In the workshop I attended with Karen Abadie, she said something during it that I found sort of profound and I cant stop thinking about, she proposed the ide or debate of whether or not we as people "have" bodies or we "are" bodies. initially I had an immediate response, the ide that of course we have bodies, that's how we phrase usually I have a body, a body that is mine. But the more I thought about this the more it felt wrong or at least not so black and white. I felt like maybe the possessive nature of being human was what was making me feel like I have a body as well as the capitalistic conditioning of society that reminds me of how important owning things is, but my body is not something I own. one of the things that changed my mind about this is what we feel, our senses and sensations, the butterflies in our stomach, the anxiety I can feel in my blood, the way my hairs stand on end when I'm scared, the thing is these are all things that we think are in our brain or head they bleed into our body, the anxiousness in my head makes my stomach hurl and my hands shake and my head spin, my anxiety is in my body like I am. this reflects in so many instances for example, I am neurodivergent I have a lot of extreme feelings about sensory experiences about the sounds and touch of things, but the thing is the brain making me feel this way, the sensory discomfort an euphory I can feel throughout my body, in my finger tips and in the gritting of my teeth, its not just a response its an entire embodied experience.
I feel in a certain way we still have bodies, but I have to believe my body is both myself and mine, but I think this way of thinking is mostly beneficial when it comes to looking after ourselves though. For example I have a body to look after it needs the right amount of water and love but at the same time its important to remember yes my body needs things but I am still my body, it needs as much care as i do because we are one and the same, but I think its something hard to remember.
Add comment
Comments