How to be more present and in the moment
Do you feel like your days, weeks and months are rolling into each other? Maybe you feel like you are going through the motions of life, but aren’t really present in your days. Do you ever find yourself going from experience to experience without actually settling in when you arrive?
I often ask client's when they come in how they are feeling in this exact moment, and more often than not, people respond with, "Hmmmm I don't know, I haven't actually checked in with myself." This is so common in our day-to-day lives, especially in a society that reinforces and glorifies being "busy". It’s common to get caught up in the rat race of life, which can lead us to get stuck in the default mode of our brains.
The problem is when we don't often take a moment to actually settle in when we move throughout our days. We tend to be focused on getting things checked off of our to-do list instead of being present with each task at hand. When we do this, we run the risk of abandoning ourselves and not giving ourselves the true opportunity to have a felt sense experience, which is where we build true memories and connections with ourselves, others and our experiences.
Next time you transition to a new place, experience, situation or engage with a new person, I invite you to try this Somatic Body Snapshot to practice the art of arriving and settling in.
Try to be kind with yourself, stay open and get curious.
How is my body feeling in this moment? Get descriptive beyond just "good/bad". What does "good" feel like? Warm, neutral, the absence of flighty? What does "bad" feel like? Prickly, numb, cold, tight?
What is the quality of the sensation in my body right now? (temperative, shape, texture, density, weight, sound)
If this area (body parts or physical sensation) could speak right now, what might it be saying?
After you take this snapshot of yourself, thank yourself for the gift of truly seeing yourself. From here, take a few deep breaths with your hand on your heart to offer a moment of compassion and kindness to yourself for showing up and holding space for yourself in this exact moment, acknowledging exactly where you are without trying to change or fix it.
If you’re curious about learning more about somatic experience and the mind body connection, check out my meditations. I have designed each bundle of meditations for different needs so you can choose whichever one resonates with your experience. You can also begin your healing journey by exploring my meditations for free on Insight TImer.
