‘Happier’ With Dave Flynn
The Comfort Trap Part 2
Becoming More Embodied
As I sit on the padded floor of my 11-month-old daughter Fia’s room, I marvel at her embodied state of being. She is fully engaged with her primitive, mammal mode of exploring movement and discovering what her body can do. Fundamentally embodied, Fia is sensing, feeling, and interacting with her environment through the innate wisdom of her physical form. She is fully engaged and present in her body, marveling and curious.
This column is building on last weeks’ ‘Happier’ Column titled The Comfort Trap where I laid out the idea that our excess of modern comforts could likely be contributing to less fulfilment, joy and happiness. With the massive rise of humans sitting for a prolonged amount of time, and most work nowadays being office based, I sometimes think that – as a society – we are starting to see our bodies as simply a vehicle to transport our brains around. Today’s column is about the idea of becoming more physically embodied as a way to feel a little happier. In essence, to move more from our heads to our hearts and bodies, to become more ‘embodied’ and maybe a little bit more whole.
Dis-embodied?
The other day, I was walking down the street and counted 10 people who I walked past who had their head buried in their phone nearly walking into me or a lamp post! I have definitely been guilty of doing that too, so I am definitely not judging. It just made me even more aware of how modern life with all its alluring screens and fancy technologies is drawing us away from our physical form and the wonder of the world around us.
I can’t help but believe that reclaiming this sense of physical embodiment could be a key to greater happiness and fulfilment. I believe that when we are fully present in our senses, attuned to the rhythms and needs of the body, we are more likely to experience the richness of the here and now. All great sages say the same thing: that life happens here and now, and I believe that fully inhabiting our body and engaging with our senses is key to this.
A few years ago, Steve and I went to an event in London. It was in an industrial estate in North London in a private show kitchen and it blew us away. It was a sensorial dinner. The first course we were given nose pegs and invited to put them on. The chef explained that our sense of smell (olfactory glands) is directly linked to our taste. This is why wine tasters slurp their wine, to get more air passing across the surface of the wine so they can ‘taste’ the wine via their nose!
But back to the story: the first course we put on these nose pegs and were given a black jelly and asked to guess what we could taste. Neither of us could taste a thing. When we removed the nose peg and tasted again, our taste receptors were flooded with an explosive taste of red berries, the black colour was simply to mislead us. The evening progressed with another course where we had to wear headphones with certain music that influenced the taste and we had to rub our hand on a rough surface while eating our dessert to show how touching a rough surface makes us experience more of a crunch like taste
The sensorial dinner experience really emphasised the power of fully engaging our senses to be present in our bodies and delight in the richness of the moment. It made us acutely aware that modern life, for all its wonders, often pulls us away from this embodied state of awareness, keeping us trapped in the distracted, busy hum of daily routines. By reconnecting to the wisdom of our physical form, we can cultivate a greater sense of aliveness, presence, and connection – key ingredients for a happier human experience.
Is the body just a means to transport our brain around?
At the moment, a part of me is slightly worried that much of modern life relegates the body to a mere vehicle for the brain. Yet the body and brain are inextricably linked, connected by the same nervous system. By becoming more embodied, life has the potential to become richer in the true sense of the word – not just materially, but in our ability to connect more deeply, feel more intensely, and harmonise with ourselves, one another, and the natural world. Moving beyond seeing the body as secondary to the mind opens up profound possibilities for self-awareness, belonging, and joy.
Wrapping it up
I invite you to reflect on your own relationship to your body. What practices or experiences help you to feel more grounded, alive, and present in your physical form? Whether it’s mindful breathing, dancing, hiking in nature, or simply making a concerted effort to unplug from screens, I believe that by doing so we are nurturing an essential aspect of the human experience.
For in doing so, we just may unlock the keys to a richer, more joyful existence. I’m curious to hear your thoughts – what helps you to feel more embodied?
Next week I plan to write about my favourite ways to become more embodied! Thank you so much as always for reading, I greatly appreciate it.
Have a lovely weekend.
Dave x
I like your “ happier”
Food for thought as always! Thanks for that, Dave..
Thank you Dave
You have given me the push to look at myself and what am doing to my body and mind… both are connected. Thanks
These are lovely “Happier” articles. I think so much has changed since I was a child ( bikes, elastics, skipping, tennis, swimming, netball/basketball, handball or a good book that we’d pass around and try not to spoil the ending of for everyone else … 😂 these items were what filled our days and kept our minds active … but like you say what I’m typing on now can’t be judged as we all use them for good or bad … but I know the turning point for my children was 13 and 11 years of age was when sports etc. slowed down and stopped all because the phones/ iPads came into the home it for travel etc.. We’ve lived abroad all their lives so have been blessed with 2 sides of living. (now the children are at the age of entering university). So a new chapter awaits them.
It’s lovely seeing more people out and about especially while the weathers been great. And good luck with your running. I’d say you’ll all be at the front of the race after all your training.
Congratulations on your articles great food for thought for sure! 🙌
Thanks Dave, I really enjoyed this article. I think we are at a very strange and challenging time in our collective “evolution “. There are huge forces pulling us away from our true nature. Screens and sugar being my two biggest addictions. Thanks for shining a light on this .