Marian Dunlea with Abigail Whyte, Pauline Sayhi, Patricia Llosa, Patricia Grey Amante, and Wendy Bratherton.

Overview

In Module Two, we explore how both body and psyche contribute to affect regulation and the Self-regulating principle in Jungian psychology. As we navigate activation, overwhelm, and trauma in these challenging times, we focus on restoring balance to our systems.

Trauma – whether implicit (developmental and transgenerational) or explicit (cultural, political, and ecological) – can remain buried in the somatic unconscious, affecting our nervous system, organs, muscles, joints, hormones, blood pressure, heart rate, breathing, and digestion. These stored effects often manifest as rigid fight, flight, or freeze patterns, becoming the default positions of the Autonomic Nervous System and influencing every aspect of our lives – our relationships, capacity for joy, and reactions to events.

Regulation, Titration, Orientation

In Module Two, we work with regulation, titration, and orientation, both externally and internally. By tuning into our felt sense, we observe how the body responds in the moment. As we orient to objects or elements in our environment, we may recognise that the very thing we focus on is precisely what is needed to restore balance and equilibrium within us. This gentle approach allows us to uncouple and release energies that have been held in check.

In directing our attention to these internal body sensations, rather than attacking the trauma head on, we can unbind and free the energies that have been held in check. (Levine, 1997, pp. 65-66)

As we learn to reset the nervous system, we realign with the psyche-soma dynamic. This fluidity fosters a deepened connection between body, mind, and soul, opening us to a greater sense of interconnectedness – what Jung and the alchemists referred to as “unus mundus.”

The practice strengthens our awareness of ourselves as active participants in a living, breathing, dreaming universe. We discover the virtue of co-regulation and reciprocity.

Nothing happens in which you are not entangled in a secret manner; for everything has ordered itself around you and plays your innermost. (Jung, 2009, The Red Book, p.260)

Learning Objectives

• Techniques to release stored trauma and restore nervous system balance.

• Alignment with the self-healing and self-regulatory mechanisms inherent in all living beings.

• A deeper connection with psyche, dream images and the somatic unconscious.

• The power of interoception – attuning to inner sensations to find greater balance, and coherence in the whole system.

• A renewed sense of harmony, pleasure, and reciprocity with the world.

More details in the flyer

Email bodydreaming@gmail.com for an application form - but please note that spaces are very limited.