How Can We Use Focusing in Group Settings?
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Elizabeth of Ontario writes: “I would like to hear about how Focusing can be used in a group setting. How can Focusing effectively reach individuals as they interact in a therapeutic group?”
Elizabeth was one of several people who asked this interesting question. The first thing you can do to bring Focusing into groups is to guide the whole group in a Focusing “attunement” at the start of your group session. This makes a space for each person to quietly sense how he or she is feeling at this moment. It makes a transition from the active outward-oriented conversations to the inner awareness of process. And it sets a model for inner gentleness and listening.
I do this at the start of every group or workshop, and I find that people look forward to it. Perhaps we are chatting when people arrive, and then when it is time to start I say, “Let’s do some Focusing…” because they already know what that means. But to introduce this idea to a group that hadn’t done it before, I would probably say, “Right now I’d like us to spend some time in quiet inner sensing, and I’ll guide you through a process to do that.”
Then I will say something like this:
So maybe you could find your most comfortable position on your chair… and maybe let your eyes close naturally as we go along… [and I’m closing my eyes too]
And take some breaths a little deeper than usual…
And be aware of your body, your whole body on the chair…
Being aware of your arms, and hands…
Being aware of your legs and feet…
Being aware of the contact of your body on the chair…
Letting it support you, and resting into that support…
And still being aware of your whole body, letting your awareness come inward, into that middle area that includes your throat…
and your chest…
and your stomach and belly…
and take some time to just let your awareness rest gently in there…
And invite an inner sense of how you are, how you’re doing right now…
Inviting your body to give you ITS sense of how it is to be YOU in the midst of your life, right now…
Take some time to just feel that…
Acknowledging [Saying hello] to what you become aware of…
[This is the place in the attunement where I will add an invitation that is specific to the setting and the group. For example:]
And take some time to sense what you’re wanting from our group today…
Acknowledging what comes…
Taking your time with that…
And now let’s gently bring this process to completion…
And if there’s something in your that wants more time, more company, you might let it know that you’ll be back to listen more…
And see if you’d like to thank and appreciate what came…
Now begin being aware of the room around you, the sounds outside you…
And when it feels right, let your eyes come naturally open.
What Happens When a Group Focuses Together
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This “attunement” has many versions depending on the sophistication and purposes of the group. But in general I’ve found that when a group starts in this way, people are calmer, more aware of themselves, and also have more available attention to listen to each other once the exercise is over.
I will often follow an exercise like this with a “check-in,” where each person is invited to take a turn to speak. After an attunement, people generally speak in a more grounded, embodied way, and tend to listen more attentively when others speak.
Next week: more about Focusing in groups.
