“Who knew that was in there?”
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of witnessing a beautiful transformative Focusing session, and I’d like to share it with you today because it’s such a perfect example of what Focusing can do.
My student (we’ll call her Doris) started by naming her topic. “I want to focus today on the subject of my…70th birthday.” Anyone listening could tell by the heavy, discouraged tone in her voice that there was no expectation of anything but challenge and heaviness being associated with this landmark occasion.
You would have thought the words “my 70th birthday” referred to a person who had hurt her and would not be forgiven! That was the way the Focusing session started.
“Solidity…strength…wisdom…and flow…”
Doris closed her eyes and started her Focusing session. Rather than staying in her usual thoughts about her situation, she dropped down into body awareness and allowed a fresh whole body sense to come of “my 70th birthday.”
When we do this, we are always open to the possibility that our body will surprise us – that the truth is not the same as what we had been thinking. But I’ve rarely seen a more striking example of this surprise!
Within less than a minute, Doris’ voice got calmer and lighter as she described what she was feeling. “In my body I have a sense of solidity…it’s feeling very solid in there…in a good way.”
She checked if the word “solidity” was a good fit to what she was feeling. “Yes, and now I am also finding a lovely sense of strength…”
Doris paused to enjoy the solidity and strength, but soon was aware of more. “Now I’m feeling something…the word that is coming is ‘wisdom.’ It’s a sense of wisdom. Yes, that’s right.”
But that wasn’t all…Next Doris sensed further and said, “I am feeling a sense of flow in my body now. Flow!” Invited by her Focusing partner, Doris took time to receive and savor these enjoyable feelings, and ended the session with her head shaking in amazement. “Who knew that was there?”
A few minutes ago I called Doris to ask about her 70th birthday – what had actually happened. “It was fabulous!” she told me. Everything her body said it would be.
Click here to find out how to have a Focusing session with Ann on a topic of your choice
