Mind Body Connection
The Body’s Language
Your body wants a relationship with you. It tries to communicate with you every day, but its words fall on deaf ears because you speak different languages.
The body speaks the language of emotion, movement, pain, and sensation, hoping you will notice and respond to what it is trying to say.
The Rosetta Stone of this language is knowing what safety feels like. Until you know what that feels like, you cannot understand what your body wants. You need to identify at least one SIM (Safety-In-Me) in your life, one credible shred of evidence that there is safety within you. Once you see it, opportunities for pain relief will begin to open.
Listen When Your Body Speaks
During chemotherapy, I experienced sensations that were all-encompassing and overwhelming. They were sometimes so great that my mind would tell me to run away. But, just like anything that we must face from within, everywhere we go, there we are. There was no running away, so I chose to look past the pain to marvel at the magnificence of the human experience, to feel every sensation, and love life for everything it had to offer.
Once I gazed past the pain, I began to see elements that were invisible to me. Rather than focusing on the emotionally charged details, I analyzed how each sliver of input felt and wondered what my body was trying to tell me.
I wasn’t willing the pain to go away; I was creating a space for my mind and body to have a conversation. It was like holding my fear in my own arms, allowing it to weep against my shoulder as I comforted it with care and words of reassurance that reminded it that everything was going to be okay.
When your body begins to speak, listen. Resist the urge to dominate and force it to bend to your whims and will. What we often fail to realize in the moment is that how we react to ourselves is how we typically always react. If you think this is a rare occasion when you tell your body no, your body already knows you are going to ignore it, so it has to fight and cry and stomp its feet to be heard.
The Mind Body Connection
Your body wants a relationship with you. It wants long and interesting conversations that result in fun and fantastic times. But how can you ever expect to have that if it is never allowed to get a word in edgewise?
When your body begins to speak, listen, slow down, and gaze beyond the emotionally charged aspects you have trained yourself to see. Analyze each sensation and ask yourself, what is my body trying to say to me?
Feeling Heard
We all want to be heard, and your mind and body are no different. When your brain thinks you are in danger, it uses pain to tell you it is afraid, because it wants you to guide it to safety.
When you ignore the messages behind the pain, the brain tends to cry louder. Unfortunately, its pleas for help are often muffled by your own tears, as you ask, “Why am I in so much pain?”
When you find yourself frustrated, it helps to imagine your brain as a baby who feels alone and afraid. I used this approach on many days when the hurt just wouldn’t quit. It prompted me to offer myself compassion and kindness when I was at my wits’ end.
The value of showing your brain empathy is that it helps ease some of the anger and frustration that often accompany pain. Frustration can increase your anxiety. When stress is elevated, it magnifies your perception of pain. When you soothe your frustration and lower your anger, it can reduce the amplification of your discomfort.
Using Neutral Language
When you choose to describe each sensation in a neutral, mechanical way, you are peeling away the emotional charge from its message. This allows you to actually hear what is being said.
Simply listening with open ears can have a profound effect on your quality of life because it tells your mind and body that you are listening.
How wonderful does it feel when you know someone is intently listening to you? How delightful is it when someone you love admires the brightness of your eyes and savors every second they spend with you?
When you take the time to listen to what your mind and body are trying to say, you can know the wonderful glow of feeling seen and heard. As a result, this can lower the intensity of your pain.
Mindful Body Scanning
I invite you to close your eyes and scan your body. Look for a space within you that feels gentle or pleasant. If none appears, imagine a scene that feels magnificently serene. Feel the air on your skin, smell the scents around you, and explore every exquisite detail until you are fully immersed within your mind’s eye.
Once you feel something soothing, rest your attention there. Search for words that describe it. If no words come, make a nonsense sound or expression that best captures the feeling.
Hold onto this feeling with gentle hands. If the comforting sensation begins to shift, allow it to move. Let it lead you as you explore other soft sensations throughout your body.
When you arrive somewhere new, give yourself time to adore the flowers. Breathe deeply, feel the quiet peace, and savor your reprieve.
Walk with these feelings for as long as you would like. When you are ready to return to the world, slowly follow the path you took to get here, lingering here and there as you feel inclined.
Once you have returned to the first soothing space, I invite you to give yourself a hug. Offer your heart some love, and gently say where you feel safe.
