What is true embodiment?

The word embodiment has become commonly overused in our culture today. Powerful as it is, its essence has too often been diluted by the saturation and misconception. To me, what embodiment truly points to is something far deeper—vital, alive, and profoundly transformative.
 
It is my sense for many, when they think of being embodied, it means living in a deeply connected way with their bodies—healthy, integrated, active, and strong—overall feeling good in their physical selves. While this isn’t completely inaccurate, as of course that can be a goal, embodiment is so much more than this surface-level understanding.
 
To me, however, where the juice in our state of living and being embodied arises is when we are compromised in our physical bodies. When we are perhaps injured or fall sick or are feeling off and disconnected in one way or another from our physical bodies.
 
When we can stay anchored in our embodied selves, despite what the physical reality is, that is true embodiment to me.
 
I have been sharing little pieces of my journey around this the last couple of weeks…as with every challenge in life I am always seeking to extract the medicine and wisdom from the experience and am moved to share with you all some of my discoveries.
 
I have been dealing with a resurfaced, very old injury that has taken on a life of its own. The first injury happened when I was young, in my early 20s, and the recovery was more simplified (yet not without struggle of course!).

Currently, my 51-year-old body is having some different experiences in navigating this healing process.
 
I am a very healthy person on the whole. I take excellent care of myself. Yet, this process I have been in has certainly been unexpectedly challenging. An injury in one ankle turned into an injury in the other ankle, and both knees in my overcompensation.
 
As mindful as I am in my body and as connected to my embodiment as I have been for the past many decades, this experience has afforded me the opportunity to dig very deep in my own process of embodiment.
 
Being sedentary is not comfortable for me as I am a mover. Yet, I have been reminded of the potency of stillness...the true experience of feeling embodied from deep within through the simplicity of breath.
 
As this process unfolded and many of the ways that I resource myself in my body and access my own embodiment were removed, I had to get creative. I had to surrender and open to new possibilities.
 
I had to honor the limitations of my physical body and find other ways of staying present and connected to myself in every given moment.
 
I spent as much time as I could with my legs elevated and my ankle iced and compressed and, yet, I still had to function (drive, work, grocery shop, be a mom, etc etc…).
 
Walking was a (big!) issue, sitting on the floor cross-legged in meditation was an issue, driving was an issue, standing was an issue, lifting and carrying things around was an issue…things that I had taken for granted as a part of my regular ways of tending to myself…all became tremendously difficult and painful.
 
I was also in prep mode for an upcoming retreat that I was leading and needed to soak up the insights that were emerging from this time of limitation, forced rest, and introspection. Trusting that I was, indeed, preparing in exactly the way that I needed to.
 
And now, in retrospect, as I am more mobile and not in excruciating pain, this time was a gift of connection to myself…a layer that I have not been able to access before. I feel as though I was able to repair some deeply ingrained patterns of reaction to previous injuries and limitations in my system.
 
Past patterns of self-abandonment when injuries or other physical limitations have happened.
 
For me, I healed a layer in myself and learned to tap deeply into my own embodiment from within… a way of living and being and relating that feels grounded and anchored in who I am now.
 
Let's be real here. Life happens. Injuries happen. Aging happens. Limitations happen. And if our embodiment work and embodied connection, depends on our ability to be in motion and doing all the things that move our energy in motion, while we are great shape, then at some juncture, we will be brought to our knees.
 
This experience of embodiment then becomes conditional, and that is not sustainable.
 
So, my message and invitation for you this week is about accessing, tapping into, embracing, and being with a true experience of embodiment.
 
One that is not dependent on how you are feeling in yourself and in your body. One that is not conditional to your level of exercise and movement, food intake, and any other external circumstances that regularly impacts how connected or disconnected you may feel in your body.
 
Finally, if you are willing to, please join me in this moment to tune into your breath. Perhaps put aside what you were doing and just focus solely on filling and emptying your breath from deep down into your belly. You can put your hands on your body if it helps to anchor you ---one hand on your heart and one hand on your belly. Tune in. Drop in. Take a scan of your physical body, your heart beating, the quality of your mind…no judgment…just allowing yourselves to be there with YOU.

Is this difficult? Foreign? Uncomfortable? Comfortable? Whatever bubbles up for you just allow it to be and continue to stay with your breath and yourself.

This is it. These are the moments of gold. This is where the magic happens. Tuning into your body through your breath and giving yourself permission to be present and allow yourself to stay in connection no matter how challenging it may feel.

Sending love, support, and respect near and far. I am out here if I can be of assistance along your path in any way.

Take good care of yourselves and be kind to each other.