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Author: Annika Ancverina

Psychotherapist

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Caroline takes us through how we can feel after taking a deep breath, and has included a video on how we can fully do this and feel grounded.

To pause
To notice
To collect your thoughts
To make space
To listen in
To connect with yourself
To face the next moment
To find choice

The tiny amount of time it takes us to stop and breathe can create a vastness of opportunity.

In the pause for breath we come back to ourself to check in with the moment. In that pause we can make a different choice that comes from our own knowing. It is the pause that can help us to break destructive habits, or put our own oxygen mask on first, or gather strength for the big grown up pants moments that we all inevitably have.

It is the pause that allows us to make decisions from our internal barometer.

It can be the pause that calms us enough to wait or step back or that gives us the energy to step forward.

The infinitely vast yet microscopically small moment of taking a breath can change everything. You don’t have to know how to breathe ‘right’, your body knows.

You ALREADY know.
So stop for that breath.

That tiny moment might feel like forever if you’re used to reacting immediately.
Actually, no one notices. But you will.

If I could only ever offer one piece of advice it would be this: stop for a breathe. And if you still don’t know what to do, then stay for another…. the answers are in there. For those of you who find it challenging to focus on your breath, if it’s triggering in any way, then you can stop and notice the feel of the ground underneath you. Trust yourself, when the time is right, you’ll find your breath.

​The breathing practice below takes you through a layering of techniques that can help to calm and steady you. 

When we’re more used to feeling ungrounded, unsteady or ungathered, taking a moment to ‘just breath’ can be seen a less accessible option. Instead we might react habitually and continue to reinforce behaviour patterns that aren’t necessarily the best ones for us. 

BUT if we practice breathing techniques at times when we are feeling more resourced (at times when we already feel more stable and able), THEN these resources become more readily available to us at the time when we need them most. They’re in the tool kit for the moments when we don’t want to practice them, but we want to implement them.

Go easy on yourself, working through the layers as you are able to today.

Author: Caroline Toshack

Movement Therapist & Eating Disorder / Body Image Specialist BSc

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‘It’s not about dreams, it’s about alignment’

I recently heard this phrase and it really struck a chord.

There is a lot of visible reverse engineering going on in the world at the moment, with a collective dismantling of perceptions that is slowly unravelling as we go about our day.

A central focus is emerging around the importance of mental health, as we look into new ways to support the wellbeing of humanity amongst the changing landscapes of a global pandemic.

This idea of reverse engineering has of course always been happening in the forming and destroying of societies throughout time, but at the moment, there is a tangible visibility that feels inspirational for possibilities of change. What with larger scale movements such as Black Lives Matter, as well as grassroots organisations – humans are building the foundations for what is to come next.

What landed for me is that chasing dreams is an external process, and ironically although humans are designed to evolve through desiring change on some level, this striving can make the body and mind feel like it has to do something, rather than be and rest in what it already is.

The polarities of alpha, the seeker and omega, the receiver meet to dance.

The movement quality of chasing creates the energy of trying to get somewhere or running after something as if you are behind it,

an out of reach-ness ensues where someone feels like they might ‘lose’…

But this is the old paradigm misunderstanding of what it is to feel driven in life or at work, and in welcoming our dreams into being. It’s driven by unhealthy patterns of the chase, and it’s old because it’s not resonating with what now feels good for the future sustainability of the earth.

When we figure out ways to feel in alignment with ourself before anything else, this is the flow zone. This is when a sense of purpose rises like a phoenix, a clicking in sensation is felt, a meaningful lightbulb turns on, and an inner or outer competing can subside.

When we’re in emotional, psychological and vibrational alignment, this is the magnetism of being a creative individual, where a stable sense of calm signals a deeper state of wellbeing within work, relationships and life in general.

This is where the space for dreams to fall into your pathway appear, without trying, simply because they’re the same resonance as you in that moment.

 

Author: Emily Phillips

Voice & Movement Therapist PgDip Music Dip Physical Theatre BA (Hons)

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Emily Philips

Voice & Movement Therapist PgDip Music Dip Physical Theatre BA (Hons)

www.emilyphillips.co.uk

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If we have been able to find a steadier path that keeps us within our window of tolerance then perhaps we can begin to think about how we can use this space. 

A lovely concept that we have been exploring is that of turning our orientation from being goal led to one which emphasises the process. 

But wait a minute, to achieve anything in life you need to focus on your goals, right?

