Right now I’m in New Mexico for a Core Synchronism training. It’s raining outside today and so it’s a good time before training starts, to sit and record some thoughts and musings. Yesterday in class, the teacher, Robert Stevens, discussed Hand Medicine, as he calls it. Core Synchronism (Core), is designed for the practitioner to support the clients body to align with the spinal fluid. That’s the simplest way I can think to put it; I’m sure Robert would describe it differently. This is my perspective and interpretation from the levels I have studied thus far (there are 7 levels of study and I am on level 3). To bring the body into synchronism with the spinal fluid, the practitioner uses the hands to palpate and guide the different parts of the body; hence, hand medicine. He then mentioned that words can be medicinal as well and asked if I agreed; and I do. This morning, that interaction lingers in my mind.
How are words medicine? How are they not?
Words form sentences and sentences form paragraphs and so on. Words are spoken aloud by others and inside our minds. Eckart Tolle in his book A New Earth says that our minds are always active and it doesn’t matter if we speak our thoughts aloud or not, we still have them. Sometimes, as I experience with myself and see in clients, we take words spoken by others and internalize them, repeating them over and over again to ourselves. We sometimes digest these words from others and they become a part of our internal rating system, how we judge ourselves and speak to ourselves. These words can be medicine, or they can be poison, causing slow and debilitating pain or a swift suffering.
I’ve noticed recently in Core sessions that sometimes I feel a certain pain or trauma pattern in the body. Sometimes I sense that certain, particular words or sentences will be medicinal; providing validation, love, guidance, acceptance, etc. Each person is different, even if a pattern seems similar. That is one thing to remember, that all medicine can not be used the same in similar situations. Validation for one person experiencing a pain pattern in the system, may be medicinal and for another person with a similar pain pattern, may need another medicinal word or sentence. When we begin to prescribe set ways of interacting with people, we have lost our pulse on the individual; how their pain pattern moves through them, affects them and what medicinal words would be of help to them.
This is what can keep guides and supporters(Robert calls Core practitioners “mechanics”) interested and enthralled with the practice. We can be with every person uniquely as they arrive to us; open to what they bring and how we respond. Of course, we will learn along the way, certain things to try for support, but may I and other supporters never forget the uniqueness of each soul and their human journey.
Another thought that is percolating this morning is how do these two unique medicines work with each other? How do you weave hand medicine and word medicine? What have others done in the past? What is my unique way?
My way has begun to form as I’ve blended hand medicine with medicinal words this past year; and I’m at the beginning of my journey. I don’t feel like there is a clear path, which I see as a good thing. Recently, I read somewhere that if you are following a well worn path, it’s not yours. So, as I begin to learn how to use hand & word medicine together, I am heartened that I must be on my path and no one else’s; though my mentor and teacher Megan Zubaedi, has shown me the path and supported me as I walk down it. She too, weaves hand and word medicine, but also practices much more and is a deep well of wisdom and guidance for me.
In closure, one thing I’d like to leave you with is to become aware of what medicine you give yourself daily. Life is nourishment and it is painful. The nature of being human is experiencing love and pain. In my belief the pain is for us to grow and learn.
So then, what are you nourishing yourself with everyday? What medicinal words do you gift yourself? What poisonous words do you catch in your mind everyday?
Also, we don’t have to wait to nourish ourselves with something medicinal until we are on our “deathbeds.” We can nourish ourselves with medicinal words, touch, movement, food, rest, play, love, etc, everyday. So, don’t read this and think that words as medicine are something to do just in session with me or other professionals; it can be an everyday activity. I don’t hold the key to your soul light, you do and you live with yourself everyday; don’t allow me to be the key, find yourself and learn how to administer your own medicine. Don’t rely on me to do it for you always. Yes, we always need others in our human journey, but there is an amount of self-administered medicinal words we can give ourselves. It’s never too late.
With love,
Erin