True Communication toward Personal Growth
The combination of verbal communication and touch is what we often consider to be key, as to why the Pantarei Approach has such a profound effect. In our eyes, it is only when the physical experience can be connected to the verbal clarification or exploration, that a true transformation can take place. We believe that one of the best ways toward personal growth is when we feel it in our bones and heart. That is, when the process of growth takes place, a true shift can happen.
The significance of the sense of touch
We all know that touch is an essential need for all of us – particularly when we were small, but also later in our life. Touch helps maintain health and creates a sense of belonging; of being alive. Touch is a significant sense that helps us when listening and creating further experiences. Hands can ‘listen’ through sensations, hands can respond, and hands can express. Touch is used both in our personal sessions and in our workshops as a way to let clients and participants connect to themselves and to others.
The surprising effect of touch
Imagine for example, a client who came to a session, because they often felt lonely. During the conversation, the practitioner would listened to the words of the client and to what they expressed beyond their words. The practitioner would ask questions with the aim of enlarging the client’s perception, beyond what they consider to be the problem. It is often when the client is being touched in the session however, that another level of exploration and learning is able to take place.
In this part of the session, a Pantarei somatic practitioner would place their hands on the client’s body. When the hands are there and clear connection and trust is established, the practitioner might make space for the client to share how, what they usually call loneliness, actually feels like. The practitioner might suggest a new way for them to perceive their feeling based on their conversation.
The client might talk about their difficulties and unfulfilled needs, and the practitioner would provide the safe boundaries, within which the client’s feelings can be felt. However, something interesting happens when we touch. The very same client might discover that in their emptiness, lie other experiences that connect them to much more desirable experiences.
The client might notice that when they allow the sensation of emptiness, that before they were so afraid of, they also find clarity or love within. It might be that the client notices then, that their creativity comes from the same place as their feelings of loneliness; that there is a certain sensation of space and curiosity found within the same feeling. Together with their practitioner they could learn how not to fight the feeling, but rather to better navigate around it when it arises. This, in our expereience, creates one of the best ways toward the personal growth of our clients.
Feelings can feel less frightening
The client would learn to not be afraid of their feelings, even the ones of loneliness, but rather to give them space and be curious about them. During that session, the practitioner’s and the client’s words will be accompanied with touch. This combination allows the client to verbally explore things with confidence as they are being touched, and therefore feel reassured they are not alone as they express their vulnerabilities.
The powerful effect of being touched through that verbal exchange, allows the client to really recognize their own strength, even in moments where they consider their weaknesses to be at the forefront of their experience.
The answers are within you
When a practitioner moves the discussion to the body, they can approach many more layers of experiences in addition to what the mind is aware of. Your Pantarei somatic practitioner knows that in order to work with you and focus on you and your life, they need to listen to your words as well as to your body. They know that the answers are within you, even if you need some help to access them. Those answers, once discovered, will be what would eventually lead you toward your desired goals.
The touch in these situations can be deep or shallow, quick or slow – it can concentrate only on your neck, or extend to another area, or it can touch larger parts of your body. Your practitioner´s intention is to look for different ways that lead you toward personal growth and learning. Whatever kind of touch your practitioner uses, whatever body areas the session will focus on, one of the main intentions will be to make the connection between your experience and your clarity; between what your heart wishes, and the ways in which you can express these wishes in your life. One of the ways to achieve this is by connecting your words to your feelings; connecting your physical sensations, to your understanding.
Each session is an invitation to explore
The ways in which sessions are conducted are very individual. The topics you would talk about and the way you would be touched are unique to each individual and each session is tailor-made for you in that moment. Your practitioner will converse with you – with both their hands and their words – and invite you into the session, which ultimately leads you to explore your own uniqueness. One of the best ways toward personal growth and maybe the only one that exists is when each individual is being refered to differently.
If you’ve never tried out a session, you are welcome to connect with one of the practitioners of the Pantarei Approach who practice in many different countries. If you are interested in studying with us, to become a practitioner, please contact us. We would love to meet you.
In one of my previous blog posts I wrote about the importance of combining touch and verbal communication in a session. Since this is a topic we are asked about often, I wanted to further elaborate on the idea.
