Hello,
Everyone.
My name is Dr.
Yonite Arthur,
And thank you for joining me today for our somatic tracking for dizziness exercise.
Before we get started,
I'd like you to pick one of the physical sensations that you'd like to focus on today.
So that may be something related to dizziness,
But it may be any other sensation or feeling in your body that you would like to change your brain's relationship to.
So this could be symptoms that you relate to anxiety or pain or anything else that you'd like to work on.
And now,
Also before we get started,
I'd like you to get into a comfortable position.
So classically,
People like to lie down or be in a recliner.
But if that's uncomfortable for you or it makes the sensations too intense,
You can stand,
You can sit in a chair,
You can even walk.
Now if you're stationary,
I'd like you to close your eyes or just look down with a soft gaze.
And if you're moving,
Just see if you can soften your eyes a little bit.
Wherever you are,
Let's slow your breathing down.
Just breathe in a couple times.
Get yourself centered.
See if you can focus on breathing into your back,
Belly,
And sides.
Breathing 360 degrees all around.
And remind yourself that slowing your breath and focusing on it like you are right now is a good way to ground and remind your brain to release chemicals that relax your body.
Let's take one more breath together,
Slowly releasing your breath.
And now I'd like you to see if you can bring your attention to the dominant physical sensation in your body or the one that you picked at the beginning of this exercise.
See if you can draw your attention toward that sensation.
See if you can locate it.
Focus wherever you feel it the most and let your attention settle on it.
And it's okay if you're feeling that sensation in more than one place.
Just pick the one that's strongest.
Now sometimes when we experience a physical sensation like dizziness that we don't like,
We try to shut it down or distract ourselves from it.
But for right now,
I'd like you to slow down and see if you can really focus on that physical sensation itself.
Do the opposite of what you might normally do.
Bring your attention to the sensation.
Really notice it right now and see if you can do that with a little bit of a light touch,
A little breath,
A little softness,
Wherever that sensation is,
Whatever it feels like.
Just see if you can give it a little bit of air.
See if you can soften toward it just a little bit.
You're just looking at that physical sensation,
Just watching it.
You're not really trying to do anything to it.
You're not trying to react to it.
You're not trying to get rid of it.
You're not trying to stop it or change it.
You're just familiarizing yourself with it,
Allowing yourself to get to know it,
To even feel a little curious toward it as you breathe and you pay attention to the sensation.
It doesn't matter if the sensation is pleasant or unpleasant.
You're just gathering information about it.
So in this space,
Pleasant or unpleasant doesn't matter.
One isn't better than the other.
You're just noticing it.
Now you can think of yourself as the audience member at a play or a movie theater goer or a hiker looking out over the horizon at the mountains.
You're just watching the sensation,
Curiously,
Just observing it,
Not judging it,
Watching it with interest.
It's just a sensation.
That's all it is.
It's not dangerous.
It's safe.
What you're feeling right now is safe.
You're not trying to get rid of it or change it.
You're just watching it and getting to know it.
And as you sit here noticing it like the theater goer or hiker or however you picture yourself,
See if you can notice what the sensation feels like.
Does it feel tingly or rocky,
Heavy,
Light,
Tight or loose?
Does it have movement associated with it?
Is it warm or cool?
Maybe it has a color associated with it.
You can think of other words to use to describe the sensation without judging it.
Just as before,
You're just gathering information,
Just noticing,
Paying attention in a different way.
You're gathering information and just noticing what's going on.
See if you can be even a little more curious as you pay attention to the symptom without trying to change it.
See if you can notice it from top to bottom or beginning to end.
And as you pay attention to this sensation,
Just see if you can notice what happens to your body,
To your mind when you hear that whatever happens is okay.
The sensation just is.
And as you're noticing this,
Just note.
Does the sensation get stronger?
Does it fade?
Does it move around?
Does it change in how it feels?
Or does it stay exactly the same?
No one outcome here is better than any other.
You're just noticing what's happening in this moment.
You're continuing to gather information and observations and know that as you pay attention to the sensation in this way,
You're actually communicating to your brain that the sensation is safe,
That it's okay to have this sensation,
And that you're just getting to know it.
As you do this,
At this very moment,
You're developing new neural pathways,
New connections in your brain.
These patterns that you're working on right now are teaching your brain a new way of relating to this sensation,
A new way without fear,
Without judgment,
Without goals.
You're just watching.
You're just noticing.
You're just taking it all in as it comes.
Now see if you can peek your curiosity and breathe into this sensation and notice what happens when you do that.
Just follow it.
Just ride it.
If it gets stronger or fades or changes in any way,
All of those outcomes are perfectly fine,
Perfectly okay.
You're just getting to know it,
Just noticing what happens to it as you breathe into it.
As you do this,
You're just strengthening those brain connections you're learning.
You're paying attention and it doesn't matter what the sensation does.
The only thing that matters right now is that you're staying with it.
You're watching it.
You're noticing it.
Like watching clouds pass by in the sky or leaves float down a stream.
Watching the ripples of water that leaves make.
You're just watching,
Looking,
Feeling it out.
And know that by doing this,
You are communicating a very powerful message to your body and your brain that these sensations are safe.
This powerful message is changing the pathways in your brain so your brain knows how to respond differently to these sensations.
Let's take another three breaths,
Breathing into the sensations,
Following it wherever it goes.
If it goes or changes or moves,
Just lean into it.
Keep following it.
In a moment,
I'm going to have you open your eyes,
But before you do,
Just take another breath to ground yourself and slow exhale,
Feeling the physical sensations of the breath.
And when you're ready,
You can start to wiggle your toes and your fingers,
Open your eyes if they've been closed,
And stop the exercise for now.
