miracles in motion
I remember deepening into our amazing nervous system in physical therapy school. Dissecting fragile filaments from muscle and fascia. Memorizing the radial nerve course. Studying transmission chemical magic at the synapse. In my own body, feeling the movement impulse translate to coordinated action; sensation of muscle and bone relayed back for brain interpretation.
The miracle of bodies in motion never fails to beckon my attention. That early foundation in anatomy and kinesiology and physiology initiated a cascading evolution of bodily know how. Our nervous system is an integrating force that moves us through the world. Its motor/sensory messaging is a felt experience in our daily life and, of course, on the yoga mat, the dance floor.
Lately I’ve been feeling these permeating nerve fibers on the dance floor as body part, a gateway just like feet and hips and head and breath. And the nervous system’s function beyond motor/sensory messenger has seized my attention. Though aha moments seem magical, perhaps there is no mystery. Insight is a weaving of threads from a multiplicity of wellsprings. Knowledge compounds and develops from where we put our attention, the connections we make, the meaning evoked. This renewed perspective merges many sources that intertwined as I danced hours in the shadow/light landscape in 5Rhythms dance.
Gratitude to all my wellspring sources: Gabrielle Roth at whose knees I listened and learned and scribbled copious notes. Meredith Nordschow, anatomy professor more than 50 years ago who instilled utter respect for the workings of the human miracle. Lucia Horan for guiding me thru this shadow/light map multiple times. Juliette Kunin for calling me in to teach a workshop dedicated to this map. Majica Alba for many juicy wandering exploratory conversations. And a deep bow to Anchored and Deb Danawho riveted my attention on the autonomic nervous system and the vagus nerve and it’s function so very different than the central nervous system.
This newsletter set out to be an exploration of our autonomic on/off switch, the way it can create a life experienced as roller coaster or steady train on the tracks, the way we can tame it, cultivate a dimmer switch, the way we can witness disregulation arising and skillfully come back to baseline, the way this bundle of nerves permeates our entire life experience. Well that newsletter went off the rails. It turned into an appreciation for how learning can be a life long adventure. An intricate tapestry arising organically from gifts harvested from gardens life leads us through.
So be it. No worries. Embodied application of these notions happens in practice. I’m out there teaching three times this week:
Wednesday Waves:
Dancing as a vehicle to notice moments of shut down or collapse. And once we become aware, perhaps choosing to remedy in regulation. And perhaps not. Becoming our own best witness.
Release & Realign:
Can we bring our attention to our interior experience, the articulated instructions, the fullness of practicing in community. Noticing the nervous system on/off switch as we practice. Becoming our best witness on the mat.
Wingspan: shoulder to hand:
Support to tune in to your interior experience: heart beat inside rib basket. How that flows outward to spine and shoulder blade, collar bone and shoulder joint, elbow, forearm, wrist, fingers. How the brachial plexus nerve bundle weaves thru as connector, mitigator, messenger. How to care for all this challenged and precious flesh and bone.
The miracle of bodies in motion together—co-regulation— is one of the ways our tender nervous systems are nourished and healed. Let’s create that healing by moving together this week.
❤️Bella