It’s easy to think of pleasure as a luxury.  Something that is nice to have, but isn’t needed.  This is a lie we have been fed, that keeps us small, stressed out, disconnected and frustrated.   If you’ve been feeling this way, it’s not your fault, we’ve been conditioned to think this way.  The good news is that you can always change your mind!  The key is to know how to make pleasure a priority so you can experience more of it and start to feel whole, free, connected and turned on.   This is your natural state. All it takes is 5 simple elements to get you there.

5 Elements of Pleasure

Breath 

Tapping into your breath will create space in your body & mind.  This will start to quiet your overactive nervous system and move you into a state of relaxation.  That is the space where pleasure and possibilities live.  All you need to do is for the next few moments to only focus on your inhales and exhales starting to slow your breathing down and allowing your inhales to be as long as your exhales.  If you are in a particularly stressful spot you can let your exhales become a little longer. 

Movement 

Then add to your breath movement.  Movement creates curiosity.  This will show you what you’re holding in your body.  It could be openness, tightness, numbness or a mixture of all three.  Just let your body move as it wants to, finding ways to move that will relax your body and increase sensation.  All you need to do is set aside any judgments that start to show up.

Sounding 

Next add sound.  What noise do you want to make?  This is usually the hardest one, because there are so many spaces where we shush ourselves.  That’s okay, you can start small by just making your exhales audible allowing space for more primal guttural noises to emerge.  This will  create excitement.  Not only will this open your throat chakra, but it will also relax your pelvic floor.

Energy 

There is a current of energy that runs through your body.  It moves your moods, your body, your expression.  By tapping into this current you start to create wisdom.  Start to see the wisdom in your emotions, desires and responses.  To tap into this current, you just need to notice what’s going on in your body right now.  Not what you want to happen, not what you think should be happening, but what is happening right now.  A simple way to do this is to do a body scan from head to toe, then notice where your body starts to pull your attention.  There is no wrong way to do this.

Presence 

The only place pleasure exists is in the present moment.  In the past it is just a memory and in the future it is illusionary.  How can you experience pleasure right now?  What is distracting you?  Pleasure isn’t a given, you need to choose it.  Choosing pleasure creates the power to experience pleasure.  The more you choose it, the easier it gets to choose pleasure over & over again.

Practice

Here’s a quick practice you can do to experience more pleasure.  Give yourself 10 minutes & a space to yourself & permission to honor whatever shows up.  It’s okay if at first you find pleasure.  The pleasure I’m after isn’t the quick thrill sort, but a deep connection to your truest self and sometimes this takes time, patience & consistency.

Start to slow your breath down.  

Count to 4 on your inhale & 4 on the exhale.  This will begin to quiet your nervous system & move you towards a relaxed state.  Take as long as you need here to get relaxed.  It is okay if at first this takes the entire 10 minutes (or more).

Then start to circle your hips

You can do this seated or standing.  This allows you to explore your body in all directions.  Notice where your body freely goes & where your body resists going.  Neither is right or wrong, just awareness that opens you to curiosity.

Start to make some noise

You can do this simply by making your exhales audible by breathing out through your mouth.  Let whatever sounds want to emerge to flow out of you.  It could be sighing, giggling, groaning or yelling etc.

Begin to tap into how you are feeling

Are you happy, sad, fearful, anxious, angry?  How is this feeling expressing itself in your body?  Do you feel sparkes, waves, pulses, stabbing, constriction, heat?  Something else?  Do you have a lot of energy?  Do you feel depleted?  Wherever you are is okay, allow yourself to experience it and don’t try to change it.  There is no one way to find pleasure.

Stay present with the sensations in the body

Energy goes to what you focus on.  To increase focus in your body you can simply start to notice what is already present, i.e. my jaw feels tight, my heart feels open, my belly is vibrating.  Be present with it and see how it evolves & flows through your body.  It’s okay if it feels uncomfortable.  The more present you can be with your sensations the more pleasure will emerge.  And it is also totally okay if you hit a limit and need to stop.  You can come back to your breath at any time & send yourself love by placing your hands over your heart. 

Notice how you feel after 10 minutes.  To build your practice, be consistent and practice daily.  If this is new to you, you may need to spend more time at first to tap in and turn on!

Enjoy!

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