While it’s true that there are some unavoidable areas of life where setting and working towards specific targets is necessary, being too focused on the outcome throughout our lives can take away from the enjoyment of the process. In the end, it may even make you less likely to achieve what you want.

Why might this be true?

We may think that we are trying to achieve a genuinely desired goal when actually we are trying to escape from a feeling, to prove our worth or to fit with the perceived expectations of others. How often do we tell ourselves “I would be much happier if only I could” get straight As, be thinner, prettier, richer, more popular, complete everything on my to do list. 

Putting this kind of pressure on yourself to strive for extrinsic rewards with unrealistic expectations of their results can take all the pleasure out of the tasks required to get there and will often lead to short lived happiness followed by disappointment and renewed need to seek a new “fix”.

Let’s instead see if we can find a satisfaction and joy inducing process where goals are part of the process rather than the whole point of it.

We may even find that by taking the pressure off the “ultimate” goal then we have time and space to discover what we truly value.

One way to experience a more process based task is to explore the concept of being in the Flow.

Can you think of a time when you were so involved in what you were doing that the rest of the world seemed to have disappeared. You were totally focused and concentrated on that activity, to such an extent that you were not even aware of yourself.

This state of being is what we call The Flow, a term first coined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.

“The best moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times . . . The best moments usually occur if a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile” (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990).

Flow activities are those which hit the sweet spot of just enough challenge and stretch of our skills so that we stay enjoyably and competently engaged.  Too little challenge or skill and we become bored or apathetic, too much and we feel over stressed and anxious.

In binge watching TV, for example, the low skill matches the low challenge, which usually results in apathy or at best relaxation.

Flow activities also provide intrinsic motivation, that is to say the task itself gives pleasure, meaning or reward from the process of doing it.

We can also find an added bonus since when you are doing something that you find rewarding, interesting, and challenging, you are more likely to come up with novel ideas and creative solutions.

Flow can be found in a multitude of activities such as playing an instrument, reading, writing, playing sport, learning, art. 

How can we find our Flow?

1. Choose your challenge. Something that you enjoy doing. It can be anything, whether it’s playing the piano, writing, practicing a tennis stroke, embroidering, colouring in or teaching your puppy to sit.  You may have to take some time to find your activity especially if you discover that you have been primarily goal focused for some time.  Perhaps think back to childhood or tune in to times when you have found a sense of curiosity, fun, mastery or pleasant absorption.

• Engage your skills. Remember that if something is too easy you’ll be bored and your mind is likely to wander so you won’t achieve the flow state. If something is too hard you’ll be overwhelmed and you won’t be able to achieve that subconscious competence that is necessary for the flow state.

• Be clear. Set a specific task that has immediate feedback. Flow persists with a constant feedback loop so that you are unambiguous in your task but able to skilfully adapt your action according to the results so that you keep achieving and feeling competent. So if you set yourself the specific  aim of hitting a row of tin cans with a rock then you will know when you are getting closer by the results and you can adjust your speed and position with each success. Similarly with creative tasks choose just one focus, eg learning a piano piece and you will gain immediate feedback and reward by seeing or hearing the result of your actions grow.

• Eliminate all other distractions. Switch your phone off, clear your space and set aside enough time.

• Check in with how you feel. If you’re having trouble entering the flow state you might need to go back to the basics of distress tolerance or emotion regulation first.  Or the task may not be the right choice.

• Focus. Use grounding techniques, breathing or balancing yoga postures to help bring your mind into focus. Writing down your task can also help to make a clear intent. Choose a simple phrase to say out loud that helps direct you “ here we go”.

• Choose your best time. Getting into flow state is hard if you are low on energy. You need to have the willpower to focus on just one thing so give yourself the best chance by doing it at a time when you are not too tired or hungry.

• Use other experiences. Can you visualise any other time when you have felt in the flow.  Tap in to that feeling and use that as a guide to focusing in the present.

• Enhance your environment. Be comfortable but not too relaxed as to get sleepy. Familiar music especially that with a steady rhythm can help focus* or you may need complete silence, essential oils like pine can help. Make sure you have everything you need to hand before you begin.

• Create a trigger.  When you find a combination of techniques that help get you into the flow make a ritual of these so that your mind and body will start to recognise this and will respond accordingly. Think about Pavlov and his dogs!

• Tomorrow Never Knows by The Beatles on repeat works for me hence the blog title.

Author: Michelle Scott

Michelle works at London and Edinburgh TRC

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