It's week 4 of #selfisolation and I've been biding my time in offering public online streaming classes.
The main excuse being that I was in the midst of moving to a new place just as Singapore is implementing its lockdown measures.

I've been hunkering down, putting together a physical practice and living space in spite of the limited resources during this time.

I've also been teaching a few private movement and therapy sessions by request, and filmed a couple of instructional videos (on youtube), while running on data hotspotting (and a lot of faith) to stay connected.

But, I have to own up to the fact that it has taken me quite some time to get over my silly brain in talking to a screen, to share practices in em-BODY-ment that are tactile and deeply intimate.
Since today is International Labour Day and I got WiFi, I'm making a decision to step outside of my self-talk, and self-doubt, to make this official.

Starting next week, I'll be offering various livestream classes, workshops and private sessions via Zoom. The offerings will be on sliding scale, and also once a week there's a charity or cause that we will support through this difficult time.

Here's the schedule (in Singapore time, +2 for Sydney / Melbourne, Japan, -1 for Thailand, Vietnam, AM for Europe)

Yoga Therapy for all levels ~ Tuesday 5.30pm to 6.30pm
(Complimentary or by donations. Proceeds will go a specific charity or cause of your choice

Somatic Movement & Self-care Bodywork ~ Wednesday 4 to 5pm
(Sliding scale $5, $10, $15, $20 - Pay as you wish)

Therapeutic Focus workshop ~ Thursday 5.30pm to 7pm
(Different theme each week, e.g Back care, Hip mobility, Pelvic health) $25 - Limited to 10 participants only

*Prices in SGD / USD.

Private therapy sessions to suit your needs by request.
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Please email yogadaphne@Gmail.com minimum 2 hours before scheduled class and I'll send through payment details and Zoom link.

This week on #somawithdaphneandlucy

STRETCHING VS PANDICULATION
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The fascination and obsession with “stretching” is pretty much why most people came into the practice of yoga. Ever since we can remember we've been told to stretch for our aches and pains. What most people don’t know is that most of the time, we are doing “passive or static stretching when we just hold a stretch and pull with our hands, or submit into gravity, or sometimes we use a prop to help us get “deeper”, with the intent of releasing tight muscles.

Our volitional motor control comes from our central nervous system. Muscles respond to signals from the brain to contract and move. Moreover, the brain can also signal our muscles to involuntarily contract from physical and emotional trauma and repetitive stress. Extended tension can create an almost perpetual contraction of muscles, till they “forget” how to completely relax. The impairment of volitional control of a muscle group and its synergists is called Sensory Motor Amnesia. A sedentary or stressful lifestyle can contribute to this form of musculature contraction.

Passive stretching is done with the intent to pull a muscle into a specific length or state of relaxation. Extended passive stretching can sometimes result in injuries such as tendonitis or even trauma to the joints even though it might “feel good” in the beginning. This is central nervous system not being fully online during passive stretching, thus a feedback loop to the sensory-motor cortex cannot be established.

Pandiculation (like yawning) is an instinctual "re-set" button for our nervous system. It is also an effective way of restoring full muscle function and Range Of Motion (ROM) through concentric, eccentric and isometric contraction of different muscle groups. The sensory motor cortex becomes fully online during this process.

“If you want to untie a knot, you must look at the cord carefully then gently undo the tangle. Yanking on the cord will only make the knot tighter.”
— Thomas Hanna

If you have ever watched an animal arise from a slumber, you’d observe how they might arch their back, drop their belly and lengthen their spine and limbs into a full body “yawn”. We also do the same when we awake, we gently tighten trunk and limbs our arms and legs inward, feel a yawn coming on, and then reach arms over head, then extend our legs long. This process involves a concentric contraction of our muscles, then an eccentric lengthening, and an isometric holding in the “yawn” before coming into full relaxation as the brain integrates into this feedback loop to remind our muscle that they don’t have to stay stuck in contracted, protective state. The result is relaxation and restoration of voluntary motor control and coordination.

