FINDING ALIVENESS + PEACE NOW

FINDING ALIVENESS + PEACE NOW

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FINDING ALIVENESS + PEACE NOW

“Everything that I am stating is obvious. What is the obvious? That you are alive. This is obvious. That peace that you look for is inside of you. That is obvious. Everything else, in a moment’s notice, can change. The only thing that doesn’t change is your strength, your beauty, your joy. You, after all, are a human being.”
~Prem Rawat 

Bringing Your Awareness from outside yourself, into your body

To live in a human body is a precious gift. Our bodies are sacred vessels of aliveness and portals for peace. They carry the potential for self-knowledge, self-healing, love, and compassion if we are open to paying attention and learning. Coming home to the body with awareness can offer a refuge amidst the uncertainties of life.

In our disembodied society, we habitually seek safety and control by looking outside ourselves, avoiding our feelings, and living in our thoughts. We resist what is, and try and figure things out, all of which takes us away from being present in our body where our joy and inner peace reside.

Purposefully paying attention in the present moment, without judgment is the cornerstone of mindfulness. Nia as a mindful movement practice deepens our capacity to cope with anxiety and other difficult emotions by gently interrupting runaway thinking and feeling, and anchoring our awareness in our “Now Body”, where our deepest truths live.

BODY AWARENESS PRACTICE

Take your attention into a body part – your feet, arms, belly, heart, whatever you choose. Then hold your awareness there. Stay with it and notice what you feel, without judgment or commentary. With time  you might feel like there’s a space within this body part, or some warmth, tingling, or aliveness around it.

Keep your attention there and if you become distracted by thought, that’s ok. Just keep breathing and returning to body awareness. As you practise you might begin to feel a larger sense of spaciousness throughout your whole body. Be with the felt sense of your aliveness and peace now.

PUTTING MINDFULNESS IN MOTION

When practised with self-compassion and radical acceptance, mindfulness unites the body, mind and heart in remarkable ways. It creates a sense of spacious stillness that helps us feel more at choice than reactive in the moment. In Nia we practise choosing Joy in the face of fear (or any emotion). We invite possibilities alongside hopelessness. We seek connection instead of separating ourselves. We perceive more pleasure and peace, even when there’s pain. We cultivate calm in the chaos.

Mindfulness doesn’t mean sitting still. When we bring awareness to our body in motion, we can experience whatever we are currently doing as something we have never done before. The most ordinary activity – washing a cup, brushing our teeth, preparing a meal – can take on a magical, one-of-a-kind, never-to-be-repeated quality, that Nia calls Dancing Through Life.

By reawakening the skills of feeling, sensing, and intuiting, we can allow the wisdom of the body to emerge, to guide and inform us. Living through sensation we tap into our primal intelligence and access more physical vitality, heart tenderness, sensual power, mental wellness and spiritual presence.

WELCOMING 2022

As we find ourselves in another incredibly challenging time thanks to Omicron, many of us may be feeling pulled into a heady tailspin of anxiety, frustration, and resistance. We’ve certainly been thrown out of the nest! And I’m deeply grateful for the 4 pillars of Nia – Mindfulness, Movement, Connection, Joy – that support us returning to our body in the here and now, to find peace and freedom in the midst of this mess.

At a time when there is a plethora of changing and conflicting information, the ability to tune into our body and trust what we sense helps us take our power back, choose how we want to feel, and take our next steps. Here’s to being lifted by love and joy, and feeling alive with hope and lots of dancing in 2022.

“Peace is this moment without thinking
that it should be some other way,
that you should feel some other thing,
that your life should unfold according to your plans.

Peace is this moment without judgment,
this moment in the Heart-space where
everything that is is welcome.”
~ Dorothy Hunt

Sophie Marsh © 2022 • Web Design Seedhead

HOW RECLAIMING YOUR PLEASURE CAN HELP YOU REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE

HOW RECLAIMING YOUR PLEASURE CAN HELP YOU REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE

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HOW RECLAIMING YOUR PLEASURE CAN HELP YOU REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE

“When barriers are put in front of you, it’s God or the Universe asking you to remember who you are, and reminding you not to let yourself be defined by things outside of you.” ~ Christine Ebersole 

The personal, professional, and communal impact this pandemic has taken on our body, mind, heart, and soul is deep and real. We are dealing with a collective loss of the world we knew, and so much more.

