Rigid Bones, Rigid Minds: Somatic Practices for Releasing Physical and Emotional Tension
Season 2, Episode 4
A prayer and blessing for you, and for me:
Source. Love. God. Universe, please continue to show me what I am blind to. What I have been unwilling or unable to see that is holding me back from living my fullest, most compassionate, most ecstatic, love-infused, joy-infused existence. Show me. Teach me. Teach me in ways that wow me and delight me and leave me wondering. Teach me in ways that integrate the wisdom of the learning seamlessly. As you have, as you do, as you will. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
The rigidity, the inflexibility, the immobility of my skull bones was causing headaches and tension and somewhere in the middle of the night it became a beautiful metaphor for me. Because the same rigidity and immobility I was feeling mentally and emotionally was also impeding the flow of the energy of LIFE through me, and causing suffering in my life. This episode is an offering of a few different ways I work with that inflexibility.
The past few months have been a wild ride. So many big changes, painful and grief-filled things happening. And just like on a good roller coaster, even when you're excited, even when you're grateful for the ride, there is a bracing that happens. A tension that sneaks into the body. And that tension, that immobility, causes suffering if it is not acknowledged and released. After a couple months of dealing with death, being triggered in really big ways through toxic family patterns playing themselves out, finding myself cut off from people I needed to hold protective boundaries with, entering into grief and sadness about that separation, I wanted to share what's actually helping.
In this episode I walk you through:
* Cranial release: a practice that has genuinely changed things for me (linking the incredible work of Dr. Karen Drummond's chiropractic [https://drummondschiropratic.com/])
* Myofascial release: because fascia is the webbing of life, the connective tissue through which all of the body's major systems: muscles, ligaments, tissues. are woven. When it is rigid and closed off, that affects our feeling of ease, flow, and vibrancy. Special shout-out to Dr. Nancy Kulik who introduced me to this life-changing practice, and I'm sharing this myofascial release from Human Garage [https://youtube.com/watch?v=lolG20pLRU4&si=06nu6VBrH4KdaDLh]
* Deep stretching through the neck
* Shaking the body out: and yes, special shout-out to the year I spent learning to twerk
* Five Rhythms dance: my final and ultimate somatic practice. I spend some time talking about the power of rhythm, how the five different rhythms correlate to the cycles we see in nature and the cycles we see reflected back to us through even the human cycle of life. I'm sharing my Spotify Wild Woman playlist [https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0ZFMHcd522QeuwufSlBXma?si=3XXWYQUKRJqrM0iMg_MQ0w&pi=rbQb4li8RG-3p] that I shuffle for a five rhythms dance flow
And I close with something I've been developing, Psychosomatic Face Yoga, a new series I started on social media because I kept noticing a missing link in all the face yoga and facial release content out there. This series is about noting the signs on the surface and going to the root. From the inside out and the outside in, let’s work some things out together, wildflowers.
Connect with me! In the comments, socials or by email: sexdrugsandsoundbowls@gmail.com
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⚠️ Disclaimer
This podcast is for educational and harm-reduction purposes only. I am not encouraging or advocating the use of any illegal substances. No substances were consumed during the making of this episode. Altered states--whether achieved through breathwork, drumming, or plant medicines--can impact perception and decision making. Exploring these realms without proper guidance, preparation, and integration support can be dangerous. Please journey responsibly and in alignment with your own truth, safety, and sovereignty.
