#Orienting

Unresolved trauma skews our ability to orient accurately to the here and now. The body responds to this stored survival stress in one of two ways—hypervigilance (orienting in an overly defensive way, sensing danger where there is none) or shut down (not orienting to the environment or the body and living in the psyche). These are brilliant responses that were once necessary for your survival. And these wounds don’t just heal with time. We need to actively work with them and reteach our bodies to come back to the present moment. That’s where ORIENTING comes in. 👁️👣🌳 It’s an essential practice to bring you back into the present moment and release stress naturally. This is a clip from a popular vlog of mine, titled: ▶️"What do you do when you have unresolved trauma? Two types of orienting.” We are re-releasing this essential video next week, so be sure to look out for it, or get on my email list now so you don't miss our email out to everyone. 📬 To get on my email list, tap over to my bio > scroll down > and sign-up. 🔗 Here's to learning how to better look both ways! Irene. . . . #nervoussystemhealth #healingtrauma #somaticexperiencing #orienting #placeinspace #mentalhealth

By learning somatic techniques and tools, you can start healing yourself at home and feeling better quickly. It also gives you some control over your body. Orienting: look around the room and find 5 things that are the color ______ While sitting in a chair, feel thr wait of your body in the chair. Feel the sensations of the texture of the chair with your hands. Feel your butt in the seat. Feel your feet on the ground. Breathwork: Box breathing: breathe in through your nose for 4 counts, hold your breath for 4 counts, exhale out of your mouth (like blowing through a straw) for 4 counts, then hold for 4 counts. Do 3 to 5 rounds. You can also tap with your fingers on your chest and shoulders as you breathe. For more info about somatic practices, say MORE below or send me a DM! #somaticexploration #somaticexperiencing #somaticcoach #somaticcoaching #getinyourbody #learntofeel #healyourself #healyourselffromtheinsideout #orienting #breathworkpractitioner #breathworkhealing #breathworkpractice #boxbreathing

The amygdala is the fear centre of the brain. It’s super fast in the way that it responds, if you reflect on times where your body has jolted you backwards from touching a roasting pan or missing a car on the road, that’s your amygdala in action. your brain senses imminent danger in milliseconds & blasts you with adrenaline in order to survive the perceived danger. This is excellent when there is real danger… The problem though is that when you’re traumatised/ or living with anxiety, your amygdala is constantly firing false alarms. While your prefrontal cortex, the part in your brain that develops later & is in charge of decision making, reasoning, & rationalising - is inhibited. Which means your amygdala is running the show - constantly finding the danger & keeping you stuck in states of dysregulation. What we want to do is get your brain working together. Some of the ways we can do that is: ✨Expanding your Window of Tolerance: your capacity to manage your emotions & tolerate them ✨Interoception: Gaining awareness of your body & sensations, developing the ability to BE in your body & listen to the messages within. ✨Resource development: Specific skills to help your nervous system return back to its Window of Tolerance. ✨Get to know your good friend, your autonomic nervous system. Mapping out your nervous system states. We go deep on these concepts, to help you get those autonomic nervous system shifts on my NURTURING YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM COURSE⚡️(link in bio). I also have a free webinar too if you’re interested to hear more (in my bio too) . .⁣ . #traumasurvivor #emdrtherapy #traumatherapy #nervoussystemdysregulation #nervoussystem #complexptsd #psychoeducation #womenwhodraw #mentalhealthillustrator #complextrauma #somaticexperiencing #orienting #somaticexperiencing #ptsdrecovery #ptsdawareness #healingfromtrauma #dysregulation #meditation #windowoftolerance #widenyourwindow #somatics #mindbody #polyvagaltheory

If you have no idea where to start regulating your nervous system, comment FREEBIE and I’ll show you how! ⬇️ #nervoussystemhealing #RN #lyme #mold #rootcause #orienting #nervoussystembasics #rootcausepractitioner #energy #frequency

🌊 Your nervous system longs to feel safe, steady, and present. When anxiety rises, these 8 simple practices can help bring you back into the moment — through your body and your senses: Orient with your eyes – Look around slowly. Notice colors, shapes, and movement in nature. Let your eyes rest on something beautiful. Tune into sound – Listen for layers: waves, wind, birds, distant voices. Let sound anchor you here and now. Feel with touch – Place your hand on your heart, dip your fingers in the water, or feel the ground beneath you. Engage your sense of smell – Inhale deeply. Notice the scent of the water, the air, the earth. Taste the moment – Sip water or tea mindfully, noticing temperature and texture as it grounds you. Breathe with the rhythm of nature – Match your inhale and exhale to the movement of the waves or the sway of trees. Move gently – Stretch, sway, or walk slowly, letting your body release tension. Name your safety – Remind yourself: In this moment, I am safe. I can be here now. ✨ These small practices calm your nervous system, returning you to presence, peace, and your own steady center. #nervoussystem #nervoussystemreset #anxiety #nature #nervousystemregulation #orienting #somaticexperiencing #peace #beauty #chronicillnesswarrior

Save this one! This practice typically takes me 10-15 minutes which is long enough for my nervous system to settle and really take in the safety cues around me. I am sure to take big nourishing belly breaths while working through this. Here are some examples of how the feeling of pleasant or joy may show up in the body: Open chest, spacious breathing, body feeling heavy, shoulders slumped, yawning, sighing, smiling, no tension in the muscles, slow heart rate, calm mind Try it out and let me know how it goes in the comments section

