The Art of Being a Healing Presence

I read a beautiful book this week, beautiful in its simplicity, and impressive in its depth. This book may even turn out to be one of my top 10 all time favourites! It is called The Art of Being a Healing Presence, written by James Miller and Susan Cutshall.

The book talked about what you can do to create an open, soothing atmosphere that facilitates top quality listening. That made sense, and wasn’t a new concept to me, but then they said ‘the most important space you prepare is not around you, but within you’. Ah!! That caused me to sit up and take notice.

“However conscientious you are about creating open, soothing space in the environment around you, it’s even more important to create a similar space inside. When people sense you’ve made room for them within you, they are more likely to open up, to feel freer to be who they are, to claim their own healing potential. If you have prepared space internally for them, they will sense it. And if you have not, they will sense that too.” (pg. 31)

Wow! I had never been told this in any life coaching or expressive arts training. It has been quite an experience for me this week to be conscious of how much open, soothing space exists within me at any given moment, and especially, when I am entering into an encounter with an individual or a group. There was a whole chapter devoted to how to create this inner open, soothing space but here’s one tip : “You may not have the luxury of being able to prepare yourself as you would like. The telephone may ring, the door may open, or your name may be called and suddenly you’re swept into a flow of ongoing requests and needs whether or not you feel ready for them. Remember to breathe evenly. With each inhalation, visualize an area being cleared away within you, little by little.” (pg. 32)

I had read this section of the book one morning, and immediately after that, I received an upsetting email. Right after that, I was to lead a Nia class. I could not deal with the email before class began, so I had the opportunity to try out the idea of visualizing an area being cleared away within me, little by little, one breath at a time. I was able to set the worries that came from the email into an area outside myself, and clear an area inside myself that felt peaceful and calm enough to be able to concentrate on the Zoom screen full of Nia ladies for the next hour.

What an extremely helpful tip! I wanted to share it with you, as well as the book recommendation, in the hopes that you may receive something that will be of help to your life too!