In this guided experience of somatic emotional release, we will be invoking a ceremony and practicing ritualized expression of sacred rage and/or grief, giving ourselves the opportunity to move the energy of stuck or dense emotions, often judged as “bad” by social norms –  through our body, voice, breath and movement. This practice is rooted in and through a sacred oath we will collectively make to not harm ourselves or others with our expression.

These emotions are:

• NOT fleeting mental states, but rather are bodily experiences that need to be processed through the body.
• NOT dangerous, bad, or inherently abusive to display in an intentional communal space as we are often taught, but *can* be bad or negative when we express them outside of intentional space.

We will be doing embodied practice, staying within our own personal space/nest, to build our capacity to feel, make space for, and process our less poised emotions within community, as Indigenous communities like mine have done for thousands of years via wailing and keening practices.

Participants will not interact with other participants during the active practice. However, there will be a licensed therapist helping me hold the space that participants can seek support from.

UNDERSTAND:

We are doing a “Level 2” embodied practice of vagal tone by intentionally activating our SNS (sympathetic nervous system) in order to practice moving back into our PNS (parasympathetic nervous system)…a skill that is necessary to cultivate a healthy and resilient nervous system.

Yes, it can be triggering.

So we will make use of our triggers, while tracking our window of tolerance, and taking care of ourselves.

Click here to learn about a “Level 1” event for folks newer to inner trauma work. 

This practice is one of deep shadow work and may not be right for you if:

• You have deep, unresolved, and unprocessed trauma around loud and embodied expressions of sorrow or anger.
• If you are new to, or just beginning, your work in healing your trauma. If you have not yet gained the capacity to recognize when your nervous system moves out of your window of tolerance – resulting in fight, flight, freeze or collapse – and feel uncertain that you have the tools to self-regulate, this is not the practice for you. Instead, you would do better to attend the Somatic Breathwork Journey event, which still plays with the embodied practice of vagal tone, but to a much softer degree.  
• If you have experienced expressing your emotions through body movement and vocalizations heightens their hold in your body, rather than releasing them through and out.
• Since this practice is so contrary to what we have been taught about keeping our emotions private and suppressing them for the sake of others or our own shame, you will most likely experience some highly uncomfortable territory. If you find that being highly uncomfortable lands in your soma as “harm”, this practice is not for you.

Benefits of this practice:

• Having a safe-enough container to practice the experience of vagal tone in an embodied way, rather than just intellectualizing the concept, is a precious gift. However, it can be highly uncomfortable. If you can expand your capacity to be in that high state of discomfort *and* build your confidence and neural pathways to re-calibrate your nervous system back into the “rest and digest” PNS, then you are actually in the process of mastering a very vital aspect of nervous system regulation that can create immense resilience in a triggering world. In other words, you own your triggers, your triggers do not own you.
• Once emotional energy is moved out of your system, the emptiness that follows can allow for intentional pursuit of resourcing behaviors to replenish your system OR allow for you to have a hard conversation with any loved ones that may have triggered the emotions from a more centered and balanced place. This is key for developing authentic connections.
• Moving this emotional energy out of your body prevents it from stagnating in your tissues, forming “energetic cysts” or blockages that can manifest in various forms of illness.
• Having intentional space to express, prohibits you from “off-gassing” your emotions inappropriately on loved ones due to suppression or avoidance of them.
• In building our capacity to be in space with other peoples’ big emotions, we can foment greater presence, rather than avoidance, with the big feelings of our loved ones.
• Somatic Emotional Release allows the body’s energy to be freed up and flow towards greater change, more aptitude for authentic sexual expression, more capacity for social connection, as well as free-flow creativity.

What you can expect:

• Container setting, landing in the space, where this practice derives from
• Discussion on the science of trauma: learn the broad strokes of how the ANS (autonomic nervous system) works, what vagal tone is, the concept of staying in your window of tolerance – using your personal “bungee cord”.
• Naming of options within the practice to empower your voice and choice: opting out, leaving the space, using ear plugs or blindfold to focus within yourself, etc.
• You will learn various Somatic Emotional Release Forms that you can use in your practice, as well as encouragement to create your own.
• You will learn centering/grounding breathwork that has been scientifically shown to down-regulate your nervous system into the rest-and-digest PNS, that you can come back to at any time in the practice.
• A warm up movement flow to stretch your limbs and prep for the physicality of the practice, as well as vocal warm ups to warm the voice for noise making.
• There will be a playlist of emotionally charged songs for the duration of the practice (no longer than 30 minutes) to inspire connection to your emotions.
• A period of quiet savoring, witnessing your somatic experience post-practice.
• Somatic Resourcing & Co-Regulation practices: Invitation to participate in a group dance experience with some soothing chanting practice to regain equilibrium and orient towards loving-kindness and gratitude within community.
• A group debrief together to share about our experience.
• Option to re-connect with the group for a nature walk on Thursday, February 20th @ 3:30pm.

Supplies Needed:

• Bring some manner of floor padding as the base of your nest: such as multiple layers of thick yoga mats, a thick blanket, a tri-fold, and/or cushions. We have some yoga mats, bolsters and blankets at the space available for use, but they are limited.
• Bring a personal pillow case to cover your practice cushions and a personal sheet to lay over your floor padding, to contain fluids.
• Come to the event well rested, well hydrated and nourished. Please don’t eat a full meal for one hour preceding the event. 
• Consider bringing ear plugs or a blindfold if you want to toggle between hearing and seeing others and withdrawing into your personal experience, shutting everything out.
• Bring water and perhaps a journal for writing down reflections.
• Bring a capacity to be uncomfortable and to take action to opt out of any or all of the practice.
  
   
  Sunday

  February 16, 2025
  12pm – 3pm
  Cost: $33/person

  @
  Ananda Yoga Space
  3520 W Chinden Blvd. Suite 200
  Garden City, ID 83714

   

  ** Space is limited to 30 – 35 participants.