The Playful Body
Online Somatic Movement Workshop
August 28, 2022 10am-2pm MT
Harvest the delights of summer - discover a sense of ease, play, and freedom in your body
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Transition into autumn with ease - connect to your internal resources and composure
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Create the conditions for your whole organism to thrive and evolve - by learning to listen to your needs in an embodied way
The Playful Body: Key Details
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The Playful Body is a somatic movement immersion designed to help you reconnect to playful movement and rewire your stress response.
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Sunday, August 28th from 10:00am-2:00pm MT, with breaks throughout.
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The workshop will take place online over Zoom. You'll need a quiet space to lie down on the floor and explore novel movement sequences.
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We will explore at least three distinct somatic movement lessons with time for breaks and dialogue in between. You are encouraged to stay present for the entire workshop, but a recording will be available if life happens.
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$80 investment for the workshop and recording to keep. A sliding scale is available for those lacking funds - contact Sara for more information.
This workshop is for you if:
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You feel like summer passed you by and you want to experience a sense of freedom and playfulness in your body and mind.
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You overdid it this summer and need some support in slowing down and unwinding tension.
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You are dreading how your life is going to change this autumn and want to cultivate internal resources to meet the challenges that lie ahead.
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After summer ends, you often slip into habits of overworking, over-committing, and not making time to care for your body.
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You already feel burned out and weighed down by your daily responsibilities, and want to feel deeply rested and rejuvenated going into the fall season.
Why is playful movement a solution to stress and burnout?
The society we live in has conditioned us to achieve results through discipline and effort. Unfortunately, this productivity-oriented mindset has a corresponding shape in our bodies that leaves us feeling tense, constricted, and constantly under pressure. When our body is in a state of self-protection, we often feel too stressed out to relax and play.
When we are chronically stressed, our brain might even begin to associate movement or social connection with pain, so we live our lives fearing the consequences and protecting ourselves from further pain.
Play is all about exploring new possibilities. When we feel anxious or are in pain, we can’t access curiosity or experimentation which leads to new discoveries.
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If you are feeling stuck in a self-protected state, often the best thing you can give your nervous system is a sense of competence, novelty, and play.
In exploring developmental movement patterns, you will have the opportunity to reconnect to your inner child and the primal movements that are your birthright as a human being.
When you are no longer bound by your body’s patterns of self-protection, a sense of curiosity and receptivity to the world around you emerges. Just like a child who is alert, curious, and ready to play!
What impact will a somatic movement immersion have?
Physically, you will learn to:
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Improve communication between your hands and feet - our two primary sense organs
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Improve the mobility of your toes, ankles, and hip joints
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Soften the tension held in your spine, chest, and shoulders
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Connect to a sense of internal support, suppleness, and wholeness
Emotionally, you will learn to:
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Create a sense of safety within your body so that you can learn and explore with curiosity and ease
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Cultivate a sense of inner composure, lightness, freedom, and joy
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Create a sense of biological calmness and receptivity to the world around you
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Receive playful connection with fellow human beings in a safe environment
*You will discover that your physical and emotional experience are intrinsically connected. That’s why changing your movement changes how you feel emotionally.
Stay connected to the sense of play and levity that summer offers, while creating a strong foundation of presence, awareness, and internal support as you transition into your autumn schedule.
Cultivate the best of both worlds for yourself - ease and flow, strength and focus - so that you can meet the challenges and opportunities life is presenting you without falling into old habits that create pain and burnout.
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Discover the capacity to meet the uncertainty of a changing world and bounce back from life’s challenges with ease.
About Your Guide
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I created The Playful Body through my own lived experience of burnout, chronic pain, and inner knowing that play and pleasure is the best medicine.
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I'm a Feldenkrais practitioner, somatic movement educator, and student of life. You can read more about my journey here.
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One thing I know is that physical and emotional patterns become more fixed over time. Pain patterns persist unless a better alternative (i.e. movement pattern, neural pathway) is discovered.
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In The Playful Body, we will teach your brain and nervous system that easy and pleasurable movement is available in every moment. All it takes is a little awareness and curiosity.
Finding more ease and play in your movement will have a ripple effect on all aspects of your life.
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I hope you will join me on the last Sunday in August to discover your own playful body and capacity to thrive throughout your life transitions!