I know our body has memory. I have great reactions to these things, and unless I look it seems as if it is for no particular reason. I think, why am I so agitated? Well, the death anniversary of my love, my beautiful cat, the day my house burned down, you name it. All the tragedy of life, I many not be paying close attention but it is there. The body knows. Your little beach house is beautiful Patti. So lovely. I'm sure it brings you so much joy and peace.
The body definitely remembers. I recommend "When the Body Says No" by Dr. Gabor Mate. He's a brilliant man. I've learned to trust the 'feelings' I get even if they are negative. Your house in Rockaway looks so cute! Glad you enjoy the beach!
I really love these writings and videos. They feel open and human ~ something we could all benefit from in the crazy days we currently live (haven't we all lived within crazy days?
Yes, I definitely think the body is having a memory, especially about difficult and traumatic things. (There's even a lot of research about this. Traumatic and difficult things can cause a lot of long term issues, not just pain and mental health problems but even other chronic illnesses.) I think good and bad memories stay with the body.
Sandy….she, carried her damaging ways, right up to Northern New Hampshire. Trees down, lines down, no power. Strange electrical storms with purple and white hues against the starless sky. It was all candles with fire for the next few nights and no running water. Always remember the photos showing all of lower Manhattan with no light. We knew we where going to meet up with the storm as we drove down from Montreal late that night and it was there to meet us as we crossed the border into the Northern woods of New Hampshire^^
The timing of this post was extraordinary as my "body memory" has been up in arms lately. And the way you introduce the "phenomenon"--that feeling of low-grade anxiety that can build to strange crescendo--is exactly the feeling I've been grappling with.
As for Body Memory....After living in Santa Barbara where I was evacuated for fires several times (but also been one of the lucky ones to have not lost my home)--it took years before I could hear a fire engine speed by, alarms blaring, without having my body scream out in fear.
Recently---because of both external and internal factors--that feeling of semi-existential angst has risen to the point where I created what I call an "Existential Mind Space Purge"--an Excel spreadsheet, mind you 😁) where I detail worries which I meet with questions--are they real? Are they imminent? Are they actionable? (as in, what can I do about them.) There's something comforting about taking those worries out of my head and putting them to paper...in doing so, many simply evaporate--and as for those that don't--there is power in confronting them head-on and developing a "plan"--even if that plan is simply to talk them (and the related body trauma) through with a friend.
Thank you for this post. It was so helpful--and it's comforting to know that so much of those emotions that we think are unique to us, are shared. 💙
WE (in Sarasota) are developing BODY MEMORY from the last several storms. It reminds me of my son, admonishing me when I was whining about having to learn a new way to do something on the computer, saying “You will learn a different way, and it will be BETTER.” Today I heard that a local beach (after the hurricane) is now NEW, in that it has no dunes. Even though it is different, can we see that as better? (I will say that if I can see my friend each day who lives near that beach, I will take the new normal as better.)
Thank you for this: sometimes I feel "off" or disturbed and I don't know why, and the not knowing adds to the distress... so to have some insight on the potential "why" helps...
We just had a powerful typhoon here in Taiwan yesterday--apparently the strongest in some years and also to appear so late in the season. I was holed up at home with the wife and son (on the 4th floor, mind you) and it was constant battering of wind and rain throughout the day. Loose bricks and mortar would occassionally blow down and clatter loudly on thick plastic awnings below. I had wanted to go out and take a walk--don't much like being stuck at home all day--but when I saw some of that debris blown loose with my own eyes, I thought better of it. My wife and son were already determined to grab me by the legs and hold on tight to keep me from going out, bless 'em. Thankfully, I'm not really so foolish; I was just hoping there would be a lull at some point. It didn't calm down until very late last night. Thankfully, the damage was minimal compared to what Sandy did or what happened in Spain this week.
Yes, there's little doubt in mind the body has memory. Are you familiar with the Alexander technique? It takes the position that tension in the body, particularly habitual tension, is rooted in psychological tension, what is termed the psycho-physical relationship, if I remember correctly. I've also read, as others here likely have, that people who receive organ transplants have experiences that support the idea of a direct psycho-physical relationship and/or memory existing throughout the body. And of course, there's the concept of muscle memory bandied about by musicians and athletes alike.
When I did my senior composition recital at university, I built it around my experience in Ghana. Due to the experiences I had at the time, including dreams, family stories, and various memories, I wondered if genetic memory was not also a possibility. I hadn't yet started studying Buddhism, but I was familiar with the idea of past lives, rebirth and reincanation--I had been intrigued ever since my dad told me what David Crosby's "Deja Vu" was about. I don't claim to know that such things exist with certainty, but I believe in the possibility or that at least these ideas do manifest themselves in very tangible ways. I also believe they tell us how very little we really know about ourselves, and that the undiscovered country is a place within us rather than without.
I know our body has memory. I have great reactions to these things, and unless I look it seems as if it is for no particular reason. I think, why am I so agitated? Well, the death anniversary of my love, my beautiful cat, the day my house burned down, you name it. All the tragedy of life, I many not be paying close attention but it is there. The body knows. Your little beach house is beautiful Patti. So lovely. I'm sure it brings you so much joy and peace.
Thanks for the story...the boardwalk...for remembering. The body has memory.
