Somatic mysticism: reframing “hypersensitivity” — More musing from the past few days. Anyone who has ever been called too sensitive might appreciate this.
I coined the term “somatic imperative” a while back as my journey seems locked in by what my body needs to heal. Then I started to think about “somatic mysticism” because I feel everything deeply and it informs my healing journey in a rather mystically beautiful way.
I can feel my cells doing their work quite often and I feel all manner of metabolic movement and I feel far more than I can even begin to really know from a biological standpoint. Still when I listen and pay attention I collect data, information to act on. With this info I continue to heal and become (consciously) one with all that is.
From an article I found that mentions somatic mysticism this quote:
Thich Nhat Hanh said, “What we most need to do is to hear within us the sounds of the Earth crying.”
And yes, I hear the earth and all it’s sentient beings as well as the plants and all that is animated. I feel it all…and am only just beginning to discern my intelligent and grounded place in the midst of it all.
The brain injury that bared my nervous system made it impossible for me to do anything but feel it all and figure out how to navigate it…thus the gift in that which almost killed me.
Johanna Macy’s work speaks to this quite beautifully:
See : The somatic imperative — for an ongoing exploration of Somatic mysticism and reframing “hypersensitivity”
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I always loved food and cooking and then food/and substances (herbs etc) became my main vehicle into union…it’s been fascinating. I can feel what every food does in my body
Psychiatry would call the vehicle an eating disorder…but it was life-force asking me to pay attention. Awesomeness.
The reason it would be called a disorder is because it involved having to eliminate many foods in order to hear anything at all since my nervous system was shattered to oblivion from the psych meds. Paying attention meant removing as much stimulation as possible (every food was a stimulus early on. Too much info to take in and negotiate) so, I had to start from as blank a slate as possible. Of course a blank slate is not possible in our modern world where we are bombarded with all manner of stimulation 24/7…so getting it as quiet as possible and only taking in the stimulation that would help me heal was of critical importance.
- biologically speaking this issue is one with methylation problems (and therefore detoxification) and histamine intolerance and ultimately the microbiome gone awry. See: Food sensitivities, histamine and mast cell activation syndrome – I’ve largely left behind that framework too as I heal more and more profoundly. It did help me get through a certain stage of healing, however
- Food posts here: Recipes, etc
- Eating wholesome whole real food is important for body/mind/spirit health and well-being. I’ve written a lot about my adventure with diet and healing here: Nutrition and gut health, Mental health and diet
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when I felt into the crowd’s field at the GOP convention what I felt was pain and fear…poignant and heart-wrenching really. I hope to be able to meet such folks in my life and share something other than that darkness that they might find hope and love in their life so that a fear-mongering hateful dictator won’t steal their hearts instead.
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Being awake isn’t about being perfect or all-knowing.
It’s more about being who we are with total and deep acceptance, while we fulfill our role in the unfolding drama of humanity. You got that right. The drama doesn’t end…we simply get to watch it in awareness. As we pay attention things change. And yeah, sometimes, we still get to play the idiot and the fool. Now we can just enjoy it and learn from it rather than judge ourselves for it.
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the hungry ghost knows. listen.
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Interview on spotify with Chris Cole: The Somatic Imperative with Monica Cassani
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See also: Reframing Your Experience
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