Safety in touch

Acupuncturist Miha Rosta considers the role touch plays in our lives, what it means to really rest and feel safe and the wonderful impact of massage or therapeutic touch

We are never alone truly.
We are born from two (biological mother and father), brought up by at least one if not half a village.
People do not choose solitude to thrive in life. It is their last choice for survival when they have been mistreated one too many times.

Or they choose it for the purpose of transformation. A form of challenge for spiritual cultivation.
 
Touch is medicine

Therapeutic touch is consensual structure in which the client and the therapist give each other space so the therapeutic qualities of change can emerge.
It is chosen and developed as a container, in which one can allow themselves to be exposed. To give up their thriving and fighting against discomfort.

True rest requires safety.

Just like yin and yang are complimentary, one needs a safe environment in which they can free up their defences (muscles and nervous system for an armour).
A good massage or Acupuncture treatment is based on non-verbal communication. Although the practitioner may seem to be in a place of power, it is their priority and responsibility to keep listening to their clients. Both via touch, sight and hearing.
A good session is like a non-stop dialogue in which the therapist gives just the right amount of stimuli, which allows the person lying down to fully relax. To dissolve into the new structure that is being co-created.
Of course this can look in many different ways. Yet, a firm and steady hand can provide so much relief.

Rest is so vital. Especially so today, when our society is geared towards productivity via burnout.
In a time when we feel challenged, burnt out or more sensitive than ever, therapeutic touch can make a world of difference. It can be a puddle of safety in the ocean of turbulence.

As we are approaching the energetic year of the Yang Fire Horse, it becomes even more important to tune into that quality of rest that our being craves so much.
We can find this in many different forms, in poetry, Tai chi, nature walks or massages.

A good thought to keep in mind, is that rest also requires effort. It is by far not the same as zoning out whilst watching digital content.
Rest is best described in the meditative world as “calm abiding”. A state where we are present yet simply abiding in peace. In the lake of consciousness undisturbed by thoughts and feelings.

I strongly advise you to put time aside for rest regularly. Whether it’s in meditation or during an acupuncture session, frequent ‘abiding’ makes a world of difference. It leads to deeper and longer baseline of a calm, safe, confident sense of self.

If you need some support with Rest in your life, do not hesitate to reach out to me or the rest of the fabulous WNT team.
 
PS: Perhaps Confidence is something you wish to work on this year? Please read my other article on Starting the year right: with positive emotion and community.