So next time you want to stretch, try first contracting the muscle that's tight (less ROM) and then slowly lengthening it (more ROM). Then completely relax. Note the difference not only in sensation and control of the muscle, but also in your range of motion and sense of ease in your body. You may even feel more "connected," less tense. Instead of classic stretching, try pandiculating instead and notice if there’s a shift in your ROM (“muscle length”) and sense of ease in the body-mind.

Video by Lucie Krobová
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#somatics #embodiment #embodiedpractice #yogatherapy #soma #somaticmovement #somaticyoga #livingbody #bodyintelligence #innerknowledge #somaticeducation #yogaeducation #yogawithdaphne #exploredancemovement #movingfromwithin20 #yawning #pandiculation #catstreach #myofascialunwinding #fascia #fascialunwinding #yawningbody #listentoyourbody

This is an audio lesson from a previous in-person class that I taught before the lock-down. It's slightly over an hour of body scan, gentle undulating movement and visualisation for fascia unwinding, and nervous system reset. I apologise in advance for some prevailing background noise that was going on during sections of the class. A good practice on how your nervous system is able to integrate them too ;)
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Please check it out and let me know how it goes :)

​Fire became speech and entered the mouth
Wind became breath and entered the nostrils
Heavens’ vibration became sound and entered the ears
The sun became sight and entered the eyes
Plants became touch and entered the skin
Animals became movement and entered the sinews
Water became the sea and entered the cells
The moon became mind and entered the heart
Earth became blood and entered the feet
Air became cerebral spinal fluid and became the hands
Darkness became sleep and entered hidden places
Light becomes awareness and entered everywhere
Stars become self and entered the centre of our perineum
Life became the in-breath and entered the navel
Death became the out-breath and entered the crown of the head
Space became love and entered our essence
Time began to pulsate and create cycles of being

“The Roar of Awakening” ~ Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen
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#bonniebainbridgecohen #embodiedyogasummit #bodymindcentering #awakening #circuitbreaker #asongofcreation #yogatherapy #naturessong

Somatics and Embodiment are buzzwords in the yoga and movement community.
With our combined experiences in Yoga, dance, and bodywork, both Lucie Krobová @explore_dance_movement and I hope to contribute a little more to the understanding of Somatic therapy and embodiment in this series of informative posts titled #somawithDaphneandLucy
We feel this is particularly pertinent during this volatile period in which we find ourselves having to surrender our individual agency in serving the greater good of the community we are a part of.

The word “Soma” comes from a Greek origin which translates to “The Living Body”, it’s the cosmic biological intelligence of our life force to self-organise, self regulate through the relational being of our body-mind the moment we are conceived.

Through inquiring into our soma, we begin to explore relationships between the microcosm and the macrocosm we inhabit through processes and body systems. We uncover our self image and gain insights into our habits and neurological patterning to create more choices in our responses to elements and people around us. The practice of embodying our soma calls upon our curiosity to sense and feel and be guided through what is arising from moment to moment.

Working with movement, breathwork, visualisation, touch and sound, this practice helps to regulate the nervous system, boost our immune system, and rewire our brain to move with greater ease and grace through life.

Is there a difference between Somatics and Embodiment?
Somatics is an embodiment practice and to become embodied means we are attuned to our soma. I guess they are inter-related but not exactly synonymous. Meaning that it’s both contextual and conceptual, i.e The embodiment process requires a somatic perspective so that our actions are guided by an authentic, relational intent.
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#somatics #embodiment #embodiedpractice #yogatherapy #soma #movement #breathwork #somaticmovement #somaticyoga #visualisation #bodywork #soundtherapy #therapy # nervoussystem #education #livingbody #bodyintelligence #innerknowledge #somaticeducation #yogaeducation #dancetherapy #yogawithdaphne #exploredancemovement #movingfromwithin20

New somatic body scan

Also uploaded on Insight Timer 
https://insig.ht/6K70hCjvF5