You know how they say we only use 10 percent of our brains? I think we only use 10 percent of our hearts.
– Owen Wilson
tl;dr: your brain hallucinates sensory experiences that have no correspondence to reality. Noticing and articulating these “felt senses” gives you access to the deep wisdom of your soul.
Here’s Gendlin’s Focusing check from CFAR:
- Say aloud “Everything in my life is fine,” or “I’m on track with all of my goals.”
- Pay attention to the sensations in your belly, chest, and throat. If you’re like most people, something will catch or react weirdly to the statement.
- Try to get a sense of what the feeling “sees,” and write it down. a. finding the felt-sense’s True Name
- Imagine setting that thing aside (like putting it next to you on a park bench), and try again: “Apart from that, everything in my life is fine.” See what catches this time.
- Continue until you reach a statement that doesn’t produce a reaction, and instead rings true (e.g. “Apart from A, B, C, D, my life is fine right now.”)
books
- Saying What We Mean: Implicit Precision and the Responsive Order (Northwestern University Studies in Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy)
- Ann Weiser Cornell. The Power Of Focusing: Finding Your Inner Voice
Notes
References
- looking
- explication
- Focusing: How To Gain Direct Access To Your Body's Knowledge
- Focusing: The classic guide to a powerful technique that can increase your mindfulness and lead to personal transformation
- What is focusing
- https://medium.com/@ThingMaker/focusing-for-skeptics-6b949ef33a4f
- ocusing Oriented Therapy Q & A: How is Focusing an evidence based process of change?
- Focusing-Oriented/Experiential Psychotherapy
- How did focusing start?
- https://radimentary.wordpress.com/2018/02/25/focusing/
- “Focusing” for skeptics
- Thinking At the Edge
- Why 'Focusing' Meditations are Wrong _ by Ajahn Nyanamoli Thero
- https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thinking_at_the_Edge
- https://www.abstractfairy.xyz/focusing-gendlin/