All memos tagged #somatic-practice-lexicon

Soma is the body as experienced from the inside. Not the body on a chart, not the body as an object on the table — the living sense of being in it. In Somatic Practice that inside view is the subject...

Presence is the practitioner's calm attention treated as part of the work. The room, the pace, and whether the practitioner is actually here. In Somatic Practice that attention is a condition of the...

Orienting is slowly looking around the room to let the nervous system register that it is here. Eyes take in colors, edges, exits, another person. In Somatic Practice it is often the first move, and...

Body scan is moving attention slowly through the body region by region. Feet, legs, pelvis, belly, chest, arms, neck, face — or a shorter path. In Somatic Practice it is a map, not a test of how much...

Constructive rest is lying on the back with knees bent and feet flat so the body can settle without effort. The lumbar curve is supported by the bent knees; the person is not stretching or...

Awareness is noticing sensation without trying to change it. Heat, pressure, a blank, a flutter — registered before a stretch or a story. In Somatic Practice that look is the work, not a prelude....

Cue is a short phrase that points attention somewhere, such as "feel both feet." In Somatic Practice cues are invitations, not commands. The person can ignore, change, or refuse them. A good cue is...

Noticing is the neutral act of registering a sensation before doing anything about it. A tightness is named; it is not yet stretched, explained, or fixed. In Somatic Practice that pause is the skill....

Completion is letting an interrupted body response, such as a shake, a push, or an exhale, finish on its own. A tremor starts; the person is invited to let it go through rather than clamp it. In...

Arriving is the first minute of a practice spent feeling support and looking around before anything else. Feet or seat, eyes on the room, a breath that is already happening. In Somatic Practice...

Habit pattern is an automatic way of holding or moving that runs outside awareness. A jaw that clenches in traffic; a shoulder that lives up; a breath that stops at a screen. In Somatic Practice...

Micro-movement is a movement small enough to feel, often smaller than can be seen. A millimeter of the pelvis; a flicker of the ribs. In Somatic Practice smaller is how sensation stays available. Big...

Experiment is a small, optional movement tried to see what the body does, rather than an exercise to perform. Turn the head a few degrees; rest a hand on the ribs; shift weight. In Somatic Practice...

Discharge is the shaking, warmth, or sighing that can follow the release of held activation. It may show up after a hold, a stretch, or a pause. In Somatic Practice it is allowed, not produced....

Sensory motor amnesia is Thomas Hanna's term for a muscle held contracted so long the brain has lost the sense of how to release it. The person cannot find the off switch; stretching the muscle from...

Pendulation is the natural swing of attention between a tense area and an easy one. A few seconds with the tight jaw, then back to the feet, then back if the system can stay. In Somatic Practice that...

Embodiment is being present in and connected to one's physical self. Not a pose, not a lifestyle. In Somatic Practice it is the direction of the work: more of the person is available in the body they...

Slow is the practice is the pacing rule: sensation is only available below a certain speed. Move faster and the person is performing; move slower and they can feel. In Somatic Practice that rule is...

Settling is the body downshifting as tension lets go. Breath slows, the face drops, the person takes more of the chair. In Somatic Practice that is a possible result of arriving, resourcing, or a...

Resourcing is finding a place in the body, or an image, that feels steady enough to return to. A foot, a color in the room, a person who is kind. In Somatic Practice that place is how the work stays...