October 30th, 2025

I used to host a regular "Self-Care Lab" where we'd meet and try different "somatic experiments": trying on different ways of moving, thinking, or feeling and seeing how they affected us.  I'm a big fan of gentle life experiments like this.

1. The difference between a general body check-in, and checking for pleasant sensation.  
One experiment we conducted was taking a few moments to notice where our thoughts naturally went if we checked on our bodies and emotions.  Many of the things that folks noticed were the everyday stresses, tensions, and anxieties of life.  Then to contrast that, we did a check-in where we specifically looked for anything enjoyable that was happening.  Much of the room expressed pleasant surprise at finding different thoughts, sensations, or reactions that felt good- and that in noticing those, the previous anxieties diminished greatly.

I'll write up a version of that exercise and post it in the link above.

2. How to use your breath to allow stress to discharge.
Christopher Bergland writes a great introduction to some of the ways that modern science and ancient tradition are finally working together.  A big part of that is the Vagus nerve.  My Somatic Experiencing practice (and most SE practitioners') is highly influenced by the research that shows the vagus nerve to be vital in regulating whether we are in a state of fight-flight or rest-and-relax.  Strengthen vagal "tone" and you improve your body's ability to regulate stress, reduce inflammation, and rest the body.

One of the ways to strengthen your vagal tone is through certain types of breath, and Christopher shows you how.  (hint:  the heart rate tends to slow down on the exhale, and speed up on the inhale.  Knowing that, how would you adjust your breath if you wanted to encourage your body to slow its heart rate?)

3. Why feeling our strength can be a part of healing.
As a massage therapist, I'm often helping people relax.  But as a practitioner of Somatic Experiencing, I'm often helping them connect to their strength:  their drive, their passion, and even sometimes their anger.  This article describes how it can be limiting to only strive for relaxation, because sometimes in order to heal from whatever caused you tension in the first place, the strength and energy behind that tension needs to express itself.

I would love to see more people doing the hard work of realizing their strength, and then resting deeply with the satisfaction of knowing that they have the ferocity of a tiger ready to protect them if need be.  

Have you ever experienced a sense that if you needed to, you could be ferocious?  How does that knowledge support you as you move peacefully through the world?
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