Beneath the pain, fear, and division, can we choose to somehow feel this loss as an opportunity to become more tender, more open, more passionately alive… to remember who we are in our true nature?

“The heart of most spiritual practices is simply this: Remember who you are. Remember what you love. Remember what is sacred. Remember what is true. Remember that you will die and that this day is a gift. Remember how you wish to live.” Wayne Muller

PLEASURE AS A PATH TO REMEMBERING

There is an enormous untapped potential for pleasure in every one of us that is yearning to be fully explored.  Pleasure is the visceral, body-felt experience of wellbeing. While it’s often associated with sexuality or instant gratification, intrinsic pleasure is way more than that.

Pleasure is the embodiment of satisfaction and fulfilment – a deep delight with life – and research shows that this feeling is essential for healing and thriving in body, mind, emotions and spirit wellness.  

Having a pleasure practice (or many!) opens us to more meaningful connections, creative expression, and everyday Joy. It also helps us be more resilient during stressful times and strengthens our capacity to make good things happen. Who doesn’t need that?!

YOUR BODY REMEMBERS
Lie or sit comfortably. Take a moment to connect within, feeling your breath, feeling your body. When you feel present in yourself, bring into your awareness a place or time when you felt exquisitely energised and deeply fulfilled.  Stay with that memory and breath it in, letting the feeling wash through your whole body. If that feeling was a 9 or 10 out of 10, what number are you now in your daily experience of pleasure and inner contentment?

IT’S OK IF YOU FORGOT
Collectively, we’ve been under additional stress for a long time now, as well as having our own personal challenges. If you’ve unplugged from pleasure or feel disconnected from your heart’s desires, you’re not alone!  Many of us are still in survival mode, doing our best to adapt to this new world. If you’ve lost that lovin’ feeling, be gentle on yourself.

“When we come close to those things that break us down, we touch those things that also break us open. And in that breaking open, we uncover our true nature.” Wayne Muller

Reflecting with compassion and kindness can empower you to accept, process and communicate whatever you are feeling.  Remember that the magnificence we are in our essence is big enough to validate and hold all feelings. Remember our birthright is physical vitality, emotional vibrancy, and spiritual peace.

EMBODYING EVERYTHING THAT IS YOUR JOY
Conscious action creates embodiment. Research suggests that practising little and often is the most helpful at effecting change. Every time you do something different, you are laying down neural pathways in the brain – so the more you do it, the quicker this will happen.

Bear in mind, ‘remembering’ is not about self-improvement or looking outside of yourself for happiness. It’s prioritising practices (like breathwork, mindfulness, or Nia) that ground you in the miracle of the present moment, free you up to be yourself, and turn you on to inhabiting your body as love.

“Through pleasure, we can reconnect with our most authentic joys, and the more we do, the more deeply and unequivocally we can contact our truest self and the truest selves of the people we love.”
~ Stella Resnick, The Pleasure Zone

Let’s remember we are all divine beings expressing through a very human experience. We are still in this together. We are here to heal, live purposeful lives, and embody everything that is our Joy. Prioritise your pleasure daily and you’ll soon feel deeper satisfaction as you dance through life.

Sophie Marsh © 2022 • Web Design Seedhead

WHAT IS BODY NEUTRALITY + 5 WAYS TO PRACTISE IT

WHAT IS BODY NEUTRALITY + 5 WAYS TO PRACTISE IT

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WHAT IS BODY NEUTRALITY + 5 WAYS TO PRACTISE IT

“My body is not yours to critique and discuss. My body is not yours for consumption. My body is my vessel. An archive of experiences. A weapon that has fought battles only I understand. A library of love, pain, struggle, victory, and mystery. Your eyes cannot define all it has endured. Do not place value upon my body, place it upon my being.” ~ Sophie Lewis 

“Body Neutrality” is a mindful practice of self-acceptance, where you focus on what your body can do, rather than what it looks like, separating self-worth from body image. Rather than being “body positive” it invites you to make peace with your body and respect the whole person that you are, just as you are.

