Embody Relaxation

Take a two-hour journey into profound, healing relaxation through movement, breathwork, chanting, meditation and guided yoga nidra.

Do you find it hard to ‘switch off’? Are you often restless at times you’ve set aside for relaxation? Do you struggle to resist the lure of the phone, the TV, the wine bottle, the spliff, the snack stash? Do you toss and turn and wake up at night instead of sleeping soundly? Are you indecisive? Does your mind race? Do you judge yourself and others harshly?

If the answer to some of these questions is yes, then it’s time to relax.

Join bodyworker and yoga teacher Jamie Griffiths in the beautiful and serene setting of Soma hŌṃe in Stoke Newington on Thursday 7th March for two hours dedicated to restoring your bodymind to its natural state of easiness and softness.

But I already know how to relax, don’t I?

Perhaps. But ask yourself this: Do you ever get muscular aches and pains, spams, a bad back, cricks in the neck? Do you clench your jaw or grind your teeth? Do you ever suffer stomach cramps, digestive issues, tightness in the chest or joint pain that seems to come out of nowhere? These are all sure signs that your body is carrying excess muscular tension.

It’s not surprising. You live in one of the world’s largest cities, pressed up against other people all day long, most of whom are strangers. You probably work too much, don’t sleep enough and either don’t exercise enough or exercise too much. You’re constantly bombarded by images selling you on the idea that your life should be better and you’re at the beck and call of technology that spies on you constantly while never giving you any time off from your work problems, your relationship problems, your family problems...

Your life is stressful.

That stress gets stored in your body.

You need to learn some ways to help your body let it go.

Okay, how do I do that?

Embody Beyond wants to share with you a selection of techniques for calming your central nervous system, systematically releasing tension in every part of your body and entering into a state of total relaxation. A state of relaxation so deep that it is even more restorative than sleep. A state in which we hang on to a softened awareness that is profoundly integrating and healing for the bodymind.

First we’ll prepare the body through movement, breathwork and chanting practices borrowed from various schools of yoga, martial arts and holistic medicine. These will help release excess tension and stagnant energy from the body before we embark upon a guided journey of systematic relaxation of the physical, etheric and mental bodies.

Our destination will be the hypnagogic borderline between wakefulness and sleep, where the bodymind can reset itself, reprogram itself and restore itself to a condition of easiness, softness and vitality.

Do I need to be good at yoga/flexible?

No. All movements can be adapted to accommodate any range of motion. However, please note that you do need to be able to get down onto the floor and up again, and that Studio 2 at Soma hŌṃe is upstairs so not wheelchair accessible.

What do I need to bring?

Just yourself and perhaps a water bottle (though drinking water is available at the venue). Mats, cushions and blankets will be provided.

We will be lying down for quite a long time and entering a state of relaxation in which your body temperature may well drop by a degree or two, so please dress comfortably and warmly.

Who’s the facilitator?

Jamie Griffiths is a bodyworker and yoga teacher with an intense interest in energy and its role in life processes at every scale. He draws on the influences of Wilhelm Reich, Sivananda yoga, traditional Thai massage, bioenergetics, Barry Long and Western occultism to create spaces and foster states in which the body's natural healing capacities can come online. He is alive to the uniqueness of each individual and is careful not to push people further than they're able or ready to go.