About ten years ago, I had a stunning experience in a forest that profoundly deepened my understanding of nature. 

Have you ever thought you understand something, and then you feel it, and you actually get it—in your cells, way deeper than the mind. This was one of those times.

Years ago my daughter’s entire school went to Mendocino National Forest. Getting a 5-year-old ready for a 3-day trip, finding the place, and settling in amidst the bustle was no small task. All told, I was a basket case.

We had traveled many miles inland. This place is uncommonly quiet and still, but with all the mayhem I really had no idea—until I went for a walk in the forest the next day.

The forest floor there isn’t exactly dirt. It’s more like a deep, buoyant carpet of redwood leaves. I felt like I was walking on a pillow. I received this place with all my senses—the quiet, the many scents of green and brown, the colors, the air, and the light. It was so calming; almost intoxicating.

Suddenly, with almost a literal “clunk,” I dropped in deeper.

It felt like I became the forest. My body began moving with a rhythmic pulse, as though to breathe in concert with the place. My arms began floating, rolling outward and inward, as if with the it’s in breath and out breath. The moment is so clearly recalled in my senses in the moment, as though I’m there again.

The Principle

The experience brought a cherished principle to the fore of my mind, deeper than my mind. That wholeness emerges when the physical body and the energy body — breathe as one (imagine if your energy body was a forest, or the entire planet . . . but I digress). What does “breathing as one” have to do with the Midline?

When the physical and energetic breaths couple, the Midline, or “trunk of our life force tree” as I like to call it, is strong.

This brings us to a favorite analogy, that of comparing our bodies to trees — the Midline to the trunk, and our limbs to branches. Functionally, there are many parallels.

While the Midline is not rigid like a tree trunk, it is a force that both guides and supports our limbs. When the Midline is not strong, it’s as though the trunk of the tree has left and has charged the branches with holding themselves up.

This does not go well. When our limbs aren’t connected to (and extend their movements from) the Midline, we strain and injure ourselves. We also don’t recover well. I created a video years ago to explain. It’s still one of my favorites.

The Practice

When you use your limbs, imagine they are extensions of your Midline, from a powerful river of life force through the center of your body.

Then . . .

💦 Imagine you have strong roots

💦 Gently contract your pelvic floor

💦 Bring your belly button toward your spine

💦 Allow the breath to guide all of it

Take your time. Perhaps you’re outside. Notice later if you have a bit more surety in your action. Perhaps you feel a bit more lithe climbing a stair, lifting a watering can, or typing on a computer. You might even feel your nervous system relax. When you brighten your midline, you are also giving your organs and endocrine system a break!

There is no limit to the experience possible.

We’d love to hear how it goes — to drop us a line, simply reply to this email.

Flow takes practice. We feel and practice all things flow in the Flow is Medicine self-paced and live online school.

Our osteopathically inspired program guides you through pleasurable, accessible practices to help you become more connected to your body, more coherent in your daily life, and more capable of maintaining your health and well-being. Learn more about this experience here.

In Celebration of Your Emerging Gloe & Flow,

Dr. Michelle Veneziano

& the Flow us Medicine community