Most of us weren’t taught to healthily navigate strong emotions, and they still frighten us today. We begin to feel them well up inside our bodies, and automatically revert to any number of tactics we learned when we were small –  keep them “under control,” reasonable, appropriate. Anything to stay safe and loved.

And as long as we have them “under control,” we’re fine. But sometimes, it feels like we’re trying to hold back an ocean of grief, struggling hard to quell a storm of rage, or squeezing every part of ourselves tightly so as not to get sucked under, into the wild, dangerous unknown.

And we’re left exhausted, disconnected, and unsure. Needing time to regain our sense of Self.

Emotions are meant to be like water – everchanging, flowing, rippling, bursting, bubbling, storming, drenching, quenching, nourishing, calming, reflecting, connecting. 

They hold power, and this power often frightens us. So rather than let it course through us, and guide us, we invest our efforts to control, minimize, and deny what we feel. Muscularly, mentally, emotionally, and behaviorally.

In this process of denial, we also deny parts of ourselves. Parts that long to be free – to flow, be felt, be seen, and move naturally in the world. Parts that hold deep empathy, tenderness and compassion.

Your body holds the capacity to feel deeply and allow pure emotional sensation to course through it, while staying deeply connected to yourself.

Whether the flow is from a long-held-back emotion or a response to what touched you today, the more you relax into your experience and allow what you feel to freely flow, the more you’ll resonate with life. You’ll more naturally:

• Look into the eyes of others and see their pain without shrinking.
• Feel life’s endings fully, so you can move on to what’s next.
• Agree to the immensity of life’s unknowns, with strength and presence.
• Embody empathy and compassion with simplicity.
• Find laughter in the rawness of our collective humanity.

And you’ll re-discover joy, as an unimaginable by-product of it all.

Each time we step into the vast, fluid experience of emotions, beyond the limitations of an old story, we’re developing emotional courage. The brave choice to feel fully, be moved by the world and let sensations flow through us, with clarity, potency, and strength.

Your body’s depth of emotional experience is still largely unexplored, and there’s a richness to be found there. Emotional courage opens us all up to being wildly and unpredictably human.

The learning and structure:
This workshop is taught through the body using embodiment practices, movement, writing, and breathing exercises. You’ll develop a stronger relationship with yourself, as you courageously dive into your emotional energy, learning to listen to it, feel it, and let it move you. You’ll:

• Sensitize your belly to generate energy and open a source of flow
• Get to know the different parts of yourself that turn on and off when your emotions feel like they’re too much
• Let go deeply and unravel the effort of trying to control what you feel, based on an old story
• Recognize the moment of choice to expand your emotional capacity
• Move beyond your emotional edges with integrity
• Feel the richness of pure body sensation
• Deepen your ability to hold your experience
• Let emotional flow inspire your movements, interactions, and heart

What’s included:

• 2 x 3.5 hour sessions of embodiment, movement, reflection, and discussion
• 1 x 75-minute movement class to learn the movement options and get you into your bodies
• Post-workshop training

NOTE:  I decided to offer a pure movement class the day before the longer sessions for a few reasons: 1. to not take time away from the workshop subject as you learn the movement approach, and 2. to get you primed and ready in your body for the following days.

Upon Registration: You’ll immediately receive an email confirming your order. Within the following 12 hours, you’ll receive the Zoom link and further preparatory information. This workshop will be recorded.