Keeping client in anamaykosha

Yoga Discussion Structural Yoga Therapy
#1

Namaste Mukunda,

I started working with a client who is uses Bio-Geometrical Integration in her chiropractic practice. Not sure the full meaning of that, but she works on an energetic level and meets peoples energies on an astral plane (that is how she described it breifly to me when I asked if she feels others energy in her body when adjsuting)

she came to me when she was pregnant two years ago, and she loved working together. she wants to get pregnant agian in june but wants to come into contact with her body first. she is fearful of becoming grounded and fearful of the investigation of being in her body, (she kept trying to get me to go have coffee with her instead!) but she does wants to do it now. She is always in 2,3,4 kosha, but cant stay in 1 too long. She says the only things that ground her are pain and I am not yet clear if adjusting people grounds her or not, she says that is when she feels best. she is also struggling with her weight and her body image. she is on wieghtwatchers now which I think is a bad idea, but I havent any better suggestions for her yet but I think I will recommend Brandts book to her next time she comes.

we worked on wave breath w/yoni mudra. that made her very anxious, so I had her follow energy with hands, then yoni mudra and that was ok. Then we did JFS. Since her anatomy skills are good I asked her to stay with the names and location of the muscles she was feeling. she would get distracted on some moves more then others, and some would bring up painful memories that she shared with me. the wrist moves disconnected her completely, brought up memories, and the shoulder internal and external movements made her very anxious. so we modified to arms straight, rotating at the shoulder. that was ok. Then I had her do virabhadrasana 1, feeling for sensation in the correct muscle groups, then baddha konasana (she said it was one of her favorites) then pidgeon, also one of her favs. We talked about the model of the koshas so she could understand where we wanted to work, 1st kosha, and when she felt she was flying up into 2,3 she shoud bring herself back to 1.

she wants to work with me weekly. I gave her JFS sheet to practice at home during the week. This is a new type of client for me as we are not dealing with pain or ROM or MT. I wondered if you had any feedback or suggestions for me to work more effectively with this lady. SHould I be doing an assessment and giving her work from that, or stay with increasing awareness of anamayakosha?

#2

Bonnie -

        This is indeed a unique client.  Best is to keep her grounded by talking with her asking her to feel her body.  Do an asana or any of the JFS motions and have her report what she feels so she is learnign to discern physical from subtle.  Keep it at a 2 step dance until she learns to do this on her own not merely in sadhana but also when doing ordinary activities.  It is too much to ask her to do this if she gets strong emotions, memories, thoughts, fears, etc.  From Ayurveda point of view you want to increase pitta and kapha by having her discern the kosha differences and feel physical sensations.

namaste mukunda

#3

Thank you Mukunda,

Sounds like I am on the right track. I havent been able to see her for a while because of my schedule, but she is still motivated, we meet again next week. So when an emotion comes up should we skip that move and go to another? she seems to want to talk about what comes up. SOmetimes she is aware that she is trying to distract me and herself. She is currently in therapy so should I encourage her to maybe journal this stuff and talk with her therapist about it? I do not know her therapist or how she/he works.

#4

The challenge with this is to hold the space for her to be like you. Therefore she needs to know and feel that you are grounded in your physical body. Her energy body is communicating with yours. Remember the energy body is really the 3 middle koshas. So contact of subtle to subtle extends to dimensions that are really impossible to know without a committed spiritual path that balances all the gross chakras and their 2 other layers extending to 4th kosha. Know that the subtle body of you is teaching her subtle bodies. This is why meditating and or doing subtle energy practice with you can be most helpful.

   Definitely encourage her to journal and clear with her therapists so that there is less content for you to work with.  From Yogic Therapy point of view our work is not psychotherapy.  For us It is not about the content of her mind's reactions.  TLet that topic be given to the psychotherapist.  The issue is creating serenity sattva in yourself and her then sustaining that with sadhana.  namaste mukunda