My How Far You Have Come…
Posted: Apr 26 2010 Topic: Guest Blog
Is the thought that ran through my mind as I stood in front of 25-30 Squamish Rotarians shaking and then dancing. I had offered to give a talk on Mind Body Medicine to my local Rotary club of which I am a member. Giving talks is not something I have a lot of experience in nor is it something I feel entirely comfortable doing however, I was motivated by my passion for the subject matter and my desire to start working through some of the fears that have held me back both personally and professionally.
Shaking is an active or expressive meditation that is followed by a brief period of silence and then dancing. It is an excellent way to release chronic tension in the body and break up the "stuck" ways of being (both physically and emotionally) that we all have to some degree or another. I learned about shaking and dancing through my training with the Center for Mind Body Medicine in Washington, DC and while it is not something very many people have done before in my experience it has proven to be a real crowd pleaser. With this crowd however, I was unsure. The Squamish Rotary Club is comprised of a mix of young newcomers to the community (with myself being the youngest member at 35) and older pioneers of the community. Lunch meetings typically involve remaining seated and I really wasn't sure how shaking or dancing for that matter was going to go over with the table of 85-90 year young men. I was taking a risk.
I should mention at this point that my fear of standing in front of the Rotary Club last Thursday was not limited to a fear of public speaking. I have spent most of my life believing that I was not a good dancer. This belief was instilled in me at a young age by my peers and reinforced (heavily) over the years by my inner critic to the point that the only time I would even attempt dancing was with alcoholic drink in hand and it was never done for the shear joy of moving my body. My first experience with "shaking and dancing" at the Professional Training Program in Mind Body Medicine opened my eyes to an entirely different experience of dancing and to how incredible it feels to move my body without judgement and for the sole purpose of doing it because it feels good. That said, I had not yet taken my new found love for cutting a rug outside the comforts of my own living room.
So here I was eyes closed, standing in front of a group of practical strangers, my first "Introduction to Mind Body Medicine" talk under my belt, grooving away, conquering my fears and having FUN!
I start my first blog with this story as fear has been one of my biggest obstacles and it is what has prevented me from sitting down to write a blog for over a year. Every time I have thought about writing my fear has reared it's ugly head and convinced me that I don't have anything to say or that someone else is saying it better. The expansive feeling of accomplishment I drove away from Rotary with on Thursday has inspired me to work through this fear as well. I ask you to be patient with me as I morph into a blogger. I'm not sure at this point what shape it's going to take. I will write about health and wellness topics, that is a given, but I will also give of myself personally to this blog and share with you the journey that I am on to discover myself and where I fit into the grand scheme of things in this life.
I welcome your feedback and would love to hear about how you are working through your own fears. Please email me at ange@tantaluswellness.com.
Now I am off to shake..and dance...
May you be happy and healthy,
Ange