We’ve probably all looked in the mirror at some point in our lives and judged a specific area of our body as not looking the way we’d like it to. While that may seem harmless enough, ruminating over our appearance or body shape adversely affects our mental health and overall sense of wellbeing.

A few weeks ago I was visiting my dad, who at 78 prides himself on his “fit, trim frame.” As I was leaving, his partner commented on how “scrawny” I looked.  “No, she’s not,” my dad defended. “Look how big her thighs are!”

I’m grateful to now be in a place to not let these kinds of comments land, as they did for the first half of my life.  But it prompted me to reflect that if I won’t allow others to speak this way about my body, why would I do it to myself?

The answer lies in mainstream politics, popular culture, and traditional and social media, which by-and-large still perpetuates an unattainable, objectifying view of women’s bodies (even more so in the ‘fitness industry’), and excludes people of colour, trans people, and people who are older or in larger bodies or living with a disability. While shift is happening, we’ve got a long way to go…

Until age 30 when I stepped into Nia, I didn’t even realise that my low self-worth and disrespect for my body came from systemic and family conditioning. The idea of loving my body when it was so far from what I perceived as ideal seemed impossible, just something else I was failing at.

No surprise, I instantly resonated with Nia’s feel good to look good, beauty from the inside out philosophy.  Through Nia’s body-centred education, the more I learned about the miraculous workings of the body, the more I let go of worrying about appearances and began to appreciate and be in awe of my own body. This is also the philosophy and psychology of body neutrality, a term that was coined in 2010. Nia began in 1983.

With mindful practices of body awareness and body gratitude, Nia teaches us to ask, “What is my body telling me right now?” Maybe it needs a glass of water, a shift in posture, some deep breaths, a hug, or a dance break. Learning to communicate neutrally with your body can make a big difference to your physical and mental health. Over time your body-mind will feel more at peace because you’re listening, responding to its messages, and saying thank you for what feels better.

Rather than giving energy to how our body looks, in Nia we tune in and choose to do what makes our body feel alive, a sensation and vibration that promotes health in every cell, organ and body system. Joy is not always being smiley, upbeat and positive. It’s about being real – acknowledging the often-heartbreaking truth of our human experience AND sensing the boundlessness of our spirit.

Through Nia I’ve learned a body neutrality mindset – to cherish and care for my body as a sacred temple of self-healing; as a vessel that has carried and birthed 3 children; as a life partner that keeps my heart pumping and my breath flowing, even with pain, illness or exhaustion; as a wise guide that only speaks truth about what I am thinking and feeling; as my soul’s home in this one precious life.

As I move through menopause, Nia’s body neutral approach is helping me embrace “The Change” even if I don’t always love it. Listening to my intuitive body, I’m tweaking my diet/nutrition, sleep, movement, play, and pleasure. Most of the time I feel fantastic! When I don’t, brain fog, bloating, restlessness, and moodiness lets me know I need to tweak again. Thank you, body.

It’s ok not to feel body positive all the time – we are all made of strength and struggle. Everybody is worthy of love, even in the moments when we do not love ourselves. Peace comes when we practise self-acceptance, authenticity and body gratitude. In Nia, you belong, just as you are.

5 WAYS TO PRACTISE BODY NEUTRALITY

  1. Prioritize and celebrate health, not weight loss/gain.
  2. Nurture and nourish your body – physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Practice intuitive eating.
  3. Find a movement practice (like Nia!) that is adaptable, intuitive and forgiving, rather than a “one size fits all” approach. When you feel low on energy, don’t give yourself a hard time for taking it easy.
  4. Do not comment on another’s body size, even if it’s meant as a compliment.
  5. When you notice yourself criticising your body, consider instead what it’s doing for you in the moment. Focus on its strength and ability to heal, to move, to adapt.

