A deeper exploration of consciousness with the use of sound is the focus of the advanced levels 5 to 12 of the Sophrology method. Corinne Guion started this adventure a little while ago and shares her experience in a guest blog here.
A little while ago, I started my journey into the advanced training Levels 5 to 12 and the exploration of my consciousness. Whilst I knew where I was then and what motivated me to continue my studies, I could not have foreseen the journey I was embarking on, the discoveries I was about to make and how this experience would enrich my life and change me forever…
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LEVEL 5
Ah… level 5! What a beautiful journey! I can honestly say that Level 5 was the most amazing experience for me!
Maybe it is because it was the 1st one, or maybe it is because the timing was right, it was exactly what I needed at the time… I had turned down the opportunity to study the advanced levels earlier that year as I was adamant I was done with studying and ready to launch my ‘business.’ Covid happened and some of my plans had to be postponed, then shelved, and I sensed that I needed more time to re-evaluate where I was at in my life and what I wanted to bring moving forward. So, when The Sophrology Academy offered new dates for the course, I felt ready for it, ready to press the pause button again and to take time to invest in myself and discover what I really needed for the next chapter of my life.
Level 5 didn’t disappoint! In fact, I was taken aback by how quickly I started sensing and feeling small shifts in me.
Vibrations & body consciousness:
It started with my body as I developed a different perception of it, a different kind of body consciousness started to emerge. One where I could not sense the various parts of my anatomy, one where I was not really looking out for sensations in the body; but one instead where I experienced the fullness of life inside the body, feeling it, knowing it is there without identifying the parts or putting a label on the sensations. With each practice, I grew more aware of this vital energy flowing inside me and I became in awe of this amazing body, filled with a deep sense of life buzzing inside, a deep sense of health.
For me this new, deeper body consciousness is what helped me connect with my inner, intuitive self, thus leading to slow but real, major changes.
On the road to acceptance:
It took me by surprise when we started working on the skin; I had assumed (ah… the thing not to do I hear you say!) that Level 5 was about vibrations and sounds so I guess I wasn’t prepared. This was in exercise 1 and the moment the teacher said the word ‘skin’, my whole body tensed and I immediately took a distance from the exercise. I am sure you are wondering why; you see, I have suffered from atopic eczema for the past 17 years or so and whilst I manage the condition very well, I realise now that this is still a difficult topic for me. So, I went into the exercise reluctantly… not helped by the fact that a couple of days into the practice, the skin on my hands became inflamed and I started to panic that I had triggered a flare-up of my condition!
But I continued, slowly, softly with kindness to myself and trying to let go of my fears a little more every day. I made a conscious decision to trust my body, to trust the connection that I have developed with it and to trust that my beautiful body would tell me if I needed to stop the exercise.
How glad I am to have persevered!
I started to realise that this journey was helping me to accept my skin condition, something that I can see now, I hadn’t really done since my diagnosis. The more I welcomed my skin to my consciousness and sent gratitude, love, and appreciation to it, the more I connected with it.
I was on the road to true acceptance, acceptance of something that I cannot change and a road that was also leading to fully welcoming my skin into my consciousness, with love and gratitude.
I realise now that I had been ignoring my skin. It isn’t that I was pretending that it wasn’t there (you just can’t ignore your skin when you have a condition); but I was focusing on the condition, on the eczema and how to manage it. In doing so, I was putting aside my beautiful skin, the biggest organ in my body, I was only aware of what was ‘wrong’ with it but not fully loving it. I was so focused on the daily management of the condition that I never thought of looking at it from the point of view of my skin; how traumatic it must have been for it, to have gone from being healthy to dryness, itchiness, redness, and pain.
Gradually, as I empathised with my skin, it started to smile back at me and I got a feeling that it was thanking me for finally looking at it for what it was – and loving it all the same! It felt like we were reunited…
I can report that I have been eczema free for 9 months now… I cannot say for sure that it is Level 5 on its own but it certainly played a big part. Re-connecting with my skin prompted me to see another specialist who gave me new advice about how to curve the flare ups; so, whatever it is it worked! Without Level 5 I might not have contacted this specialist and I certainly wouldn’t be as far down on the road to acceptance. So, I guess I wouldn’t feel the way I do today, in love with my beautiful, dry and eczema prone skin!
Leading to action, leading to change:
I remember learning during the 2-year Diploma in Sophrology, that this method helps us live IN the real world, fully in tune with ourselves and living in full agreement with our values. Yes, we step out of the world when we practice but only to come back to it, fully present, more in tune and ready to take the decisions or make the changes that feel right for us in the present moment.
In my next post, I will share the major decision that I made within weeks of practicing Level 5; truly experiencing the power of Sophrology as I learnt to re-connect with my wiser intuitive self and fully embrace it.
Also in future posts: As I start to grow, to ‘transform,’ I gradually change my thoughts, my views, my beliefs, and I wonder how these changes will impact on the decisions that I make.
As I become more aware of who I am, with kindness, non-judgment, and empathy, will I develop the same attitudes towards my fellow human beings?
Will this prompt me to change the way I contribute to the world?
Will I become a more active participant of society and not just a person that gets on with her life in line with her own objectives?
And as I write this, I start to see a glimpse of how Sophrology, as a self-development method can contribute to societal change.
Maybe this is part of the future for Sophrology in the English-speaking world…
If you wish to discuss how Sophrology can contribute to societal change or any other topic in this blog, please get in touch – I’d love to hear from you! And look out for further blog posts on my experience of levels 6 to 12 on my website below.
Written by Corinne Guion
Sophrologist, Coach and Mentor
Web site: www.proactivewellbeing.co.uk
Email: corinne.guion1@gmail.com
East Sussex & Central London