Hakomi is based on Mindfulness:
"Mindfulness is a kind of non-elaborative, non-judgmental, present-centered awareness in which each thought, feeling, or sensation that arises in the attentional field is acknowledged and accepted as it is" (wikipedia)
Mindfulness describes a quality of awareness of one's own experience. We are mindful when we are very present with whatever is happening in a way that has little judgment and expectation. This way of being builds bridges between different parts of the brain, allowing for change in deeply held emotional patterns. In both Hakomi and Somatic Repatterning I teach and use Mindfulness to support a fundamental change in how you experience life.
In mindfulness, we notice what is happening NOW under the radar of everyday consciousness. From this space we might engage in simple collaborative experiments.
For example, I might lead you into a short guided meditation to help you contact whatever sensations and emotions are currently present. Then I could say something that might be evocative for your specific life situation- like "you deserve love", or "you are welcome here", or "everything inside you is OK". You will have a chance to sense the changes that come over you as you hear this statement. You may feel a tightening of your heart or shoulders, or a voice might come into your head that says "That's not true!".
An essential element of this work is bringing the whole system of these reactions into consciousness--physical sensations, emotions, memories, impulses etc. These patterns of belief and contraction are often the patterns that we have been living with for years. If we determine they are no longer necessary, and in fact are holding us back, we can work on transforming them so that they no longer have power over us.
Mindfulness is the key to this process. It is this tool that allows us to see ourselves and our patterns clearly so that we can begin to unravel old patterns and implement new ones that are better aligned with the present moment.
Behaviors and emotional reactions that were overwhelming and frustrating start to make sense; especially when seen as creative adaptations that helped us survive in the past, during times when we did not have the resources we have now.
With slow and gentle guidance in an atmosphere of safety, the intrinsic wisdom, intelligence, and healing power of body and mind are engaged. Over a relatively short period of time our relationship to ourselves and to life can transform in the direction of added clarity, sense of meaning, and satisfaction.