Sophie Marsh © 2022 • Web Design Seedhead

FROM ANXIETY TO AUTHENTICITY + A LITTLE BIT OF ANNIE’S STORY

FROM ANXIETY TO AUTHENTICITY + A LITTLE BIT OF ANNIE’S STORY

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FROM ANXIETY TO AUTHENTICITY + A LITTLE BIT OF ANNIE’S STORY

“We are all born with a story, It is our choice whether we want to live the story we were born with or create one that nourishes all we want to be.” ~ Amy Sophia Marashinsky 

Authenticity is a daily practice, a practice that begins by dropping out of your head and into your body, into your heart. Your body is home for your spirit. It feels expansive when you are using your energy in the direction of truth and love for yourself.

Many of us learned from a very young age to morph into what was expected of us by our culture and our caregivers. We had good reasons to adapt – to feel safe or get the love, time, or attention that we needed and deserved. For many, those “good reasons” eventually developed into false beliefs that we are not enough, just as we are.

Survival instincts and brain wiring can keep us stuck in old patterns of wounding. It also stops us from knowing and being the fullest expression of our unique magnificence. As adults, we can consciously notice when we are disconnected from our authenticity and make another choice. This is where the practise comes in!

Nia’s body-centred awareness helps you recognise tightness or restrictions that often shows up when you are feeling anxiety, fear or unworthiness, or engaging in judgment, people pleasing, or perfectionism.

When you feel the body contracting, invite in kindness, compassion and curiosity, without judging what you are feeling. You’re just doing what you learned to do to stay safe. Chances are, you are safe now, but you’re stuck in this learned behaviour of worrying about what other people think of you or replaying negative messages.

Make some time to sit with yourself and enquire, “What beliefs about myself do I need to let go of so I can nurture and embrace who I am?”  “What new belief will serve my highest good?”  Notice what beliefs bring the most joy or energy in your body? Repeat those!

Your body is wired for self-healing, unwinding trauma, releasing thought patterns, accessing ecstatic states, expressing creativity and being in deep communion with the divine.

If you are struggling, it’s so important to reach out for help. There’s no shame in asking for support, making mistakes, falling down, or failing. We’re not meant to do it alone. In fact, failure means you are open to living life, taking risks, and is essential in developing compassion, humility, resilience and connection.

Nia’s somatic education teaches you how to shift your attention and intention,to tune into your body, quieten the mind chatter, connect with spirit and make choices from love. You learn to sense authenticity as inner peace and joyful aliveness, and to recognise when you’ve lost that connection.

The brain’s bias means we’re much more likely to remember and believe the bad stuff, which is why it takes daily practise to get out of the lower left brain of survival and access the right brain where we can connect with our highest guidance. Years of therapy, study, training and life experience have been powerful teachers for me on this path.  

a little bit of Annie’s Story

One of my greatest teachers has been my 19 year old daughter Annie who last week surprised me (and my students) by popping into the Bali Hut as a “back up dancer” for our online Nia class.

Annie has struggled for many years with complicated mental health issues including anxiety and addiction. It’s been a heartbreaking and challenging time for us, and I’m proud of her willingness to learn and heal (and how this has helped me learn and heal too.)

When she said yes to dancing alongside me, it felt deeply meaningful. Having taken maybe a handful of classes ever, and with no preparation, Annie agreed to step in and be on camera for the “live class” and replay. I was so excited (and a little nervous!) Thankfully, in Nia we have a mindful practise for leaving distractions behind!

Afterwards, she shared how much she enjoyed it and how good she felt. Without feeling like she needed to perform, she wore her “concentration face” for most of the class. My mumma heart is bursting with love for her courage to show up, have a go, and be seen in her authentic power.

Of course I let her know she’s welcome to dance beside me anytime and also that I had no expectations around that.  Her face lit up… “oh mum… I’m excited to do it again!”

Take a 5 minute dance break with me to the song “If I Were Brave” and feel into the lyrics, “What would I do if I knew I could not fail? Never lose faith even when losing my way… What step will I take, today? I am brave!”