Hi Patti love to hear from you ! I like your shirt . You are so uplifting to listen to . TY Love you as always✌🏼🖤
Thanks Patti. I also believe that body has it's own memory 🤍 some call it the anniversary of a traumatic event
The body definitely remembers. I recommend "When the Body Says No" by Dr. Gabor Mate. He's a brilliant man. I've learned to trust the 'feelings' I get even if they are negative. Your house in Rockaway looks so cute! Glad you enjoy the beach!
Thank you Patti. We carry much knowledge and in-sight in our bodies. The body definitely has a memory. M Train is a precious book.
Hi Patti
I really love these writings and videos. They feel open and human ~ something we could all benefit from in the crazy days we currently live (haven't we all lived within crazy days?
Simon
Thank you for sharing this Patti!!
Yes, I definitely think the body is having a memory, especially about difficult and traumatic things. (There's even a lot of research about this. Traumatic and difficult things can cause a lot of long term issues, not just pain and mental health problems but even other chronic illnesses.) I think good and bad memories stay with the body.
are the pylons still there?
Sandy….she, carried her damaging ways, right up to Northern New Hampshire. Trees down, lines down, no power. Strange electrical storms with purple and white hues against the starless sky. It was all candles with fire for the next few nights and no running water. Always remember the photos showing all of lower Manhattan with no light. We knew we where going to meet up with the storm as we drove down from Montreal late that night and it was there to meet us as we crossed the border into the Northern woods of New Hampshire^^
Also in Vermont. I don't think Vermont ever experienced a hurricane like Sandy. It left a lot of destruction in its path.
Yes, indeed. It came roaring up the Connecticut River valley and gave Vermont and New Hampshire a good slap^^
The timing of this post was extraordinary as my "body memory" has been up in arms lately. And the way you introduce the "phenomenon"--that feeling of low-grade anxiety that can build to strange crescendo--is exactly the feeling I've been grappling with.
As for Body Memory....After living in Santa Barbara where I was evacuated for fires several times (but also been one of the lucky ones to have not lost my home)--it took years before I could hear a fire engine speed by, alarms blaring, without having my body scream out in fear.
Recently---because of both external and internal factors--that feeling of semi-existential angst has risen to the point where I created what I call an "Existential Mind Space Purge"--an Excel spreadsheet, mind you 😁) where I detail worries which I meet with questions--are they real? Are they imminent? Are they actionable? (as in, what can I do about them.) There's something comforting about taking those worries out of my head and putting them to paper...in doing so, many simply evaporate--and as for those that don't--there is power in confronting them head-on and developing a "plan"--even if that plan is simply to talk them (and the related body trauma) through with a friend.
Thank you for this post. It was so helpful--and it's comforting to know that so much of those emotions that we think are unique to us, are shared. 💙
WE (in Sarasota) are developing BODY MEMORY from the last several storms. It reminds me of my son, admonishing me when I was whining about having to learn a new way to do something on the computer, saying “You will learn a different way, and it will be BETTER.” Today I heard that a local beach (after the hurricane) is now NEW, in that it has no dunes. Even though it is different, can we see that as better? (I will say that if I can see my friend each day who lives near that beach, I will take the new normal as better.)
Thank you for this: sometimes I feel "off" or disturbed and I don't know why, and the not knowing adds to the distress... so to have some insight on the potential "why" helps...
<3
All emotions are embodied and unresolved ones stored. For instance Buddhists call the hips "the vale of unshed tears."
Hi Patti,
We just had a powerful typhoon here in Taiwan yesterday--apparently the strongest in some years and also to appear so late in the season. I was holed up at home with the wife and son (on the 4th floor, mind you) and it was constant battering of wind and rain throughout the day. Loose bricks and mortar would occassionally blow down and clatter loudly on thick plastic awnings below. I had wanted to go out and take a walk--don't much like being stuck at home all day--but when I saw some of that debris blown loose with my own eyes, I thought better of it. My wife and son were already determined to grab me by the legs and hold on tight to keep me from going out, bless 'em. Thankfully, I'm not really so foolish; I was just hoping there would be a lull at some point. It didn't calm down until very late last night. Thankfully, the damage was minimal compared to what Sandy did or what happened in Spain this week.
Yes, there's little doubt in mind the body has memory. Are you familiar with the Alexander technique? It takes the position that tension in the body, particularly habitual tension, is rooted in psychological tension, what is termed the psycho-physical relationship, if I remember correctly. I've also read, as others here likely have, that people who receive organ transplants have experiences that support the idea of a direct psycho-physical relationship and/or memory existing throughout the body. And of course, there's the concept of muscle memory bandied about by musicians and athletes alike.
When I did my senior composition recital at university, I built it around my experience in Ghana. Due to the experiences I had at the time, including dreams, family stories, and various memories, I wondered if genetic memory was not also a possibility. I hadn't yet started studying Buddhism, but I was familiar with the idea of past lives, rebirth and reincanation--I had been intrigued ever since my dad told me what David Crosby's "Deja Vu" was about. I don't claim to know that such things exist with certainty, but I believe in the possibility or that at least these ideas do manifest themselves in very tangible ways. I also believe they tell us how very little we really know about ourselves, and that the undiscovered country is a place within us rather than without.
Spin, spin, spin--spinning out a little yarn.
I hope you don't mind, Patti; thanks as always.