brain dump: somatic practice, psychology, pelvic floor etc.

In addition to my passion for Pilates, I love psychology. As a former PhD student, I am naturally drawn to understanding the root of my curiosities. I recently started reading Waking the Tiger, an essential text for somatic practitioners that explores the role of the body in storing trauma and, therefore, its responsibility in healing trauma. The book was written in the 90s, and thankfully, we have made significant progress in mental health and wellness since then. However, we are still navigating the unknown terrain of the mind-body connection and what that means for healing. Despite our bodies housing our entire being, we spend most of our time in our brains, sometimes so much so that we feel disconnected from the rest of ourselves.

As a Pilates instructor, I am responsible for guiding people through healthy movement. Yet, given the large class sizes (on average studios are >12 clients per class), there is a limit to how much I can safeguard each client. Further, mothers tend to make up the majority of the classes I teach, which makes themes of pelvic floor health especially significant.

Emotions may come up during class, and I want my clients to embrace them instead of rushing away from them. But alas, I am not a somatic therapy professional, and while these spaces can be therapeutic, they are not designed to be so. This is the distinction I often see between yoga and pilates, yoga for the soul, pilates for the body. That being said, I do think there is a need for pilates studios, particularly studios with an emphasis on women’s health and wellness, to incorporate a somatic-informed Pilates curriculum. We are working with bodies, and therefore stored energy is bound to release. Do we continue to ignore this mind-body duality, or do we bring our awareness to these feelings?

What does this look like in practice? Reduced class sizes for more one-on-one connection, building trust between instructors and clients, opportunities for community building within the studio so clients feel connected to each other, and so much more.