Sophie Marsh © 2022 • Web Design Seedhead

5 SCIENCE-BACKED SELF-CARE STRATEGIES TO GIVE YOUR BODY, BRAIN + MOOD A BOOST

5 SCIENCE-BACKED SELF-CARE STRATEGIES TO GIVE YOUR BODY, BRAIN + MOOD A BOOST

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5 SCIENCE-BACKED SELF-CARE STRATEGIES TO GIVE YOUR BODY, BRAIN + MOOD A BOOST

“Nourishing yourself in a way that helps you blossom in the direction you want to go is attainable, and you are worth the effort.” ~ Deborah Day 

Simple things can have profound effects on your physical health and mental wellness.

Have you ever felt out of sorts only to realise, you’ve been so focussed on caring for others, you’ve forgotten to tune in and ask yourself, “What do I need?”

Healing is not about being perfect. It’s being willing to take responsibility for all your feelings, staying curious and compassionate about how your thoughts and behaviour are affecting your health, and taking loving action to feel better.

Go gently on yourself… remember you’re doing the best you can!

5 SCIENCE-BACKED SELF-CARE STRATEGIES TO GIVE YOUR BODY, BRAIN + MOOD A BOOST! 

1. Dance for health

Exercise improves memory, learning and concentration. Moderate intensity movement, sustained over time, promotes the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, which causes nerve cells to grow and make new connections. It also helps improve your mood, boost your energy, and reduce stress in your body and mind.Recent studies say that dance arts like Nia have physical and cognitive benefits that may exceed those of other forms of exercise (We could have told them that!!)
Get started: take a 6 minute dance break with me on YouTube U R The Answer

2. Actively relax

With 95% of all illness caused or worsened by stress, we need to give our mind something to do, that leads to a feeling of deep inner calm. Active relaxation is a choice and a practice that leads to stress relief in a way that lounging in front of the television can never do.Not so long ago, we sat around the dinner table or village square and chatted… or we played a board game… or listened to stories. Today we’re bombarded with constant stimuli that the brain has not evolved to handle.The brain craves novelty, and nowadays that means consciously engaging in slower, concentrated activities. Make time everyday to turn off your devices and give your whole attention to something that makes you feel centred and uplifted.
Get started: Play any song and devote 5 minutes to Nia’s mindful practice of RAW listening – Relaxed Body, Alert Mind and Waiting Spirit. Song for Olabi by Bliss is a favourite go-to.

3. Make social connections

Perhaps the most powerful thing you can do to keep your body-brain chemistry happier and healthier is to make time for meaningful connections and relationships. Belonging to a group reduces risk of death from all causes and increases longevity, despite health habits.This is another benefit of dancing Nia in community.Research shows that moving and grooving in rhythm with others lights up brain pathways that blur the barriers your mind may otherwise erect between yourself and another, and helps you feel a sense of connection and unity. Nia is a great way to make new friends!
Get started: commit to coming to a weekly Nia class, and if it works for you, join us for a coffee afterwards.

4. See the light

UVB radiation from the sun is the best source of Vitamin D which allows us to more effectively use calcium, improve our immune system, help prevent cancer, reduce depressive symptoms, and support brain function. Sunlight stimulates photosensitive cells in the retina of our eyes to play a vital role in our body brain health. These cells directly affect the brain’s hypothalamus region, which responds to stress and controls our daily bodily rhythms such as the night-time secretion of melatonin from the pineal gland and the changes in cortisol (the stress hormone) and body temperature over a 24-hour period.
Get started: Create a ritual for yourself to get outside in the sun for at least 10 minutes every day. Maybe a mindful walk around the block, or a barefoot boogie on the grass. Physical exercise also boosts Vitamin D (We recommend Vitamin D.ance!)

5. Take in the good

Often when we get busy or feel depressed, anxious or overwhelmed, we can get stuck in a rut of negative thinking, instead of noticing and opening to things that bring us pleasure. In Nia, our lifestyle awareness practice of “Life As Art” helps retrain our focus by reminding us to put our attention on what feels pleasing and inspirational. Using your mind in this way will change your body-brain over time.
Get started: Notice something around you now that brings an inner smile… maybe a flower, a cloud, an object of beauty, the moon, an animal, a child. Give it your full attention and savour this positive experience by feeling it in your body, making that feeling as intense as possible. Stay with it, and as you sink deeper into the sensation, add a visualisation, like perceiving every cell bathed in golden light or imagining a soothing balm circulating inside yourself. Breathe it in and say ‘thank you’ for the aliveness and pleasure you feel.

