch, life, movement, balance
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the external world: smell, taste, sight, temperature
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the spiritual world: hearing, speech, thought, ego
Steiner's 12 Senses
Each sense, according to Steiner, has a physical and a mental component. Let's explore these components through a few examples.
The Sense of Touch
Touch involves both physical sensations and emotional connections. Expressions like "magic touch," "finishing touch," or "human touch" convey skill, accomplishment, and talent. Phrases such as "being in touch" or "keep in touch" signify staying connected to the world. Enhancing your sense of touch can stimulate related parts of your mind, fostering both physical and emotional growth.
The Sense of Taste
The word "sapien" in Homo sapiens means taste. Tasting something allows you to know it intimately. On a mental level, "good taste," "acquired taste," or "leave a bad taste in your mouth" reflect discernment and quality judgment.
Mindfulness of taste helps you connect to both the outer world and your inner self, refining your ability to appreciate life's flavors.
Connecting the Outer and Inner Worlds
Mindfulness through the senses is a powerful way to connect to both the outer world and your inner mind. By honing your senses, you can develop a "Midas touch" or acquire "good taste," enriching your experience of life and enhancing your mental clarity. Embrace your senses, and let them guide you to a deeper, more mindful existence.
Have you ever stopped to think about how much you take touch for granted? Well, mindful touch is a way to tap into your senses, deepen connections, and truly appreciate the textures and sensations around you.
The sense of life is the internal sense of your organs and internal life processes. Your life sense tells you that you are hungry, thirsty, or that you have to go to the toilet. You usually don't notice the life sense until something goes wrong or when you feel ill. Generally, your life sense gives you information about your physical situation, your health, and your vitality.
When you perceive a scent you either classify it as pleasant or unpleasant. Bad things like rotting food tend to smell bad, while things that are good for you usually have a pleasing smell. Your sense of smell thus helps you to distinguish between good and evil, and is for that reason the basis of your moral judgment
Tasting goes far beyond the physical act of tasting. We explore the two facets of taste: the sensory experience and the concept of "good taste" or discernment. The word taste comes from Old French word 'taster' and means to taste, to sample by mouth, to enjoy, to feel, touch, pat, or stroke"
