NAVINA

Education • Community

EDUCATION · COMMUNITY
Toll Free: 1.855.206.2434
Local: 416.529.2549
  • Student Login
  • Training
    • In-Person Courses
    • Online Courses
    • Virtual Studio
  • About
    • Navina Approach
    • Navina Team
    • Policies
  • Curriculum
    • Curriculum Design
    • Certification Requirements
  • Reading
  • Shop
  • Community
    • Certified Practitioners
    • Partnerships
  • Contact
loading...

We’re going to have our work cut out for us, you and I.

April 2, 2020 By: Drew Humecomment

On so many levels. I don’t just mean the work of due diligence, or of managing fear. Though that’s certainly part of it right now.

And I also mean more than working hard to save businesses and livelihoods. Even though that’s also a very real thing.

I been thinking a lot lately about the social, emotional and cultural work that will be (and already is) needed. Part of what we do here at Navina is educate about touch – which you probably know, since you’re here reading this.

But wrapped-up in that education is the biology of human contact – and this leads us directly to the anthropology of us being social beings. We’re deeply hardwired for touch, and this brings us together and builds bonds with others (Oxytocin is the hormone that drives human bonding, and this is released significantly with touch), which in-turn creates the emotional and social security of groups. Touch is the glue that binds us as social creatures. ((Yes, even if you’re highly introverted)).

I’m seeing it all over social media right now – the realization of many that this social distancing practice ((though very necessary)) is very difficult. To me, this highlights our relative interdependence on one another.

So, I see that there is the experiential realization of our nature.

But.

There’s also fear layered into this experience. And this fear won’t simply go away when the virus starts to finish its path across the world. This fear drives suspicion. It drives self-preservation. It drives the distance between us (emotionally and culturally). And this is what it will continue to do. This will be one of its legacies. And this is what I mean by we have our work cut out for us.

social anxiety

Image source: helpguide.org.

For many of us this is going to be the hardest element of the post-virus fallout to deconstruct and work through.

Reprogramming the fear of social contact – the social anxiety that will be palpably leftover. We already live in a touch-averse culture.

In some ways I feel as though the progress we’ve been making (at least in our own sphere here at Navina) in bringing people together and teaching the tools to bridge you into the language of touch and human connection, will be reversed. In other ways, I see this as exactly the reason we exist here at Navina. To re-educate. But also to frame that education with responsibility – to give tools and language to develop safe touch-spaces (with all this entails), AND to embody what it can mean to do this work in a world that both very much needs touch, and also where touch is a mode of viral transmission.

So where does the work begin?

Feel free to contribute ideas below. I’m putting my own ideas here – as actionable items to begin the challenging process of dismantling our newfound (or newly-amplified) social anxiety and fear. Some of these will be more applicable already, and others may be future items.

The first piece, which is something we should be doing anyway, is talking about touch:
  • • Touch is a very intimate experience (note: intimate doesn’t mean sexual) and for many people, it is a deeply layered and complex experience as well.
  • • In honouring the complexity of touch, we should be talking about it. These conversations can be uncomfortable, but all the work that is worth its salt is at least a little uncomfortable. So I encourage you to step into that space.
  • • Talk specifically about what makes you feel safe in touch-based scenarios. How does that look right now (know that it can/does change)? Is it a hand on the shoulder? A hug? Or is it different for different people? Talking about this helps to clarify things in your own mind and clarity helps agency – it gets you exploring what your comfort with touch feels and looks like and then communicating it. Sharing and hearing these things will also keenly attune you to considerations for others.
  • • Talk about consent. Highlight its importance with your close people – get them thinking and talking about this too. Remember that this conversation can be uncomfortable, and at the same time if you stick with it, this discomfort grows into agency and voice.
  • • Hygiene practices – talk about this too – when confronting anxious feelings, it can be helpful to really dig into the details of how we not only take care of ourselves but also others. Data for our brains is often helpful.
The next piece, some of which can already take place at home:
  • • Self-massage. Receiving massage is about a lot of things – including the release of extra tension, and so self-massage can help to meet those needs AND to get you experiencing some degree of touch, albeit from massage tools. It can’t replace the connection element of a massage from a human, but this is where the next part comes in…
  • • Massage with isolation-companions or with close people. These close people should be people who are responsible and have taken all logical measures to reduce their risk and therefore your risk of infection.
  • • Making sure that you talk about touch, consent, and hygiene practices first.
  • • And then enacting all those practices in the creation of a safe environment in which to build that connection.

Note, if your isolation-companion is a life-partner/sexual partner, I would strongly encourage you to explore the layers of intimacy touch provides beyond sexual experiences. This space is where touch vocabulary expands.

Hopefully this helps.

Stay well,

Drew & the Navina team.

Touching Trauma

July 6, 2019 By: Chantelle Reynolds8 Comments

Image source: everydayhealth.com

For most of my life I lived in a suspended cycle of fear initiated by childhood sexual abuse. I continuously wondered when the next abuse might happen. Living this way, in fear and with trauma lurking in the recesses of my body and mind, was life limiting. I developed migraine headaches in my teen’s that grew with intensity and frequency as I got older. I struggled with depression and later, anxiety. That is until the gift of touch helped to release the firm clutch trauma had on me.

It was during my apprenticeship with Navina ® – Thai Yoga Therapy I had a revelation. Touch facilitated a release of trauma stuck in my body and mind, disrupting the cycle of trauma.

