Friday Five: Mindful Pleasure
How present are your mind and spirit in intimate experiences?
Trauma, physical insecurities, anxieties and even our impending to-do list can disconnect us from our bodies and their ability to experience sensual pleasures.
Keep reading for 5 ways to connect to mindful sensuality.
Mindfulness Practice
Meditation is more than just sitting in stillness; in fact, that might not work for you at first. Anything you do with present awareness is a meditative experience, whether masturbation or cooking. Practice staying engaged in every moment and task. Notice when your thoughts begin to stray into past or future occurrences. Take a moment to journal to get your thoughts out of your head. Sing them out loud. Use your internal musings as inspiration to express externally.
2. Meditative Danz
Movement is medicine for the body and spirit. Lose yourself in your unique flow. Start with a body scan, noticing your sensations from head to toe. Let the music, sounds of nature, or rhythms of your breath begin to guide your body.
3. Sensual Erotica
Try this pleasurable practice to practice sensory awareness.
Pick your favorite fruit and carve out 10 minutes in a comfortable space. Take a few minutes to examine the fruit's outer appearance, noticing the color, texture, any marks, etc. Slowly begin to peel the outer skin, paying attention to how it unravels. Take in the fruit’s flesh, smell and texture. Close your eyes and begin to lick the fruit with your tongue, exploring and testing before you take the first bite. Savor, suck, and enjoy the taste of it in your mouth for a couple of minutes before you fully consume it.
4. Pelvic Floor Exercises
Stress, especially related to sex, can cause pelvic tension during intercourse, which can cause pain, discomfort and inhibit your ability to climax. Kegel Exercises are a great way to keep your pelvic floor health in check and make the most out of your sexual practices.
5. Tantric Partner Practices
“In the powerful gaze of your partner, there is nowhere to hide, and you practice fully revealing yourself to the other with all that you feel and all that you are.”
Eye gazing: You sit facing each other and proceed to look at each other in the eye, attempting to communicate your feelings for each other through your gazes.
“Reach across and place your right hand on your partner's heart (with consent), and they can place their right hand on your heart.”
Hands on hearts circuit: By placing one hand in your heart, and another on your partner’s, you attempt to synchronize your breathing, visualizing giving and receiving love with every breath.
