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the dislocation and the marriage / mind+body

 



I have been very intrigued about some of your approach and research on somatic practices. 

Dieter, Ann, Cael, Matthew. 

When I started reading one of the module 1 handbook, I could not start but feel a squash in my stomach:

"On this course we are coming from a starting point of embodiment. Embodiment does not separate mind and body. A separation of mind and body which is called Dualism, links knowledge (thinking, understanding, and ideas) with the mind only, and links sensation (hunger, growth and pain) with the body only; the dualist mind / body separation leaves the body as something that carries the mind around but is not a site of knowing."

See. I do get this. Totally. Of course. 

But my experience with illness totally shredded/crushed/destroyed the relationship between my body and my mind. My body had betrayed me and my mind was the only 'thing' that was me. My body became for a very short period of time (probably a couple of month after my diagnosis) a thing I was submitted to. 

It has an end.

Does my mind have one? 

Isn't the spiritual self an eternal one? 

I felt like there was a huge black hole in my belly. I felt like my body could only create death. Add to this, that 6 months later I had a miscarriage. This would only re affirm the sensation of a black hole and creation of death only with/through my body. 

I am curious about your research because I have kept myself away from this intellectually. 

After my miscarriage - which is 8 months after my surgery, 7 month after my diagnosis. I knew I needed to cure myself but that I could only do it through the body. I knew my mind would trick me and the person in front of me. The body would not lie and it had to be at the centre of my emotional recovery. 

Dieter, when you talked about magic hands after Cael's surgery - I could not help but think about the magic hands I found. Not sure it was the hands, the practice, the context (a very long journey to go to the practice and to get back home, 3 hours in total on a train to reflect, digest, cry, breath), the therapy itself. But craniotomy-sacral saved my life. 

So. Yes. I'd love to hear about your research. 

Because it scares me and it is so close to me. And maybe that's also why I am so into an instinctive practice, a primal energy. mmh.. 

Matthew, I dove into my next piece and in a couple of words, it's about hiding (what are we hiding, why - is it not to dehumanize ourselves in front of others = looking at the beasts inside us). When I talked about it with a programmer, they said it made them think about autistic people who hide so well to live / be within a society. I know you have worked on this theme and would love to chat about it with you at some point too! 



Curiosity. 


x


Commentaires

  1. Dieter Rehberg17 novembre 2022 à 04:49

    Dear Lea!

    I did share two of my AOLs in my blog as they reflect my theoretical findings about te body and the mind and what it needs for healing development.

    But I will try to answer some of your questions that you asked in your post above:

    what I think about the quote in our handbooks:
    the body is not the mind, and the mind is not the body, they are two different entities, but it needs both the be a living person.
    thinking and ideas are part of the mind, but more important also sensation and perception is part of the mind.
    but the mind needs the body and its sense organs to be able to perceive.
    and yes the body is carrying the mind around,
    but the mind tells the body where he wants to be carried,
    if the body does not have a mind anymore, it is a dead body, a body that can not move anymore

    after your death your mind does not have a body to express itself
    but through all the effects that your expressions had on your surrounding and community it continues to be there.

    and yes the fact that the body will die for sure is a big insult for the mind
    and it is also a big insult when the body is sick and not working as he could.

    So in the case of sickness it is a good idea that the mind is listening (sensing and perceiving) to the body
    to find out what the body needs.
    that is what we are doing in somatics.
    but the body could need something that the mind does not like...
    that is than an interesting place for negotiation

    after having had a burn out I decided to stop being a performance artist.
    my body likes that a lot, but my mind sometimes finds that a bit boring,
    but my mind agrees to the deal, because without that decision my mind
    maybe would not have a body anymore.

    I did not talk about "magic" hands in my chat with ceal.
    I wrote: " try to find some good touching hands for therapy after the surgery"
    I meant to find hands that have a compassionate and listening mind,
    so that they can trigger a holistic healing development.
    (are you also interested in my AOL about my private practice as somatic movement therapist?)

    And one comment about hiding:
    when we hide we create a safe place where we can heale and co-regulate, like a womb

    I am looking forward to more conversation

    all the best

    Dieter

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    1. Léa17 novembre 2022 à 08:02

      I am glad your mind has still a body and I am sorry to read you went through a burn out.

      Thank you so much Dieter. I will read with attention your AOL essays - thanks for sharing. I might share mine too as a way to connect and keep reflecting together.

      I find it really funny that I saw "magic" in the word "touching". That in itself, says a lot.

      I like that you talk about a womb as a place "where we can heale and co-regulate". I have always seen the theatre as a uterine safe space.

      Thank you so much for your time and thoughts,
      Best!
      Léa

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  2. Matthew Rawcliffe23 novembre 2022 à 07:29

    Ahhh this is so interesting Léa - actually it makes me think about two things. Part of the work with autism I do is creating (choreographing?) physical packages that I send before the live performance work - i've discovered it is part of a bigger practice of choreographing inanimate (or dead?) space. It's also putting the mind and body into space - so I might write a letter with words that 'don't matter' but the frantic nature of the handwriting would be used to offer an insight to the writers state of mind - putting a sense of the mind and/or body into space. But I can't decide whether I separate anything when I do this... more research needed maybe.
    Re. autism and hiding. You could look at masking, especially in autistic women. It sounds like it could be a very interesting project to reach a neurodiverse audience!

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  3. Ann Louise Wall28 novembre 2022 à 12:34

    This conversation is awesome. I relate to so much of what you say here Lea. When I was ill with Long Covid I used some words to describe what it felt like and the most accurate representation was that it was like being buried alive. My mind wanted to live as normal but my body had other ideas. I had to learn to be patient and to strengthen the connection between mind and body. The hardest part of it was for sure finding the balance. Sometimes I wonder if I would have fully recovered if I had pushed my body too soon or if I had not pushed it enough because many people who pushed too soon are still ill years later, others seem to be losing motivation and not believing they will get better. It felt like such a fine balance, I didn't want to give in, yet if I pushed it was as though I was punished with debilitating symptoms that put me back in bed and unable to function. This connection between mind and body fascinates me.
    Matthew I am very interested in this topic of masking in autistic women. I think this is going on a great deal in our society.
    Thanks for a wonderful post Lea. x

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  4. Cael H, Somatic Studies12 décembre 2022 à 21:57

    This is such an interesting topic! Thank you for sharing your perspectives. Ann I can definitely relate to the fine balance of knowing when to push and when to hold. I feel like I have experienced that with injury and mental health burnout in dance too. The connection we can have with both our mind and body as a dancer is pretty incredible and then at the same time sometimes it can be hard to put these into one embodied piece. I think like anything it is a practice, we just have to keep coming back to it, keep questioning, and keep trying :)

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