First, let’s define Trauma. Trauma is a broad topic and it can be difficult to have a clear definition of it. This one fits the context of this blog – “Psychological Trauma is a type of damage to the mind that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event. Trauma is often the result of an overwhelming amount of stress that exceeds one’s ability to cope, or integrate the emotions involved with that experience.” [Read more…]

Reverse unicorn horn. Good? Bad? Let’s evaluate the situation.

June 25, 2019 By: Drew Hume1 Comment

Image Source: zerohedge.com

This image has been doing the rounds on social media the last week or so. And I see that a lot of people are worried or just straight-up scared about the situation. This fear is mostly the result of journalism, rather than the science, so I’d like to take it all a step back and go through and share with you the science of this finding, what it means and also what it doesn’t mean.

[Read more…]

Why men should touch more men.

October 25, 2018 By: Drew Hume3 Comments

men touching

I’ve been mulling this one over a lot.

And it’s a big one. The subject of this post is not only eye-catching, it’s exactly what the world would benefit from on many levels. [Read more…]

Question everything you think you know about pain.

July 21, 2018 By: Drew Hume3 Comments

pain - standing on a pinPain is not what you think it is. This article is a culmination of an important email series that tackles some of the most mind-blowing facts about pain! A subject this important and this complex takes time to dissect and present, so even though you’ll need a bit of time here, it’s worth it. Not only will this tutorial help you to understand pain better, as long as you utilize the information within, it should also lead to better self-management of pain.

To start with, I want to tell you that pain is all in your head.

[Read more…]

Does Posture Even Matter?

May 6, 2018 By: Drew Hume2 Comments

good posture

Image Source: vitalitydepot.ca.


There’s this concept of “good posture” out there, and we think that working on our posture will solve a lot of our aches and pains. The issue is, the vast majority of postural recommendations are unsupported by research. [Read more…]

Did You Know? Herniated Discs Actually Don’t Hurt

August 6, 2017 By: Drew Hume3 Comments

herniated disc

Image Source: njib.org/.

Now, before you protest with your own experience of disc herniation, I’m not saying that it’s all in your head. You might certainly be experiencing significant pain at the same time as a disc herniation, however that doesn’t demonstrate causation. The cause of your pain is actually NOT the herniation, but other associated (and sometimes non-associated) pathologies. In recent years we’ve had to investigate this more because numerous studies have found that approximately 75% of people who have herniations are not in any pain! (reference). [Read more…]

A Comprehensive Guide To Describing Pain: Helping Us Help You

July 19, 2017 By: Drew Hume1 Comment

pain

Art by us, using images from: apa.org & wired.com.

When asked by your massage therapist, manual therapist or other medical professional to describe pain, it can be quite difficult to put it into words. It’s more important than you may realize to give your wellness-team a clear description so that they can use best-practices and ensure your safety, and an effective treatment. We’ve put this guide together for you, to help you help us in your treatment! Using these terms and expanding your pain-vocabulary to be able to clearly describe your pain or sensation helps us take the best possible approach when working with you. [Read more…]

Secrets Of A Great Scalp Massage (4 Tips To Bliss)

June 16, 2017 By: Drew Hume5 Comments

scalp massage

Image Source: krakowmasaze.pl.

Never underestimate the power of a great scalp massage to release tension, de-stress and send someone into a deeply relaxed state. It’s something that we can all do for family and friends, and there are 4 top-tips to practice below. Also, there’s a video at the end with the basics reiterated! [Read more…]

Massage & Intimacy: The Issues, The Discussion & The Solution

May 6, 2017 By: Drew Hume8 Comments

intimacy as defined by pop culture

Image Source: powerofpositivity.com.

Massage is intimate. Right out of the gate, let’s get that one thing clear. Human touch is an intimate experience. You simply cannot change that. Whether it’s Thai massage with clothes on or Swedish massage, with clothes off. The thing is, intimacy is mostly [and incorrectly] confused with sexuality. This is a far-reaching issue that goes beyond massage alone and relates to our overall lack of touch vocabulary as a disconnected society.

I also want to establish from the beginning that I strongly dislike articles that use yoga and massage as sexual gateways [and click-bait]. Therefore this may be the only blog I ever publish related in any way to the discussion on sex. So it’s a thorough post, and it opens a number of different discussions. [Read more…]

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 6
  • Next Page »

Most Popular Reads:

Touching Trauma - Image source: everydayhealth.com For most of my life I lived in a suspended cycle of fear initiated by childhood sexual abuse. I continuously wondered when the next abuse might happen. Living this way, in fear and with trauma lurking in the recesses of my body… [...]
deep tissue massage Just Because It Hurts Doesn’t Make It A “Deep Tissue Massage”. - When you think of a "deep tissue massage" you're typically led to believe that this is going to be an inherently painful experience. This misconception is a widely believed notion. Not only should deep tissue massage NOT be painful, I'm going to tell you that… [...]
tight iliotibial (it) band Yes, Your IT-Band Is Tight…But It Should Be. - The iliotibial band gets a bad rap - and it's not it's fault! It's meant to be tight. There are a bunch of other things though that aren't meant to be and are making your IT band feel tighter. [...]
plantar fasciitis pain Thai Massage & Plantar Fasciitis - Plantar fasciitis is a very common condition that results in pain and in some cases forced immobility due to the level of discomfort. What can we do about it? We're here to talk about the influence a Thai Massage treatment can have on plantar fasciitis. [...]

Student login

Host Us

Press

Copyright © 2021 · Navina.ca