We tend to think of the body as a type of machine that either runs well or breaks down in need of repairs. And in severe cases of breakdown, the body can be overcome with disease or dies and is no more.
What if that which we call the body and often refer to as a singular noun, is really a multitude of processes occurring simultaneously and is actually a multi-verb? If so, might health be called a synchronized cooperation of all these processes, and dis-ease would be a de-synchronization of these processes, or a lack of timing? Homeostasis would then be all the different systems of the body working together seamlessly to create the experience of the body being one thing.
For another example, when an orchestra plays in time and in tune with itself, it is called music, and it sounds like an orchestra. When it plays out of time and out of tune, it is called noise, and it sounds like a bunch of separate musicians. Maybe dis-ease is a type of noise or chaos in the body that is the result of the of the body’s multitude of processes being out of time and out of tune with each other.
Can you think of other systems of the body and imagine that they are working within themselves and also together? Now, let’s look at some of the actions and rhythms of these systems – breath rate, heart rate, venous and lymph return, digestive secretions, intestinal peristalsis, microbiome activity, craniosacral rhythm, sodium-potassium pump of nerve conduction, release of hormones into the blood at the right time for various bodily processes, urine excretion, neurotransmitter secretion and uptake in the brain, and many more complex processes of the body that hinge on timing. These are some of the rhythmic actions that execute the timing of the body and are responsible for our physical and psychological functioning, and more importantly, our feeling of wellbeing or lack thereof. We can feel it when our timing is on or off.
We can also think of many examples in our environment where timing is the key to a process occurring in either an orderly or chaotic fashion that affects our bodies. The body is timed to the sun and moon cycles and the seasons. Do you feel a little off with the daylight savings time change? That is only one hour, but it may throw you off for several days. Do you feel the effect of climate change in your body more than just greater warmth? Do you think the earth has feelings and feels off because of climate change? Being thrown off, if we feel off, is the dysregulation of the subtle rhythms of the body. Rhythm is inside of us and all around us. Timing is everywhere. When the body is out of sync with itself, it creates discomfort, or dis-ease. If this process continues, it can result in a condition of disease, which is different than dis-ease andn may require some sort of medical or healing intervention. If the body is out of sync for years or decades, it can result in treatment-resistant syndromes or more serious diseases. Often times, syndromes or these serious diseases are treated only at the level of symptom manifestation without considering the underlying timing of the multi-
process of our physiology.
What if, rather than looking at ourselves as just one thing or a bunch of separate things, we could see ourselves as a multitude of things, either working well together or not working well together? This is not to say that there are not certain times where singular interventions are helpful or necessary, but rather to say that the synchronization of all our aspects is foundational and underlies all of our health and wellbeing. Could this way of understanding the body be a truly non-medical way of working with others and ourselves to support wellness?
This way of thinking, working and being seems to be evolving me, personally and professionally. It is taking my work to new levels. Rather than getting more complicated as I continue to learn and grow, I seem to be getting simpler, yet more nuanced at the same time. Placing a hand or hands on the body, where they feel drawn, and sensing the currents of movement and resistance seems to be completing some kind of circuit with client and practitioner that supports a resetting of the timing of both. Somehow, the combination of connection with no agenda along with a message of safety to the tissues that lets them know I am really listening, has a deeply calming effect that facilitates change and resets some foundational timing in the body.
There is a great ease in sensing both the subtle breath displacement movement in the tissues of the entire body and where the breath is going or not going. The next obvious step is sensing the arterial blood flow. Through sensing these two aspects of being, the entire body can become accessible. We don’t have to know everything we are perceiving, but the hands have an uncanny instinct to sense chaos in body and facilitate its resolution.
Once the body feels really heard and understood by our hands, its tissues will start talking to us in the body’s own language, expressing its states of chaos as well as desire and ability to resolve that chaos and then move to a more orderly state. Tension or hardness usually means stuckness and a restriction of the rhythms of the body. Flaccid means disconnection or a shutdown and a lack of tension to fully participate in the rhythms of the body. Coldness can sometimes mean the body is trying to find a new way but can’t. Heat is often a sign of the body wanting to reestablish order, and releasing heat is a process of self-correction. Healthy tone is a sign of wellness and will support the rhythms of the body. Fatigue can be a healthy cue for the body to deeply rest, and in the rest state, access its magic of self-healing and reestablishing its timing. When we are free and clear, totally present, and even having fun with it, we can just flow with the process of micromovements that listen to the body and talk with it too. This is the healing conversation, referred to in our work. The healing process, in which the body naturally establishes the timing of its many processes, will happen naturally, but our presence with our hands and hearts is a big part of that happening. I, for one, feel really good about that.
Rouel Cazanjian, M.A., LMFT, CMT, SEP is a registered Advanced Instructor and Practitioner of Ortho-Bionomy®, a licensed psychotherapist, and a certified Somatic Experiencing Practitioner. He has over 30 years of experience teaching and working with clients. He also has extensive experience working with Buddhist principles, mindfulness, meditation, hypnosis and many movement therapies.
