An old emotion rippled over me yesterday.
Here’s how it went – I was thinking about how to solve a current problem and that thinking took me to a memory from graduate school, and that…took me to an old emotion associated with a past relationship…ugh!
In a split second, I felt the ripple in my entire body! You know what I’m talking about – that cold chill with the shoulder hunch, clinched face, squintey mouth – almost like you’ve eaten rotten food, kind of feeling. I shook it off – quickly. Anyway, it was a clear everyday example of how our body remembers its experiences.
Psychological and physiological research tell us that our cells have memory. Our body remembers matches of what we think and know with what we feel, sense, smell hear, see, taste and touch.
Here’s an example in basic communication: the person says yes, but their arms are closed, they are looking away, are unusually fidgety, their voice has a odd pitch, and so you sense something is not right, then your heart begins to race.
Your brain is looking for a match of information. It’s confusing, so you ask for confirmation, again they say yes, so you go with it…then they respond with anger. You are surprized. Crazy isn’t it!
So what do you do?
Remind yourself to be aware of the match of words, emotions and senses. Also ask for confirmation.
Like this: Hey, I heard you say yes, but your body seems to be saying no – help me out…which one is it?
And, start small!
This is a picture of Ginny, my God child, when she was little.
It’s such a pure example of starting small. I feel such love for her when I look at this picture, seeing her studying, touching, smelling and sensing that daisy.
No doubt, she asked a question or two about what she was experiencing.
I wonder what she was thinking.