Introduction to Somatics and Dance for Female Entrepreneurs
As a female entrepreneur, we wear so many different hats. We have businesses to run, we take care of our families and clients, and then there’s our hormone cycles…
And when you consider we have 6000 plus thoughts a day (1), is it any wonder that we can start to feel stressed, overwhelmed and disconnected?
If your nerves are starting to feel jangled by just reading this, I invite you to simply take a deep breath and come back to sensing into your body.
Take a moment to appreciate this hardworking body of yours that has carried you from A to B and got you to where you are now. Feel into the solidity of your body, the weighted bones of your skeleton, your blood pumping through your arteries, the air entering your lungs.
When you bring attention into your body, you are immediately connecting into your somatic being.
The Power of Somatics and Dance for Self-Care
Somatics has become a bit of a buzzword in recent wellness circles, and in a basic nutshell it is about understanding the science of our mind and body connection.(3)
Our nervous system is a main communicator between our body and brain, so somatics may often talk about regulating our nervous system, and healing our trauma.
However, somatics is much more than this, as it looks at the four levels of our being – our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual self – our ‘soma’ or living body (rather than our body from the head down).
Grounding with Somatics: How Dance Plays a Role
Being a prolific ‘overthinker’, I know only too well how this can create huge stress and anxiety as thoughts can easily race into overdrive, and it can literally be a handicap!
But by dropping out of our heads and connecting back into those other parts of ourselves, we can start to process our thoughts, integrate and transform them.
When we drop into our physical body, we ground our thoughts, and start to feel a sense of calm. We begin our journey of embodiment.
And I will always advocate vitamin D for Dance as it is a powerful way to experience this, as it has been my personal medicine in life, giving me continual support, inspiration and joy.
Dance as a Tool for Emotional Release
Dance is both a container and an outlet for our emotions, where we can give ourselves permission to freely express and channel our frustrations, anxiety, fears or nervous tension. After all, we may not be able to change a situation, but we can always change how it affects us.
And by coming into our bodies and moving, we gain a new perspective.
We also connect into our spiritual body that reminds us that there is something more in the world, the bigger picture. We drop out of our busy Beta brainwaves into Alpha – Delta, the brainwave state of meditators, where we gain fresh perspectives, to expand and broaden our vision. (2)
Somatics and Dance: Enhancing Brain Function and Creativity
In fact when we move and dance, we bring new oxygen to the brain and it expands our neural pathways – our brains literally grow in neurogenesis. This paves the way for more creative and ‘divergent’ thinking. We become more resilient, able to navigate challenges and setbacks with more ease.
And by the way, this has nothing to do with looking like Jennifer Beals in Flashdance, or the dancers in Strictly come Dancing.
This is about coming home to yourself.
Listening to Your Body: The Somatic Practice
How often do you truly listen to the messages from your body? Listening to our gut is very important and real, and children are much more attuned to their intuition and sixth sense.
It is almost as though we get numbed by our responsibilities as we enter into the serious world of adulthood, where we are honed by academic systems that still favour our logical left brain thinking.
Often, we don’t listen to our bodies until they start to complain when we haven’t taken care of ourselves.
However, somatics is not just about listening into our bodies. It is in essence about bringing a deeper awareness to ourselves, and also of acceptance.
Conclusion: Embracing Somatics and Dance for Personal Growth
Accepting all the idiosyncrasies and nuances that make us who we uniquely are, including all the parts that we might feel are unloveable.
We are individual and unique beings, but somatics also reminds us that we are connected as a whole, not just to our womanhood, but to our humanity.
I have condensed a lot of information into this article, so if it feels too much, then just take a deep breath in and feel that breath coming into your body. Release that breath into the earth.
Welcome to a gentle coming home.
You can learn more about Somatics and Dance at the upcoming Speaker Showcase Events in the coming months, where I will be a speaker.
Notes:
1 – Humans Have More than 6,000 Thoughts per Day, Psychologists Discover – Newsweek
2 – What Are Alpha Waves and How to Train Your Brain to Achieve Them – Learning Mind (learning-mind.com)
3 – Home – ISMETA
About the Author
Name: Helene Su
Professional Title: Embodied Life Coach
Bio: Helene is an Embodied Life Coach, Dance Facilitator, Speaker and Creator of Niio Dance, a Somatic Dance Practice for Self-Discovery and Freedom, a fusion of East and West, the Science and the Sacred.She has an MA in Dance and Somatic Wellbeing, and given talks and workshops in UK and Europe.
Website: niiodance.com
