Choose conscious embodiment for a fulfilling and rewarding way of life

Jan Normanton • December 15, 2024

Choosing to live embodied consciously supports us to inhabit the full spectrum of all our feelings from our experiences of being human, in the moment and without the judgements

Listen to this article

click to watch this article
If you are stressed, consider somatic massage or somatic coaching and know that your body has a whole set of inbuilt ways to help you manage your inner states.

I spoke recently about what embodiment means for me and I spoke in terms of feeling alive, aligned, creative; feeling at one, feeling grounded, while at the same time feeling so connected with myself and having that alignment between my mind, body, spirit, that it resulted in feeling joyous and wonderful.


And I wanted to explain what embodiment really is and that is to be in the body of course, feeling connected as I say with the mind, body, spirit. But it doesn’t exclude feeling all the feelings, feeling all sensations, feeling the whole gamut of emotions.


Indeed embodiment actually is to feel all the emotions, the ones we perceive to be difficult or tricky or bad even, as well as to feel all the good emotions.


The point is to have capacity to hold space for all emotions and actually not judge them as being bad or good. Yes we can have difficult experiences and experience therefore difficult emotions. However if we have the capacity and the resilience to hold space for all of those feelings and emotions as and when they come up - that is embodiment as well.


Embodiment is having that capacity to embrace it all, to spare the judgement calls on what all of these emotions might mean, and to embrace them and to feel them fully. Rather than to denigrade, them to send them off and squash them, deny them, repress them or distract ourselves from the emotions. That is when we pathologise emotions and that can lead to a raft of symptoms, problems health issues.


So embodiment for me is the capacity, having the resilience, growing and cultivating the resilience, to feel all the feelings, to embrace them all, to hold them as preciously as each other and to cease the abandonment of ourselves when we might drop into feeling feelings that we might judge to be bad or evil or less than good or less acceptable than we think they are.

By janetnormanton February 4, 2026
Discover why traditional massage techniques aren’t enough in today’s therapeutic landscape. Learn how The Soma Massage Method™ helps therapists create safer, more embodied, client-centred sessions that lead to lasting results.
By janetnormanton January 15, 2026
Explore what it means to be an embodied therapist and why presence, not technique, is the key to truly transformative bodywork. Learn how The SOMA Massage Method™ helps therapists connect with themselves and their clients for deeper healing.
Emotional Healing Starts with Safety
By janetnormanton January 9, 2026
Discover why true emotional healing starts with feeling safe in your body. Learn how chronic stress affects your nervous system and how practices like Soma Massage can support deep, body-based healing and recovery.
The Massage That Moves More Than Muscles
By janetnormanton December 31, 2025
Trauma and stress aren't matter in the muscles; it’s physiology imprinted in the nervous system.
Soma massage - a powerful antidote to the hurriedness of life.
By Jan Normanton December 10, 2025
SOMA Massage is a powerful antidote to the hurriedness of life. It offers a space where anxiety, stress, and overwhelm can dissolve, where you can simply be yourself, free from expectations
Understanding the Nervous System: Beyond Rest and Digest
By Jan Normanton October 26, 2025
A resilient, robust nervous system is key to healing and wellbeing, allowing you to manage life's challenges effectively while enjoying periods of deep relaxation.
Safety is the cornerstone of healing.
By Jan Normanton September 14, 2025
Creating a safe environment is essential to reduce anxiety and stress, and encourage a sense of control and agency in clients
Does it feel like a hustle being on your healing journey?
By Jan Normanton September 11, 2025
May you remember when you’re on that hamsterwheel of healing, feeling it’s like a hustle to just slow down, breathe and drop into who you are and make peace with that and enjoy yourself!
Connection is key to a contented life
By Jan Normanton August 31, 2025
Connection to self, others, life itself offers safety and can provide the cornerstone of contentment and love. Whilst disconnection to self, others, life poses threat and so can cause the opposites – unhappiness and fear
Change can be challenging to a nervous system that seeks safety
By Jan Normanton May 25, 2025
Leaning into a change process that feels safer, planned, paced, can offer a smoother journey into what we do want, whilst tempering and taming the fears, doubts and sense of regression that may present themselves along the way
Show More