There is an underlying theme within our Western society that we are what we “do” and that results are based on effort, meaning that what you get out of life is directly proportional to the effort you have put into it.
We have become a collective culture of “do-ers” caught in the striving to “get it right” in all areas of life: work, parenting, relationships, wellness and spirituality.
While this seems a logical way of living on the surface, it leaves us with a sense of “not ______ enough.” Although it is obviously imperative to take action in life in order to grow, it is possible to orient our actions differently within our awareness.
The shift comes when we begin to be aware of how much we “try” in life. The inner voice is saying: “I am trying to be a better person,” “I am trying to heal myself,” and “I am trying to…” (fill in the blank). In those moments we are “doing” our lives instead of “being” in them.
So how do we change without trying? What does that even look like? Real profound and deep inner changes happen when we begin to allow whatever is in our awareness to simply be there. When we invite the awareness of self to be there, lean into our sensations and allow whatever resistance and feelings that arise to be there also, only then can we open to other possibilities of experience and inner knowledge, and begin to live and act from a place of “be-ing.”
This process of allowing requires us to slow down and listen deeply within ourselves underneath the level of cognitive thought. For some people this is a difficult, scary idea and process because they have spent most of their lives trying to escape their inner awareness and feelings (usually for good reasons), preferring to live in their heads.
Emotional and physical trauma or adverse childhood experiences often leave people without the ability to access themselves fully because of the necessary need to contain their feelings and experiences at the time. As adults the act of being busy (hyper-focused) or distracted (procrastination) or addicted (escape) is a way of coping with the survival mode (fight/flight/freeze) operating within their body’s nervous system, left over from when the trauma or adverse childhood experiences occurred. So how does a person heal from trauma, release fear from their bodies and invite well-being?
The short answer is “connection.” The long answer is “allowing our bodies to self-regulate through co-regulation with another person that has a self-aware, empathetic presence and working knowledge of the body’s physiology and energy system.”
Rosen Method Bodywork is a healing modality that does just that through the use of gentle, present, listening touch that works with the fluids of the body, the nervous system and the breath to invite greater awareness for the person receiving the work. Rosen Method Bodywork practitioners also track their own bodies as a way of listening to what is happening with the client. Words are spoken by the practitioner in a way that validates and supports the process.
With greater awareness comes the opportunity to allow whatever is arising within. When a person/client can allow the sensations and/or feelings to be there, then shifts occur within the body as muscles tension releases, fluids flow more freely, breath comes and goes with more ease, and clients begin to access a deeper sense of relaxation, well-being and inner knowing or connectedness to their core self. The entire process happens as a result of allowing. For the practitioner there is no intention of doing or fixing anything for the person receiving the treatment, only to allow whatever it is that wants to happen. The results are transformational, life changing and lasting.
by Cinnamon Cranston
Certified Rosen Method Bodywork Practitioner and Workshop Teacher
Cinnamon offers weekly classes in Rosen Method Movement and is a certified Rosen Method Bodywork Practitioner. She can be contacted at cinnamon@rosenmethod.ca or 780-203-5159.
Note: This information is for educational purposes only. It’s intended to supplement your current health program, not to replace the care of a licensed medical doctor. Thoroughly research all topics for yourself.