I have used this practice to help me navigate through some of my most trying times. In moments when I was void of hope and without the will to cope, it helped me replace my fear with a quiet sense of cheer, and reminded me that I am delightfully alive.
Develop Your Mind Body Connection
The practice you just completed is one of the simplest ways to begin building a healthy relationship with your body. Over time, as you continue to use it, this gentle practice will help you develop a clearer mind-body connection.
This kind of shift is exactly what happened for me with neurotags. When I first introduced you to them, I mentioned that understanding how pain works changed my life. I bring that up again because the practice we just completed can become a new SIM for you, just as knowing the brain creates pain to protect me became one of mine.
Everything you learn about pain can become a SIM. That is one of the beautiful things about pain neuroscience education. The more you understand, the more influence you gain over the experience of pain, because knowledge liberates.
Mind Body Practices
There are many activities you can engage in to improve your mind-body connection. You can experience them nearly everywhere, at any time. All of these activities can serve as new SIMs to integrate as new patterns of safety.
Body Scanning
Close your eyes and allow your hands to rest by your sides. Take a breath, and as you breathe, passively explore every nook and cranny of your body. Love the moment, dream about hope, and feel each sensation from your toes to the tip of your nose.
When you are admired by someone you adore, and adores you, it feels wonderful, because at that moment you feel seen. Think back to a time when someone observed you admiringly. Didn’t it feel divine? When you take the time to truly perceive your body from the inside, it is like being looked at from surface to center.
Mindful Movement
Give yourself a moment to slow down, to take a breath, and appreciate the delightfulness of being alive. Stretch mindfully, give yourself enough time to feel your body with each movement. Remind yourself that you are safe, in control, and infused with hope.
This activity explores your proprioception. Proprioception is what helps you identify where your body exists in space without visual confirmation. Think of it like going dancing on a date, the mind leads, while the body follows. Move in ways that feel safe, fun, and pleasurable. Use it as an opportunity to demonstrate to the body that it is in good hands while under the mind’s leadership.
Mindful Breathing
Sit upright and position yourself comfortably with your feet flat on the floor. As you breathe, remain consciously present. How does the air feel as it moves across your lips, through your nose, and into your chest? What do your muscles feel like as they expand and release? Be present in the moment, think hopeful thoughts, and immerse yourself in the serenity of every second.
Allow your focus to land wherever it wants. Hold back your desire to control it. Instead, celebrate how you naturally breathe in and out. Scan your body and explore every exquisite sensation. How does the air feel against your nose, over your lips, and across your tongue? Dive in and feel the moment. When your mind begins to wander, redirect it back to your next breath.
Heartbeat Awareness
Shower yourself with love and kindness by surrounding yourself with some quietness. Focus inwardly, take a breath, and feel for the rhythmic pulse of your heart. Allow each second to inspire you, and serve as a reminder that you are alive.
Have you ever lain your head on someone’s chest just to listen to their heartbeat? Has someone ever done that to you? It is a heartwarming moment that celebrates the music of someone else’s existence. When you do this to yourself, it is a powerful expression of self-love because it says I am here with you in mind, body, and soul.
Imagine Being Massaged
Imagine being massaged by someone focused solely and only on you. Deriving joy and happiness from your peace and ease. Imagine every precise, perfect technique as their massage guides you to feel safe and at ease.
Receive a Massage
Exist in the second and marvel at the magnificence of the moment as you receive a massage. Take a deep breath and open your senses to each exquisite sensation; feel the stress melt off your shoulders and the weight of the world float away.
5-4-3-2-1 Sensory Grounding
When the world feels like it’s spinning, or your insides feel dizzy, anchor yourself with your five senses. Search for five things you can see, four things you can feel, listen for three sounds you can hear, two scents you can smell, and one flavor you can taste.
Continue Exploring the Mind Body Connection
Understanding the mind body connection is a powerful starting point. The next step is learning how to integrate it with practical everyday ways.
Discovering Safety Within brings these ideas together through patterns of safety and the role of neurotags in shaping the experience of pain. With pain management coaching, you can apply this understanding to your own patterns, strengthening the connection between body awareness, safety, and pain relief in a way that is personal and sustainable.
If you are ready to deepen this work, you are invited to schedule a pain management coaching session and begin building safety through your mind body connection.
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Pain Management at 2717 Hwy K, O’Fallon, MO 63368