SS :: Shedding Shoulds Introduction
Over the next eight weeks I will be sharing the content from my group program Shedding Shoulds (last offered in 2016). The material will be slightly edited, as over the last six years my work has grown and changed just as I have. I hope you find this next series of self-exploration useful. As with all things, take what works for you and leave the rest. You will receive new content for this exploration once a week on Sundays.
It is important as you begin any kind of self-exploration program, to allow yourself to be present and to move through at your own pace. Before sitting down to read each entry or starting the exercises, give yourself a moment to ground in the ways that feel good for you and to be present. This is important for this deep work we do, as it can be triggering at times, and it is important to remember we are in the here and now and no longer six or ten or seventeen.
It is also important to remember that while this is deep work, we also need to play. As adults we tend to have long lists of to-dos and shoulds and musts and as we come into the present and into our bodies we begin to see life a little differently and our priorities may start to shift. Play is the same as exploration or experimentation in my book and it can be light-hearted or serious. Remember to have an open mind and heart as we move forward on our journey.
I encourage you to explore the stream of conscious writing in addition to the other exercises I will be sending you. The breath work and body-connection work is particularly important to guide you to being present and releasing or transforming those stories of shoulds and have-tos. That said, breath work and embodiment is not for everyone, so if you find those exercises to be activating, please listen to your body and don’t do them.
We will spend the next eight weeks diving deep, and I need to remind you to be gentle with yourself and remember your own self-care practices. If you don't feel you have any "good" or "go-to" self-care practices, come to the exercises I am giving you. Get centered and grounded and give your Self the time and space you deserve for this work. The dishes will still be there in 15 minutes, I promise.
Breath Work
Today we are going to explore the 9-round breathing practice. For three inhales/exhales you breathe in through one nostril and exhale through the other; then the next three inhales/exhales you switch and then for the final round you breath in and out through both nostrils. The guided exercise is
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