What is Embodiment?

There’s a lot of talk in body acceptance circles about “embodiment.” However, it strikes me that not enough is said about what this means and how to do it. And yet, I find it’s a missing piece (and one of the most important factors) in healing from body shame.

I’m all for any means of moving your body more. But embodiment is about much more than just moving your body in new ways. Embodiment is about gaining awareness and processing your life through the body. But how do you do that? This is a question that has long been on my mind, and the answer to the question has been the key to my own healing journey. 

I remember the moment I realized that I had found the missing piece. One day, I was looking in the mirror because I’d consciously stopped dieting. My body had changed. I’d gained weight. The first glance in the mirror brought up the old feelings of fear, shame, and guilt. I saw a body larger than I wanted to see. And then something happened, and it changed my life.  I saw my grandmother in the mirror. My loving, warm, open, generous, resilient, miraculous grandmother who loved me as no one else had ever loved me. I looked like HER! I suddenly recalled the voices of so many students telling me “you’re so warm, so kind!” “You’re so generous, so compassionate.” “I feel so seen and cared for in your presence…” 

I remembered how highly I held her in my esteem, how much deep value she held in my life. I realized that her strong, hearty body was part of her strength and charm, that perhaps I’d inherited both from her, sturdy legs and a warm heart. I felt, viscerally, what it might feel like to love myself, my whole self. Our lived experience, unique life story, our ancestry, and trauma are stored in our body. Healing requires us to reconnect with those things within our body. We must learn once again to listen to our bodies.

I silenced my body for decades. “Don’t say you’re hungry!” “Don’t tell me to stop!” “Don’t tell me your feelings; I have no time for them now!” Years of telling someone to shut up creates a relationship in which they stop speaking to you entirely. Cues become hidden and needs get buried. Even pleasure goes missing. 

Embodiment requires us to generously, kindly, and empathetically listen to the body. We must invite our bodies to speak. This is what I call embodied acceptance. It’s an approach that I have created after 15 years as a somatics teacher and mover, hundreds of hours of study and research, and years of navigating my own healing journey. Embodied acceptance provides your body with a safe environment, then offers gentle, easy-to-follow prompts to speak. We can’t just ask, “what do you have to say, after all these years?” We have to practice listening, and moving for pleasure and joy, not because of shame or brutality.

Visit my offerings page for information on upcoming classes.

Warmly,

Odelia