SOMATIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
Exercises Resilient Health • 602.995.1767
Reconnecting
Sit in a chair, one that is at least somewhat firm, and notice how your feet feel on the ground, body in the chair. Focus on the physical sensations and notice what happens. Alternately, you can stand and shift back and forth from foot to foot, noticing the sensations of standing, and feeling how the ankles, shins, knees and thighs support the weight.
Orienting
Look around the room or area and make a mental note of what you see, without making any judgments. If something catches your eye, take a few moments to just observe it and see how that feels.
Anchoring
As you are standing, imagine you’re growing roots into the ground, feel yourself as anchored. You can also push both feet into the ground as you either inhale or exhale.
Orienting Attention
See if you can count how many things with one feature are visible, such as how many palm trees, how many blue things, or how many cars can you see. This pulls attention away from racing negative thoughts.
Movement
As you’re walking, focus on the bottoms of the feet and how it feels to walk.
Safety & Comfort
Touch can be soothing – rubbing your hands on top of your thighs, or simply holding one or both knee joints in your hands, and noticing what happens next. You can also lightly hold the bones in one wrist or elbow, or squeeze the muscles in the arms or legs to get a sense of power.
Circular Breathing
Sit in a chair and notice your body. See if one side feels a little better than the other. Try breathing up through the ground, into the leg of the better side, then swirl the breath into the solar plexus. As you exhale, gently breathe out through the other leg back into the ground.
Healthy Breathing Avoid deep breathing – instead, count 4 seconds breathing in, hold for 2-3 seconds, then 6 seconds out (through nostrils or purse lips to control flow). Try holding the breath after exhaling until you feel the instinctual urge to breathe once or twice.
“Voo” Breathing
Take a breath into your abdomen, then exhale and make a vibrating “voo” sound that resonates in your gut and chest. Take a breath when done to notice any changes, and repeat 2 more times, once or twice a day.