Somatic Experiencing® and the Magic of Titration
What is Titration and why is it important?
Titration, in chemistry, means to dilute a substance to get to a perfect measure. In psychology, it means to slow things down so that the shadows left within your nervous system can move into coherence. The heart-brain-nervous-system must be able to speak to each other with ease.
Somatic Experiencing® International of which I am a Certified Practitioner and Lifetime Member states in their glossary about “Titration: Breaking the activation down into small enough pieces to be integrated easily so that a client can process overwhelming material in a non-overwhelming way. Waiting for the nervous system activation to settle before proceeding to the next perturbation lowers arousal in small steps.”
What should I do if memories of trauma arise?
To achieve titration in the body after memories of trauma arise, place both hands on your heart and focus on consciously slowing your breath, exhaling completely, and allow a feeling of ease to return. As your body and mind come back into better equilibrium, you become aware of blind spots that look like the Band-aids you’ve used to cover emotional wounds. Everyone has them—they are produced by life itself.
What can the horses do for me?
A different level of emotional titration occurs in the arena with the horses. As you entrain to the horse’s slower heart rate and respiration, you drop into your parasympathetic nervous system. You are in the present for an extended period of time. This is where clarity, resilience, healing, creativity, and intuitive intelligence resides.
Through their millions of mirror neurons, the horses reflect what sits in your neurobiology, thoughts, intentions, anxiety, joy, and fears too. You often don’t know what you don’t know, no matter how old, experienced, or successful you are or have been. Titration allows you to move through this journey thoroughly and thoughtfully. If you hurry, you leave behind debris that you have to go back to clean and discharge.
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The client had a specific goal in mind for coming to Equine Guidance®. She went into the arena with the intent to work on her business leadership skills, hoping ultimately to deepen her intuition, and creativity for greater success in her profession.
What do blind spots in our neurobiology look like?
What she immediately learned was that she had a blind spot sitting in her neurobiology. Unfortunately, as she found out later, it was this blind spot that had also become a source of gossip in her office. Her lack of relatability and inflexibility blocked her success, and these traits stood out to everyone but her—until the horses allowed her to access the truth.
Mimi was the horse who helped this woman detect a lack of trust in others. The client later revealed that a business partner had betrayed her two years before the session. She thought she had resolved the issue internally, but had in fact, only pushed it down deep inside herself, like hiding dirt under a rug. The betrayal had caused her to have triggers and relational problems in her life until she took the time to resolve them.
What was the outcome for the client?
During our follow-up call, the client said, “Since my experience with you and Mimi, my intuition has heightened, deepened, and sharpened; my creativity and communication skills are beyond what I could have dreamed! I’ve also taken the time to repair my relationships and to show up differently. It’s as if I had been wearing an invisible, heavy, filthy oversized coat for so long, and Mimi helped me to dissolve it into thin air!”
Healing and personal development aren’t linear! These awakenings happen every day at Equine Guidance®.
Is Equine Guidance® for me?
Is Equine Guidance® for you? Let’s have a discovery call to find out. Please schedule a call with me that best fits into your schedule. Scroll down on this page to request an appointment – pick a date and time that works for you!
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