Ever moved your body to music?  It’s virtually unavoidable across a lifetime.  Why do we do it?  How do we feel afterwards?  This universal movement can bring a lot of joy.  Yet when feeling dysregulated or otherwise awful, it can feel impossible to muster the motivation to participate and reap the mood benefits.  Luckily, we have years of research demonstrating that movement does not need to be this drastic to be helpful to our emotional state.

Try this:

(the ugly way first)

Slump your shoulders.  Make your chest bone seem like it’s reaching for your pelvis.  Better standing up, but fine sitting down too.  Now push your chin forward.  Let your arms flop.  Allow your pelvis to scoop forward.

Relax into this position.  Stay there for 30-60 seconds.  You can count or time it.  As you do this, close your eyes and really feel into what happens to your emotional state as you hold this posture.  What words come to mind?  What sensations do you experience in your gut, chest, throat.

Ok cut!

Shake that off.  Literally.  For just 10 seconds shake out your arms legs, maybe head, as though you are flicking water off your body.  Please do have a go, and then notice how you feel.

Cease.

Let’s try something else.  Last thing.

Put pressure into your heels, push them into the ground, invite some energy into your butt muscles, lightly, very lightly clenched, feel some activity in pulling in your stomach.  We are building a solid base from the ground up here.  Allow your chest to be proud, but not too much.  Drop your shoulders away from your ears and at the same time feel like your head is being pulled heavenward by a silver string.  Exhale long.  Relax a touch.  Enjoy it.

Please go through that last posture again 1-2 times.

Now notice your internal process.  What words label this feeling?  How do you feel in your body, in yourself generally?

There is a widespread belief that emotion dictates posture.  And it does.  A dog who is shamed will have ‘their tale between their legs’ for instance.

Equally, and less utilised, is the fact that posture also dictates feeling.  If you are ruminating, feeling shame, down in the dumps, or even just a bit beaten down by life at the moment you don’t need a special magic cure (although that would be great!).

A silver bullet is rarely available for the complex ills that ail us.  Rather it tends to be a symphony of many instruments that cause the music.  One of those instruments is your body.  Test it out next time you need it, or even when you are not aware that you do.

For years I set a ‘gong’ timed randomly to go off on my phone.  It gave me the opportunity for a brief (mere seconds) check in with my body and a moment to readjust.  Sometimes that’s all it takes to really notice a shift.  I hope you enjoy experimenting with this process!

Let me know how you go.