small group as nurturing “ecosystem”,

A typical session begins with gentle somatic explorations, bringing awareness to inner sensations as we move. We can explore qualities such as shifting weight, balance and stability, feeling our base of support, gravity and buoyancy, moving with the breath, foundational movement patterns such as (eg drawing on the systems of Laban, Bartenieff, BMC)

also draw on tools from somatic psychotherapy to build resources in the body, grounding, practice of stable awareness to return to when disturbing feelings arise

eg body scan, somatic markers, images

We then bring awareness of these qualities into creative movement, with music as a powerful medium for connecting with emotions

this is when archetypal patterns may begin to dance themselves into being

We can apply some of the somatic resources learned,

eg slowing and releasing weight down, feeling roots, as the environment is fast-changing unpredictable.

possibility of interaction

interacting as part of a living system, responses emerge which may surprise and challenge us. Our unique emergent responses can be used to inform structured exercises such as play with polarities, archetypal roles, etc. a safe container in which to explore responses, build capacity

Key principles :

Sensorimotor Integration

Kinetic chains

Developmental movement patterns

Building “emotional range of motion”: Integration of separated, isolated parts of the body and emotional responses into a more flexible continuum, building the ability to regulate our emotions.

Condense-to-expand: just as slow contraction and release of muscles and kinetic chains can help release habitual isometric holding in the body, in Wise Moves we may go consciously “into” and exaggerate a posture or pattern of contraction associated with an emotion, followed by expansion and release in the opposite direction, repeating this as a slow, rhythmic pulsation between two polarities (repetition reinforces neural pathways, so that the pathway of slow, measured release of a particular emotion is more available to us in challenging life situations)

(ref Reich, Hanna?)

Limbic Resonance

Gently exploring resistance of another body.can give valuable feedback to the brain which can’t be achieved through conceptual thought alone – eg we can integrate experiences such as: “I am supported, I don’t need to constantly “hold” myself up”, “When I push against resistance, there is some yielding, I can activate my system to move toward obstacles and make progress”

Thoughts as uncompleted actions, shared pathways of motor and symbolic

Integration:

Sharing with partners and group,

Images, sound, visual art