If you are struggling in any way… please remember our wounds are not meant to be tended alone, but in a relationship, in a community… As Ram Dass says, “we’re all just walking each other home.”

Every day I support loved ones facing depression, anxiety, addiction, and sensory processing difficulties. I am here for you too, without judgment. Through movement, mindfulness, courage, and connection we find health.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:  Joy as a Healing Energy

Sophie Marsh © 2022 • Web Design Seedhead

JOY AS A HEALING ENERGY + A MEDITATION

JOY AS A HEALING ENERGY + A MEDITATION

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JOY AS A HEALING ENERGY + A MEDITATION

“Biology isn’t just genes playing out some unalterable script. It is sensitive to the world around it.”
~ Dr Bruce Perry, Child Psychiatrist

Environment dictates how your cells perform. If your body moves in an environment of pleasure and comfort, your cells vibrate at a higher frequency. If the environment is one of tension, fear, anxiety, every system in your body vibrates with this energy.

Practising Nia and 5Stages brings you to a place of sensitivity that enables you to observe and release stress and embrace the sensations of “dynamic ease”, pleasure, and comfort. Every time you vibrate higher, a part of you heals.

Prolonged pain, loss, and stress in the world around you, and in your own life can lead to persisitent inflammation in the body and can adversely affect brain systems linked to motivation and mental agility. Article: chronic stress and the brain

Often, we can’t control our external circumstances, but we can change our cellular environment by choosing how we move through life’s experiences, what meaning we give them, and how we direct our energy and attention.

Living with self-awareness and intention takes courage and commitment. It’s being willing to start where you are, and begin again, and again.  It’s staying open to learning, letting go of expectations, and allowing the aliveness of every moment to inspire you. It’s paying attention to subtle feelings and trusting what you sense, making choices that are in vibrational alignment with your highest – body, mind and spirit. It’s finding your soul’s medicine.

A JOY MEDITATION

Take a moment to settle into your self, noticing the feeling of the earth or chair supporting you, maybe lowering your gaze, and letting yourself soften a little more as you exhale. Now think about a time and place in you life where you felt yourself bursting with Joy. Keep replaying it in your mind’s eye.

As you bathe in the memory with all your senses… the sounds, colours, smells… begin to notice what’s happening in your body now. Keep your focus on sensing into it. Maybe there’s a deeper breath, or your face moves into a smile, or your heart lifts or you feel a wave of warmth or a peaceful pulse or a tingling buzz?

Stay with this feeling and allow it to permeate through every part of you. Imagine your cells are swimming in light. Gently sway your spine and visualise loving energy flowing through every part of your body, and oozing out of your joints. This feeling is what in Nia we call the “Big J Joy.”

Big J Joy is a sensation of aliveness and wellbeing that permeates the Universe and every healthy cell in your body. It’s available 24/7, waiting for you to open to it. It’s not about putting a positive spin on things, or or even feeling happy. Often it’s when we are in our darkest moments that Joy does its greatest magic.  Sit with the sadness, pain, discomfort, fear. Acknowledge it, feel it and flood your cells with Joy.

Choosing to connect to this high vibration creates powerful changes to your biochemistry, thought patterns and energy. It creates a feeling of being at home in yourself, and connected to all. It helps you take your power back and self-heal.

“Each time an inner conflict is resolved, a person’s energy level increases.” ~ Alexander Lowen MD, Bioenergetics

Join me for a 3.5 minute Nia dance break to the song “Call Me Out Tiger” to practise choosing and oozing Joy, with the intention to self-heal.  Notice your energy before you move (give it a number out of 10) and then compare it again afterwards. Do you feel better?  More energised? Thank you body!

Sophie Marsh © 2022 • Web Design Seedhead