The somatic self, pain, and suffering

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1. The somatic self, pain, and suffering

Pain and suffering will visit you at various times in your life, and it's thus of significant consequence to understand what you're meant to learn from such experiences. Pain can be a valuable teacher, and it's important to allow your teacher in when it knocks on your door.

Our "somatic self" orchestrates the activities of our body, and our "cognitive self" orchestrates the activities of our rational mind. When we feel healthy and fulfilled these two aspects of the self work together in a cooperative partnership, and life is grand. When the cognitive self fails to respond to the promptings of the somatic self, pain and suffering are sure to follow.

A burst of adrenalin and short breaths lets "me" know my somatic self is feeling overwrought. A release of norepinephrine and a deep breath, is the body's way of signaling its feeling safe and relaxed. Such communication is simple and clear, IF we are able to pay attention to what the body has to say.

Because our cognitive self is so busy attempting to fulfill our worldly needs, it often fails to slow down, appreciate, and heed the communication of its somatic partner. When we fail to respond to the promptings of our somatic self, our "dis-ease" increases, until such time that we're forced to pay attention. Pain is not a punishment. Pain is a signal that lets us know we're building up excess energy that needs to be released. Our suffering informs our self-partnership that it must find better ways to care for the self. The stronger the pain, the clearer the message. "We need to redirect our life energy!"

Beyond being an opportunity to deepen and strengthen our self-partnership, pain and suffering also usually signal the need to revitalize our partnership with others. Supportive caring relationships are a biological necessity and not a luxury. No matter how well balanced we feel on our own, we need others to help complete us. We need others to help us find our rightful place in the world, and feel truly at home. To be genuinely happy and healthy, we need to expand our sense of self to include all those that play a significant role in our life.

Because pain "hurts like hell", it might seem counter-intuitive to acknowledge that pain gives us the opportunity to decrease our suffering. Without our pain to awaken us to the possibility of a fuller life, we would cumulatively suffer more over time.

Rather than attempting to avoid or eliminate the discomfort you sometimes feel, please consider the possibility of embracing your suffering. I realize this idea might seem flippant or na?ve. I'm not suggesting your anguish should be an occasion for celebration. Instead, if you can realize the essential human need you have for a loving cooperative partnership with self and others, you can begin to experience your pain as a wake-up call from life. The stronger your discomfort, the stronger the wake-up call! Pain is like an alarm clock that starts out with a soft buzzing sound that becomes louder and louder, until you finally get up out of bed and start your day. When you experience your pain alarm clock going off please appreciate that you're being called to wake up to the fullness of life! Your pain is a positive message that lets you know it's time to make some important changes in the way you live. The greater your pain, the greater your capacity to feel joy and fulfillment. Your heart is calling out to be healed. Please answer this call for help with love and compassion.

Workshop Announcements
Click on the event's title to find out about the details
When?	Where?	Workshop/Event & Presenter(s)
July 15, 2006 14:00–17:00	Antwerpen, Belgium	Seishindo Study Group in Belgium Marleen Adriaensen Info in Dutch in French
October 5, 2006 19:30 - 23:00	Antwerpen, Belgium	Introducing Seishindo - The role your body plays in helping you to maintain your health and emotional well-being Charlie Badenhop, Originator of Seishindo Info in Dutch
October 7, 2006, 9:30 - 17:30	Antwerpen, Belgium	Finding Inner Peace - Exploring the body language of migraine headaches and chronic pain Charlie Badenhop, Marleen Adriaensen Info in Dutch
October 11, 2006 18:00-20:15	Antwerpen, Belgium	Aikido - A gentle yet powerful martial art Charlie Badenhop Info in Dutch
October 14-15, 2006 9:30-17:30	Antwerpen, Belgium	EMBODIED PRESENCE - Use "Verbal Aikido" to resolve conflict and build relationships Charlie Badenhop Info in Dutch in French
October 27-28-29, 2006 9:30-5:30	Washington, DC, USA	EMBODIED WISDOM - The Dance of Intellect, Intuition, and Emotion Judith DeLozier, Co-Founder of NLP Charlie Badenhop, Originator of Seishindo, Dorothy Pietracatella, Certified Specialist in Somatic Experiencing
January 26-27-28, 2007 9:30-5:30	Antwerpen, Belgium	EMBODIED WISDOM - The Dance of Intellect, Intuition, and Emotion Judith DeLozier, Co-Founder of NLP Charlie Badenhop, Originator of Seishindo

2. Seishindo Teleclasses at long last!

The survey many of you filled out let us know that teleclasses are something people have strong interest in, so here we go!

Our first telecourse will be "Seishindo Self-Hypnosis For Self-Renewal And Healing".
Our second telecourse will be "EMBODIED PRESENCE -- Live a more fulfilling life as you come to understand more about the language of your body."

Here's our plan!

"TASTERS"
In July and August we'll offer complimentary "taster" classes to help you get a feel of what the Seishindo work is like.

Taster for Seishindo Self-hypnosis:
July 24, 31, August 7, 14 (All Mondays) 8-9:30PM NYC time

Taster for "EMBODIED PRESENCE -- Live a more fulfilling life as you come to understand more about the language of your body":
July 26, August 2, 9, 16 (All Wednesdays) 8-9:30 PM NYC time

Please sign-up only once, so as many folks as possible can sample our free offerings. There will be a max of 12 people per class.

Are you interested in our classes but find the time slots to be inconvenient?
If you'd like different time slots, please send us an email at teleclassesATseishindo.org telling us where you live, and what local time in your area would suit you best.

IN SEPTEMBER WE'LL CONVENE OUR PAID TELECOURSES.

Four Session Introductory Beginner's Course:
Seishindo Self-hypnosis: For Self-Renewal And Healing
August 28, September 4, 11, 18 (All Mondays) 8-9:30 PM NYC time.

You'll receive definite benefit from this class if you'd like to learn simple techniques to help you :

-- Feel more alive and attuned to life.
-- Ease feelings of anxiety and stress.
-- Feel more at peace with yourself and the world around you.

In order to maximize your experience, we will limit each class to 8 participants. This is a much smaller class size that what is offered by most other programs. Cost: $195 for the complete series.

Each session will be recorded and available on MP3 for your download and private use. If you have to miss a class you'll have a complete transcript to listen to and learn from.

Your satisfaction is of utmost importance to us. If for any reason you are not fully satisfied, we will quickly refund the unused portion of your tuition.

To learn how you can nurture your spirit with Seishindo Self-hypnosis and to find out about the details please use this link.

Four Session Introductory Beginner's Course:
EMBODIED PRESENCE -- Live a more fulfilling life as you come to understand more about the language of your body
September 6, 13, 20, 27 (All Wednesdays) 8-9:30 PM NYC time

This telecourse is a good fit for you if you'd like to:

-- Engage the world with greater enthusiasm, creativity, and joy;
-- Interact with people in a more heartfelt manner;
-- Be a person that inspires others to be all they can be;
-- Be received as a person who is kind yet powerful.

In order to maximize your experience, we will limit each class to 8 participants. This is a much smaller class size that what is offered by most other programs. Cost: $195 for the complete series.

Each session will be recorded and available on MP3 for your download and private use. If you have to miss a class you'll have a complete transcript to listen to and learn from.

Your satisfaction is of utmost importance to us. If you are not fully satisfied we will quickly refund the unused portion of your tuition.

If you want to learn how to listen and respond to the non-verbal language of your body and the body of others, and to find out about the details, please use this link.

I'm excited about the possibility of finally getting to work with many more of you!

Talk to you soon,
Charlie

Questions? Email me at: charlie@seishindo.org