Have you heard about orienting? You may know about it in terms of the dictionary definition. To orient can be defined as ‘ tailor or adapt (something) to specified circumstances’. Well, it is also something talked about in the trauma world as a means to helping one’s brain/body recognise when it is safe to be in one’s surroundings and that there is no actual sign of threat. It is a very gentle approach that is safe to practice, from what I have learned! I have not actually demonstrated in my reel how to do it - but it is really very simple. You can sit on a chair or lie down and start to observe the things around you - taking time to notice details. It is amazing how quickly one can feel more at ease. Why not give it a try and sense into how it feels in your body. Please let me know how it felt and/or any thoughts. I’d love to hear. My aim is to share simple tips with you that have helped me along the way. 🤍 #somaticwork #recoveryafterabuse #feelingsafe #getonline #backonline #narcissisticabuserecovery #calmingtips #narcissisticabusehelp

Feeling scared, stressed or anxious? Do this 2 min practice. Look around your room and notice what you see. Let your eyes guide you to what is pleasing. Most likely there are no tigers chasing you and you are safe. Notice how your body feels. Feel your feet on the floor, your seat in your chair, whatever other sensations are pleasing. Your senses will guide you out of stress and into ease. These orienting practices bring you out of your head and into the present moment, where everything is ok 👌 Listen to the podcast episode I recorded on this topic here: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-pleasure-project-with-dana-skoglund/id1637528601?i=1000577133767 Ready to change your relationship with anxiety and stress for good? I’ve got a few spots opening up for 1-1 coaching in September. DM me and let’s chat! #orienting #orientingtopleasure #anxietyhack #stress #stressrelief #stressmanagement #stressfree #antianxiety #chillout #ease #relax #calmdown #anxietyrelief #anxietysupport #anxietyhelp #keepcalm #healthylifestyle #dailycalm #holistichealth #holistichealing

ORIENTING: Experiencing the present moment through exercising all 5 of your senses. Very slowly begin to move your head around allowing your eyes to follow in the same direction as your head. Take your time with allowing your system to take in what you see in your environment. Notice the colors or objects that catch your eye as you continue to observe your surroundings. Become aware of the sounds that you hear, feel the texture of the surface that you are standing or sitting on or feel into anything that’s making contact with your skin. Notice the way your environment smells, and take note of any particular taste that may be in your mouth. Move gently. Observe with the intention of becoming fully immersed in the present moment. Welcome any curiosity that begins to flourish from your observations. Note: orienting takes practice and for some it may need to be done in a very small doses. There are no small steps in healing trauma. Take your time and do this in a manner that feels safe and supportive for your body. Follow for more support in healing trauma + regulating your nervous system. ❤️ #healingtrauma #orienting #somaticexperiencing #somaticpractice #traumainformed #presence #curiosity #healingjourney #fivesenses #somatics #holistichealth #wellnesstips #healwithjenray #somaticexperiencing

Orienting to safety is one of the most overlooked, profound, and accessible practices we can do. In many ways, this is a mindfulness and meditation practice for your nervous system. Through slowing down and bringing conscious awareness to our senses, our nervous system has the opportunity to regulate with it's environment. We are also engaging certain aspects of the brain that are in control of moderating our internal and external environments. This is important because we can actually practice our ability to cultivate ease, calmness, and a sense of safety internally, even when our external environment may feel hectic or stressful. Conversely, we can learn to regulate our internal environment when we are feeling stressed even though externally we are at home and have the evening off, with the opportunity to actually rest and enjoy ourselves. Learning that we have the power to change our state of mind and body through somatic processes, mindfulness, and breath is a simple and powerful realization. Try this orientation practice the next time you are feeling anxious or stressed. #nervoussystem #regulation #orienting #hereiam #thankyou #i #am #withyou #love #somatic #therapeutic #safe #container #embodiment #deepdive #thisisforyou #therapy #consciousness #inspiration #groupwork #growth #somaticexperience #somatictherapy #nervoussystem #nervoussystemregulation #yourbody #yourmind #empower

Sensing how we see . . . how we learn to see how we see and make story how our eyes are open and we don’t see how our eyes are part of our core volume how eyes initiate movement how body follows seeing seeing as a whole body event seeing as a creative act . . . . . . #somaticgroundwork #naturalmovement #developmentalmovement #somatichealing #nervoussystemregulation #fascia #somatics #movementismedicine #movementtherapy #embodiedmovement #traumahealing #somaticpractice #creativemovement #selfcare #improvisation #restandrepair #vestibularsystem #orienting

If you do experience anxiety, practice resourcing! Learning to resource is an important part of retraining the nervous system that it can experience stress AND then come back to a state of calm. This is an essential part of healing. We need to build a sense of support and strength inside and out. There are external resources - orienting is one. The music to this reel is the exact music I was listening to. Music is an external resource to invite calm back intonthe body Try this out and let me know how it is! . . . #resourcing #nervoussystem #neevoussytemhealth #anxiety #mentalstrength #mentalwellness #dysregulation #nervoussystemregulation #orienting #calm